Blog Tour & Review
"Daughter of the Regiment"
by Stephanie Grace Whitson
Captivating!
BEST-SELLING AUTHOR STEPHANIE GRACE WHITSON PAINTS COMPELLING PICTURE OF WOMEN DIVIDED BY THE CIVIL WAR IN NEW TITLE DAUGHTER OF THE REGIMENT
“Whitson celebrates the strong but unknown heroines who marched off to war with their men, as well as those who maintained the home front in this Civil War-era inspirational...Based on true events, [Daughter of the Regiment] will capture the hearts of historical fiction fans.” —Publishers Weekly
“Whitson explores the atypical subject of different women’s roles during the Civil War. The author’s gift for multi-dimensional characters and tight plotting shines through. Romance, family drama, immigrants and dueling factions in the same town add action and intrigue.” –RT Times
Nashville, TN, March, 2015—During the American Civil War, thousands of women organized to join the war efforts, turning their attention from household to battle in support of the soldiers. In her new novel, Daughter of the Regiment, Stephanie Grace Whitson describes this tumultuous time in history through life-threatening encounters and action-filled romance, sweeping readers into the world of Irish immigrant Maggie Malone and her privileged neighbor, Elizabeth Blair.
Inspired by women known as “vivandièeres” or “daughters of the regiment,” Whitson studied a number of women in both the Union and the Confederate armies who earned the title. Although "daughters" were probably initially seen as a kind of mascot, "guardian angel," or nurse, the realities of war expanded their roles. Daughters of the Regiment did much more than carry water and tend the wounded. Some rallied their men to fight, and some carried the regimental colors on the march and in the field. Others took part in battles.
“Seeing how integral women were in the conflict [moved me]. One period newspaper article [I read] was seeking the identity of a deceased soldier who was discovered to be a woman only after she died on the battlefield. Women loyal to the Confederacy and accused of helping "the enemy" were actually imprisoned in St. Louis. There were so many fascinating, diverse stories,” Whitson said. “They were extraordinary women and they deserve to be remembered.”
The book’s cover art is based on a historic dress in the Smithsonian Institute’s costume collection. FaithWords worked with a costume designer who used the original for inspiration and created a historically accurate garment for the cover model to wear during the cover shoot.
Whitson’s extensive historical research led her to choose the setting of Missouri—a border state in the war and a hotbed of division, with both pro-Union and pro-Confederacy sympathies. This riveting tale of two women caught in the crossfire represents the complexity of tensions and humanity when opposing sides of war clash.
DAUGHTER OF THE REGIMENT demonstrates that we all have potential for determination and courage in times of uncertainty and will appeal to American history buffs, inspirational romance readers, and fiction audiences alike.
Review copies, hi-res images, and author interviews are available upon request.
Pub date: March 24, 2015 | 978-1-4555-2903-2| 336 Pages | $15 | Trade Paperback Original |Available wherever books are sold.
Description
Maggie Malone inevitably experiences the effects of war firsthand—first, with her brothers joining the Missouri Irish Brigade and again when a group of unknown bandits attack her farm. Desperate to hear news from her brothers, Maggie sets off to find them at the Federal Army camp. There, she quickly captures the admiration of Sergeant John “Colt” Coulter, who immediately notices her skill and dedication. When circumstances require that Maggie remain with the brigade, she discovers that there’s a lot a good woman can do to help the brave men she comes to think of as “her boys.”
As the hostess of an acclaimed Missouri plantation, Miss Libbie Blair has learned to play her part and remain uninvolved in the business affairs and political aspirations of her brother, Walker. When his endeavors lead him to organize the “Wildwood Guard,” a group of locals in support of the Confederacy, Libbie must gracefully manage the house with officers camped out on the lawn. With war drawing closer to her doorstep, she must find a way to protect those who depend on her.
When military maneuvers and a subsequent battle bring the Irish Brigade (and Maggie) to Wildwood Grove, Libbie's home is commandeered as a field hospital. The two women whose brothers have fought on opposite sides of the same battle come face to face while tending the wounded in the aftermath of a battle won by Union troops.
To order Daughter of the Regiment:
My Thoughts ~
Irish Immigrant, Maggie Malone lives in a man's world on the farm her father built after moving to Missouri. After her brothers join Missouri's Union Irish Brigade, leaving her and her Uncle Paddy to run the farm on their own Maggie takes things into her own hands. A strong and strong-willed young woman, she braves the journey to find her brothers after her farm has been ransacked, livestock killed, animals stolen, and her Uncle Paddy badly beaten.
Maggie is so well described in "Daughter of the Regiment," she comes alive in every detail. All of the characters throughout this book are portrayed in poignant and believable descriptives. The author's use of such strong characters brings the reader into the story, making the story tangible. I felt I walked alongside Maggie throughout whatever circumstances presented themselves.
A wide variety of characters come to life in this moving depiction of the life and times of the Civil War. Strong, colorful, sensitive, each individual is developed with care. The landscape is pictorial and described with detail and clarity. Knowing only the more talked about locations where the Civil War was fought, the Missouri involvement was new to me. The author transports the reader from plantation life to the fields and ravages of war, and evokes emotions of the deepest kind.
I became so engrossed in this novel that the hours flew by as I became a part Maggie's life, and the lives with whom she was involved. I will undoubtedly read this book again. It was a deeply moving portrayal of life at a time when no one knew who to trust or believe. I highly recommend "Daughter of the Regiment."
Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from Hachette Book Group in exchange for my honest review. All opinions expressed are my own, and no monetary compensation was received for this review.
Biography
Stephanie Grace Whitson is the author of over twenty-seven titles. A frequent ECPA bestseller, Whitson is a RT Book Reviews Reviewers’ Choice Winner and a two-time Christy Award finalist. When she isn’t writing, speaking, or trying to keep up with her five grown children and perfect grandchildren, she loves to take long distance rides aboard her Honda Magna motorcycle named Kitty. Her church and the International Quilt Study Center and Museum take up the rest of her free time. She received her Master of Arts degree in history in 2012. Stephanie and her husband reside in southeastern Nebraska.
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MEET-THE-AUTHOR
Saturday, April 11 at 2:00 p.m. @ Barnes & Noble Southpointe Pavilions (Lincoln, NE)
Friday, April 17 @ 11:00 a.m. @ Crete Public Library (Crete, NE)
Program lecture ‘Women in the Civil War: From Homefront to Battlefield’
April 24-25, Panel & keynote address @ Wordsowers Christian Writer's Group Conference (Omaha, NE)
Tuesday, April 28 at 7:00 p.m. @ Wisner Heritage Museum (Wisner, NE)
Program lecture ‘Women in the Civil War: From Homefront to Battlefield’
Saturday, May 2, time TBA @ Chapters Book Store (Seward, NE)
Thursday, June 11 at 7:00 p.m. @ Lexington Public Library with Plum Creek Quilt Guild (Lexington, NE)
Program lecture ‘Women in the Civil War: From Homefront to Battlefield’
Additional events TBA.
DAUGHTER OF THE REGIMENT: A Novel by Stephanie Grace Whitson
Faithwords | Hachette Book Group
March 24, 2015 | 978-1-4555-2903-2
336 Pages | $15 | Trade Paperback Original
Author Questionnaire
Why did you pick Missouri as the setting for your book?
I've lived in Nebraska since 1975, but I have many connections to Missouri and have made the trip "home" to southern Illinois dozens of times. Finally, I took time to investigate one of those interstate signs. It mentioned a Confederate Cemetery in Missouri. The idea that there were plantations worked by slaves a short drive east of Kansas City astonished me when I first followed those signs. I had no idea that Missouri had been such a hotbed of division during the Civil War. As one author wrote, "The Civil War came early and stayed late" in Missouri—it was a slave state that never joined the Confederacy. Missouri had two separate governments at one time—one pro-Union, one pro-Confederacy.
Any interesting discoveries along the way?
Dozens. One that stands out resulted from an exhibit called “Missouri in the Civil War” at the Missouri History Museum in St. Louis. The curators did a superb job of showing how integral women were in the conflict. They even included a period newspaper article seeking the identity of a deceased soldier—discovered to be a woman after her death in battle. Women loyal to the Confederacy and accused of helping "the enemy" were actually imprisoned in St. Louis. I discovered countless fascinating and diverse stories about women from all walks of life.
What inspired you to write this novel?
Reading about the real Daughters of the Regiment. Their heroism. One replaced a fallen color-bearer and stood throughout the battle with the colors held high so that her regiment knew who was where in the heat of battle. After a battle, one's skirt was riddled with bullet holes. She’d carried on, calmly tending the wounded with bullets whistling about her. Men wrote about these women with affection and respect. One earned a pension for her service, and another is buried at Arlington National Cemetery. They were extraordinary women, and they deserve to be remembered.
How did the cover shoot come about?
There is an original vivandièeres costume in the collection at the Smithsonian Institution. (The word vivandièeres comes from the women who were important in the French army during the Crimean war.) FaithWords worked with a costume designer who used the original for inspiration and created a historically accurate garment for the cover model to wear during the cover shoot. It's a stunning piece made of soft, dark blue wool—very faithful to what a Daughter of the Regiment might actually have worn, complete with the shorter skirt that is pictured in so many period photographs and drawings (not all of these are military women, some are just in bloomers, but there are still some that are obviously military).
What about the timeliness of the book?
On the 150th anniversary of the end of the Civil War and Women’s History Month, it is only fitting to laud the role women played. They worked in munitions factories, organized fundraising events to feed the hungry wives and children of soldiers who were off fighting, collected thousands of quilts to keep soldiers warm (neither government was prepare for the magnitude of the war and neither was able to supply their troops adequately), made countless shirts and "drawers," knitted socks and destroyed household towels and garments to make bandages. They took up the farm work in the men's absence, delivered clandestine letters (and were imprisoned for it), and supported "the cause" in every way imaginable. Such rich stories from real history are better stories than anything I could ever make up!
Tell us about the crossover between your quilting experience and Civil War research.
Quilting is a multi-billion dollar industry in America, and many of those women do love the history and stories about the women who made antique quilts.
Antique textiles in general and quilts in particular have been a topic of personal study for decades. I've taken several classes in dating both antique quilts and fabric history from recognized experts in the field. I volunteer at the International Quilt Study Center and Museum in Lincoln, Nebraska. Researching the real stories behind antique quilts has inspired more than one of my historical novels, and I always enjoy being able to include some tidbit of quilt history in a story. The interest is high for this topic, as evidenced by the many Civil War exhibits at state history museums and historical societies, not the least of which is the American Textile History Museum’s Homefront and Battlefield: Quilts & Context in the Civil War, which premiered in June, 2012, and which tours across the U.S. through 2015.
I give a program titled “Women in the Civil War: From Homefront to Battlefield” that includes information about quilts gathered and made for soldiers, ladies' aid societies established to benefit the troops, and the Sanitary Fairs conducted to raise money for the cause. Women's production of textiles was a vital part of the war effort for both North and South.
