First published 1985
Settlers huddle in their cabins as war parties sweep through the frontier. The French have stirred the Iroquois into fury, and now burning homesteads mark their path from New York down to Virginia. Families flee their farms or die defending them. The colonists try to band together, but they cannot match their enemies' forest skills and battle tactics. Scalping knives flash in the firelight of destroyed homes. Survivors face torture or slavery. Children watch their parents killed. The raids seem unstoppable, each attack more brutal than the last. But this wave of violence will demand its own terrible price. The Iroquois nations, despite their early victories and fierce reputation, will ultimately suffer the greatest losses of all. In this sprawling conflict that reshapes the American wilderness, no side emerges unbloodied from the carnage.
Genres: historical-fiction, military-fiction, adventure, american-history
Vibes: atmospheric, emotional, suspenseful
Tropes: enemies-to-allies, survival
Setting: New York, Virginia
Period: 1755
768 pages · Mass Market Paperback · Domain
Content warnings: violence