In 1809, Meriweather Lewis, now Louisiana Territory governor, dies mysteriously at an inn, leading his friend, ornithologist Alexander Wilson, and Harrison Hull, an Army captain, to investigate, in a fact-based mystery.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Using fiction to examine real-life questions surrounding the 1809 death of the noted politician and explorer (one-half of Lewis & Clark), Burns ( Roman Nights ) comes up with a plausible solution to the mystery of what one character describes as "the only two-shot suicide in history." Lewis, governor of the Territory of Upper Louisiana, supposedly killed himself in Grinder's Stand, Tenn., but two of his friends, naturalists Harrison Hull and Alexander Wilson, are convinced that he was murdered and set out to prove it. In Grinder's Stand they hear new accounts of Lewis's death that support their hunch. When they reach the territorial capital of St. Louis, they discover that men who know too much about their friend's past are likely to end up dead themselves. Among the historical suspects the author fingers are Frederick Bates, Lewis's power-hungry successor to the office of governor, and General James Wilkinson, an associate of Aaron Burr. Intricate layers of wrongdoing in the period's wide-open fur trade provide a possible motive. This elegant, slim mystery satisfies modern expectations of conspiracy in the highest places of power.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Kirkus Reviews
According to the history books, Lewis (of Lewis and Clark fame) was shot to death at a Tennessee tavern on his way to Washington to protest the post-Jefferson government's failure to honor his expense vouchers. Here, historical novelist Burns (Roman Nights, Roman Shadows) attributes the case for suicide to three wildly disparate accounts that Betsy Grinder, the tavernkeeper's wife, gave to Major James Neelly--and sets out real-life ornithologist Alexander Wilson, a friend of Lewis's, and foppish fictional narrator Captain Harrison Hull to unearth the truth. Both in Tennessee and in St. Louis, Wilson and Hull find a miasma of political chicanery, lies, and intrigue just as thick as you'd expect from a modern political murder, and they predictably tie Lewis's death into the moneyed double-dealing of the Missouri Fur Company. And that's not all: there'll be time out, too, for some anti-slavery gentility and the War of 1812. Lively and readable, but overlong (even at its length), and not unusually compelling. -- Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.
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6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Mysterious Death, Mysterious Book,
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This review is from: The Mysterious Death of Meriwether Lewis (Hardcover)
The first item a person must relize is that this book is a Historical Novel. In other words, it is based on facts but the author takes liberty by creating a story line. This book deals with the death of the great explorer Meriwether Lewis. However, the only fact the author uses is that Mr Lewis died at Grinder Stand in Tennessee, it seems he decided to just take this sole fact and just make up the rest. The plot is simple enough. Two old friends of Meriwether Lewis decide they have nothing better to do than to become detectives and attempt to find the killer (or killers) of Mr. Lewis. Even though this might seem a simple plot, the author is determined to make it even more complicated by throwing numerous names at the reader until finally at one point this reviewer actually had to stop and reread almost half the book. Even though any level of historian will discover the numerous historical errors he or she will still be shocked at the final statement the author makes. That is "the Majority of historians, today, agree Lewis was killed". This statement is completely unfounded and actually makes this reviewer question the ability of the author to look past his own humerous fiction! Even though there will always be a need for accurate historical research on the death of Meriwether Lewis, this book does not fill the void. The author seems to forget that Meriwether Lewis was placed under arrest while in Memphis because of his numerous suicide attempts while on the Mississippi. It is a shame the author wasted this grand opportunity to create a sloppy work of fiction.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fantastic mystery,
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This review is from: The Mysterious Death of Meriwether Lewis (Hardcover)
A thoroughly engaging read, filled with historical interest, amazing characters, and a story line that makes an all night read inevitable. Scenes of St. Louis fur trade politics and US Army collapse in 1812 campaign in Great Lakes theater were fascinating. I was stunned at the elegance and complexity of the dialogues between the characters--a new high in sophistication. Burns meant to write a mystery with a backdrop of historical events. It is not an historical opus. Question: Did Meriwether get drugged throughout this book, did he have malaria, or was he unbalanced? Author does not answer these possibilities.
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