Schlussel's Woman [Paperback]

J. R. Lindermuth (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 22, 2003

Early in the 19th Century, expanding markets for Pennsylvania's anthracite coal created a smaller scale prelude to the later California gold rush. It was an era as wild as any the West ever knew-yet it has been rarely depicted in history. A native of the Coal Region and avid student of its history, the author has attempted to provide an accurate sense of this particular time and place in a story probing the cost of unrestrained ambition.Many of those who flocked to the region were ambitiously ruthless in pursuit of this "black gold." Captain Isaac Schlussel is typical of the breed, though he approaches his goal of wealth by supplying the blasting powder needed to develop deep mining rather than by grubbing in the earth.Then, Schlussel is felled by an assassin's bullet. His greed has provided a multitude of suspects who are introduced in chapters which flash back and forth in time to reveal his history and his obsession with the beautiful woman who is both his wife and the unintentional source of his downfall.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

A retired newspaper editor/writer, John Richard Lindermuth has published articles, stories and illustrations in a variety of magazines. He is currently librarian of the Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, Historical Society. His interests include mysteries (natural and unnatural), the outdoors and history.

Product Details

• Paperback: 204 pages
• Publisher: iUniverse (October 22, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0595299296
• ISBN-13: 978-0595299294
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,673,036 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A risk- taking society, unconstrained by fear of failure, August 31, 2004

By 

Betsie's Literary Page (United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Schlussel's Woman (Hardcover)

August 29, 2004

Considered the spawn of Satan, Captain Isaac Schlussel is a wealthy dominant dictator. Despised by most, if not all, within the village he himself created. So much, that during a meeting on the night of April 15, 1830 this ruthless man is shot.

Nancy Ann Cadwallader Schlussel, the captain's young wife considers herself as much property, as the slaves that maintained the enormous estate.

Unafraid and with life hanging by a string, Schlussel contemplates his very existence and the man that had summoned the courage to fire the fatal blow, destroying his dreams, plans and future. Guilt ridden, Nancy keeps vigil by his bedside for two nights.

With a cast of shady, suspicious characters only one-question remains: Who fired the gun? And why?

With well-done research author John Richard Lindermuth has woven an exceptional tale, and it shows in his depictions of this time period. Schlussel's Woman will not only give a glimpse into the "gold rush" days, entrepreneurial capitalism but also of the men who helped mold it. There are no illusions about the cynical and ruthless nature of this era. This is certainly one book you won't want to miss!

Reviewed by Betsie

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Schlussel's Woman, August 27, 2007

By 

Anne K. Edwards "AKE" (Pennsylvania) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Schlussel's Woman (Hardcover)

Enjoy a tale by a very talented storyteller who creates a time and place you've never been, yet upon reading this book, you'll feel like you know the people, time and place. His people are very real and very human and you'll feel as though you've stepped back in time, yet the people will seem familiar.

An ambitious man, Captain Schlussel, has created enemies by his relentless drive for money and power. He owns a gun powder factory and the town where the workers live. He has married a girl barely in her teens upon the death of his first wife. Will his enemies bring about his downfall? How?

His wife is beginning to realize how empty her life is when an itinerant artist appears at their door. Thus begins a period of complicated relationships for her and a growing emotional distance from her husband. What will happen if he realizes what is happening under his own roof?

A finely balanced tale of love and hate, indifference and greed, with you as an additional character in the story, peering into the portals of the hearts and minds of characters as they decide their own fates. Reading this book is like going home in the sense of realism the author manages to inject into his characters personalities, some you'll seem to recognize as old friends.

Highly recommended as a read you won't soon forget. You'll be looking for other books by this talented author. A keeper you'll want to reread. Enjoy. I certainly did.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A good 19th century mystery, July 10, 2007

By 

Robert E. Keesey "WC Keesey" (Harrisburg, PA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Schlussel's Woman (Hardcover)

The past and present in Isaac Schlussel's life merge in this tale as the feared and revered man lays on what may well be his deathbed. The players are viewed through the victims remembrances of his past life.

John Lindermuth's landscape and character descriptions take the reader to a bygone day when our country's settlers struggled to find happiness, success and justice: by any means. The puzzle doesn't come together till the end of the book. Good read, John.

Reviewed by Wanda C. Keesey