South of Shiloh

By Chuck Logan

Book Overview

Dedicated devotees of history gather near Corinth, Mississippi, carrying ancient weapons and dressed in authentic Civil War uniforms, to refight the Battle of Kirby Creek. But during the reenactment, a sniper's bullet rips through an unsuspecting participant . . . and a man who lived for mock war dies for his obsession. The fatal shot was intended for Kenny Beeman--a Mississippi cop standing next to the victim--a grim discovery that compels the dead man's widow to enlist the aid of her former lover, news photographer John Rane. Armed with an accurate Sharps Civil War rifle and live ammunition, Rane must now join forces with Beeman in a bizarre world of pretend soldiers. For a modern-day war born of corruption and greed is about to erupt on hallowed ground--and the battlefield of Shiloh will run red with blood once again.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0061136700
• ISBN13: 9780061136702
• Release Date: March 2009
• Publisher: Harper
• Length: 496 Pages
• Weight: 0.55 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 4.2" x 6.8"

Customer Reviews

South of shiloh

It was great to read another book by Chuck Logan, and especially one with a new lead character. every book we have read by him is great. highly recommend all of his books.

A deep, quiet masterpiece

Chuck Logan is known primarily for his Phil Broker novels, but his latest offering is not one of those. SOUTH OF SHILOH is a dramatically different turn for Logan, a book that surprises with its page-by-page richness, depth and ability to transcend its genre. The story is set in one of the most interesting areas of the United States --- northern Mississippi in the vicinity of the Tennessee border. It begins with the death of Paul Edin, an insurance salesman from Minnesota who is participating in a Civil War reenactment of the Battle of Kirby Creek near the Mississippi town of Corinth. Logan's attention to detail with respect to what goes into the preparation for participation in a Civil War battle reenactment is worth the price of admission here all by itself. But the ultimate focus is Edin, who finds himself in the wrong place at the wrong time, inadvertently taking a bullet meant for Kenny Beeman, a local police officer. That bullet was fired by Mitchell Lee Nickels, whose marriage into the prosperous and influential Kirby family ultimately cannot overcome his background and heredity, which includes a feud with Beeman's family that goes back at least one generation. Edin, as we learn in beautifully understated dribs and drabs, was a solid, dependable and decent man, raising a 10-year-old daughter, Molly, who he knew was not his own. Edin's widow, Jenny, had been discussing with him shortly before his death how they were going to approach Molly with the news concerning her paternity. Jenny is literally on the verge of bringing John Rane, Molly's biological father, into the discussion when she learns of her husband's death. Rane is a well-known news photographer, and, as we come to learn, something more. While he could face the open end of a gun barrel armed with nothing but a camera, he could not confront the duties of fatherhood and left another man to do so. Though Edin's death is officially ruled an accident, the result of an apparent negligent misfire by an accidentally loaded gun, Rane decides to conduct his own investigation. Traveling to Corinth, ostensibly to do a photo feature on the Civil War reenactments and Edin's death, Rane meets up with Beeman and forms an almost immediate kinship with him, forged in the sudden death of a man whom neither knew well but to whom both owe much for different reasons, which have common elements nonetheless. As their investigation into the circumstances of Edin's shooting confirms that Edin was indeed the victim of a bullet meant for Beeman, the men begin to take different paths toward a single-minded pursuit of justice and retribution. There is more going on here, however, than the book reveals at first blush. Nickels's sins are many, and as they are slowly uncovered, they also come back to haunt him in ways he cannot anticipate. As the novel proceeds steadily toward a suspenseful, pulse-pounding climax, debts are paid but not without cost. SOUTH OF SHILOH is a deep, quiet masterpiece, one that sh

this guy can write

One protaganist is described, "An utter failure in the small gestures of ordinary life, Rane excelled in crisis". Others are not what we usually expect. The author weaves a tapestry of history, mystery and domestic pain that will provide hours of entertainment. The good get punished, the bad slip by and the dumb pay a price. Snipers, photographers, newsmen, cops, reenactors and wives, all have a part. You can have a good time.

exciting thriller

At the reenactment of the Civil War battle of Kirby Creek, Mississippi visiting Minnesotan Paul Edin dies when he is shot. The Corinth sheriff's department rules death due to accident with no investigation. The victim's widow Jenny grieves her loss, but accepts the official position until she hears a rumor that the bullet that killed her Paul might have been intended for Sheriff Deputy Kenny Beeman, who was near her late spouse when he was killed. Needing to know the truth, Jenny gets her former lover and biological father of her child that Paul lovingly helped her raise, John Rane to investigate. A cop turned photographer, John teams up with Kenny to try to uncover the truth; but what they find out shakes both as someone plans a real bloody reenactment of the battle of Shiloh The whodunit is cleverly devised; the planned bloody massacre lacks some supportive substance, but in a world of terrorism seems plausible; and the lead sleuths are fully developed; however, this exciting thriller belongs to the support cast. Chuck Logan provides his audience a deep look into the souls of the reenactors who replay the Civil War with passion and diligence down to every minute detail. Harriet Klausner