Review: This Old World by Steve Wiegenstein

Title: This Old World
Author: Steve Wiegenstein
Format: Ebook
Publisher: Blank Slate Press
Publish Date: September 1, 2014
Source: I received a copy from the author; however, this did not affect my review.

What's the Story:

From Goodreads.com: "The community of Daybreak survived the war. Can it survive the peace? After the war, James Turner and the other men of Daybreak return home to find that war has changed their Utopian community forever. Charlotte Turner, Marie Mercadier and the other women they left behind survived raiders and bushwackers, raised up children, and survived on little more than dogged determination. Now that the men are back-those who fought for the North and those who fought for the South-the community must somehow put the past behind them. But some carry scars too deep to heal, and others carry hate they have no intention of letting go."

My Two Cents:

"This Old World" is the follow-up to Wiegenstein's earlier book, "Slant of Light." In this book, the Civil War has ended and the men are returning home to Daybreak, the utopian community at the center of "Slant of Light." What they will find there is not what they left. The world is a different place now and the community has changed as well. The changes are at the center of this story.

"This Old World" is not really a standalone story. The main action in the book is standalone but because this second book is mostly action, you may need a reminder of who all of the major players in the book were. You get much more of an introduction to the characters in the first book and I had to go back to remind myself of the characters as I had read "Slant of Light" so long ago. That being said, go back and read "Slant of Light" and then read "This Old World. Both are great historical fiction books!

The things that I liked in "Slant of Light" continued to be what I liked in "This Old World." The author uses a lot of great detail to really pull the readers into the story. I was especially pulled in by the plight of the men who returned to Daybreak. Not only has their community changed but they have changed as well and after seeing so many of the unspeakable things they witnessed during the war. I really liked how the author showed how the men coped (well or not so well) with being back home as it really rang true to me. Overall, I really enjoyed the continuing saga of the people of Daybreak.