(4) YA Tacy's brother, David, cannot enlist in the Northern army. Consequently, he struggles with his role as caretaker for his mother and sister while others fight. With the Battle of Gettysburg raging around them, Tacy witnesses her brother's inner battle as he discovers his place among the soldiers. Although the book is fairly formulaic, the genuine characters and historical context will satisfy Rinaldi fans.

Reviewer: Juliet S. King

(4) YA Rinaldi offers conjecture on Revolutionary War figure Catharine Littlefield Greene and her family. The tale is related from the perspectives of first Caty then her daughter, Cornelia. The story line about Caty's (historically unconfirmed) adultery overshadows the more interesting exploration of her emotional life and radical change of demeanor from joyful adolescence to discontented middle age. Bib.

Reviewer: Juliet S. King

(4) YA Leigh Ann leads a sheltered life. Failing to understand the serious nature of the war that rages around her, she ends up putting her family--and herself--at risk. As a result, she's arrested by the Yankees and shipped up North. Rinaldi fans and Civil War buffs will enjoy the historical details and forgive the story's rather abrupt denouement. An author's note is appended. Bib.

Reviewer: Juliet S. King

(4) YA During the Civil War's siege of Vicksburg, Claire Louise's family, like many others, lives in a cave while waiting to return home. As Claire Louise's brother and father fight on opposite sides, the family's bond is tested. The story includes some far-fetched subplots, but its unique setting and vivid descriptions are affecting. Bib.

Reviewer: Lauren Aimonette LIang

(4) 4-6 Elizabeth I narrates her life from the age of nine until she takes the throne of England at twenty-six. Dangerously fluctuating family relationships, court politics, and religious controversies make up the book's plot. Elizabeth's voice is a bit too prosaic, showing little of the wit or vitality that made her one of England's most influential leaders. Rinaldi's historical research is sound. Bib.

Reviewer: Megan Lynn Isaac

(4) 4-6 Juliet Bradshaw's brother, a guerrilla Confederate fighter, is the only family she has left. Incarcerated with other sisters and wives of soldiers, Juliet survives her prison building's collapse, which kills almost everyone. Rinaldi's impassioned characters will sustain readers' interest, though some of the portrayals are sanitized or overly sentimentalized. An author's note explains the real events on which the story is based. Bib.

Reviewer: Juliet S. King

(4) YA Eleven-year-old Harriet is spellbound by Nat Turner, who works for a time on her family's plantation. While there, he convinces her to create a map of the surrounding plantations. Rinaldi's account of the Nat Turner rebellion is fascinating and disturbing in its gruesome detail. A melodramatic plot twist at the end is gratuitous and irrelevant. An author's note is appended. Bib.

Reviewer: Juliet S. King

(4) 4-6 The shifting first-person narrative separately treats the childhoods of Mary Todd Lincoln and her dressmaker, Keckley, a former slave. Though much is known about Lincoln, Keckley's story is mostly conjecture, and while both women are intriguing characters in American history, this novel's lack of focus will leave readers confused about fact versus fiction. A prologue, epilogue, and author's note are included.

Reviewer: Jeannine M. Chapman

(3) YA Great Episodes series. CeCe McGill struggles to understand why her cantankerous father would sacrifice his life to aid slaves traveling the Underground Railroad. While accompanying her uncle to plantations in pre–Civil War Georgia, CeCe begins to appreciate her family's ideals. Rinaldi's narrative addresses head-on the atrocities of slavery and one young woman's urgency to help free those in bondage. An author's note gives background information. Bib.

Reviewer: Juliet S. King

(4) YA Great Episodes series. For two years after the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation, Luli and her plantation-owning family hide the truth: that Sis Goose, born a slave, is now free. Rinaldi's well-researched portrait of post-Civil War Texas sometimes drags and the narrative jumps in time, but the complex relationship between Luli and her brother Gabe (who is also Sis's lover) stands out. Bib.

Reviewer: Amy Lee Bennett

(4) 4-6 While Rinaldi takes some liberties with the facts, this is a generally apt and compelling fictionalized account of Jane Grey, queen of England after Edward VI. Jane chronicles her life from her stay with Henry VIII and Katharine Parr when she was nine until her beheading at the age of sixteen--a result of her father-in-law's plot to keep Mary from the throne. Bib.

Reviewer: Jeannine M. Chapman

(4) 4-6 Rinaldi fictionalizes her grandparents' South Carolina courtship and their early married life in Brooklyn at the turn of the twentieth century. Written in journal form, the story predictably but appealingly chronicles teenage Rose's doubts about her older Yankee suitor, the couple's early marital spats, and their deepening love. An author's note is appended. Bib.

Reviewer: Juliet S. King

(3) 4-6 Taking as her inspiration the "great Negro plot" in New York in 1741, Rinaldi invents a slave, Phoebe, who ponders loyalty, self-preservation, and betrayal after a fellow slave is burned alive for conspiracy and names others in an attempt to try to save himself. With a believable historical setting, this engaging story presents its ethical puzzles in an accessible fashion. Bib.

Reviewer: Anita L. Burkam

(4) 4-6 Mary Fletcher, daughter of a Tahitian woman and Fletcher Christian, who led the mutiny of the HMS Bounty, must hide her true identity to remain safe. The tale is highly predictable and some plot devices seem unnecessary, but the premise of the story will intrigue Rinaldi's many fans. Bib.

Reviewer: Lauren Aimonette LIang

(4) YA Keeping George Washington's former home at Mount Vernon a neutral and safe haven at the center of the Civil War proves difficult, but not impossible, for eighteen-year-old Sarah Tracy. Based on a true story, Rinaldi's tale of strength and endurance loses some force as romance overwhelms it by the end. An author's note separates fact from fiction. Bib.

Reviewer: Juliet S. King

(3) YA Great Episodes series. Sixteen-year-old Patsy and nine-year-old Anne reveal life in the home of their famous father Patrick Henry. Surprisingly, it is not politics that dominate their lives but the increasing mental illness of their mother. The emotional turmoil within the house is richly detailed, and the sisters' voices are authentic. Bib.

Reviewer: Lauren Aimonette LIang

(4) 4-6 Thirteen-year-old Eulinda, a slave (and her master's daughter), takes interest in the nearby Andersonville prison camp when she learns that her brother, an escaped slave who joined the Union army, is being held there. Clara Barton makes a cameo appearance, and despite some underdeveloped characters, this is a fascinating historical novel. Bib.

Reviewer: Lauren Aimonette LIang

(4) YA Beginning in 1775 with her early childhood memories and ending with her flight to freedom in 1796, Oney Judge recalls her days as a privileged slave in George Washington's household and her gradual realization that personal liberty matters more than material comforts. Based on a real life, this fictional memoir is generally well paced, although historical material occasionally intrudes on the narrative. Bib.

Reviewer: Frieda F. Bostian

(4) 4-6 Fleeing an abusive father, Sarah Wheelock disguises herself as a boy and joins the Union Army. She assists a physician until her gender is discovered, then goes to work undercover for the Pinkerton Detective Agency as a maid to Rose Greenhow, notorious Confederate spy. This complicated situation occupies most of the book, which is plausible and interesting but sometimes lacks fluidity.

Reviewer: Frieda F. Bostian

(3) YA After her mother's death on her family's trip West in 1878, Lizzy's father leaves her at an all-girls' Catholic school in Santa Fe. Protestant Lizzy is at first resistant but later attempts to understand the conventions of this unfamiliar setting and faith. This novel features an eclectic collection of characters and a possible miracle based on an actual Santa Fe legend about St. Joseph, both of which will please historical fiction fans. Bib.

Reviewer: Jane Lopez-Santillana