The First Dance

Skye's West #19

by Richard S. Wheeler

The First Dance  takes beloved mountain man Barnaby Skye's family to its third generation in North America.

Miles City, Montana. 1885. Barnaby Skye's mixed-blood son, Dirk, has just married a beautiful Metis girl, Therese. But Dirk’s position as a civilian translator for the U.S. army threatens to shatter their union.

Montana ranchers wrestling with livestock theft and the incursion of settlers into their range have persuaded the army to send the Metis people back to Canada. The military enlists Dirk to translate between the two sides in the brutal campaign.

Unable to reconcile her love for Dirk with the pain he is inflicting on her people, Therese flees on their wedding night. Heartbroken, Dirk rides off with the army.

Therese has a powerful vision. She is inspired to build a church that will be a gathering place for her people and a symbol of their resistance to deportation.

The suffering refugees--driven into the wilderness by Yankee soldiers and cruel ranch vigilante gangs--find a friend in Dirk and an inspiration in Therese.  In their common cause, the lovers are reunited

Genres: Fiction

352 pages, Hardcover

First published July 5, 2011

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

There are other authors with this name. One writes Marine Corps history. Another, Civil War history. Another writes in the political sciences.

Richard S. (Shaw) Wheeler was born in Milwaukee in 1935 and grew up in nearby Wauwatosa.

Reviews

[Tomi Alger · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an interesting read! Dirk and Therese get married, but then she runs away. The book relates about what each one is doing while they are not together. Dirk, as a civilian, translating for the Army, realizes the awful work the Army is doing to force the Metis people back to Canada. He cannot do it. (I agree it was awful what the Army and other Montana residents were doing to the Metis.) Therese has a vision and a mission to accomplish. Both Dirk and Therese face much opposition. I liked the book and my heart broke for the Natives who were persecuted.

[Marcile · Rating 5 out of 5]

I live in Montana and was unaware of this part of Montana's history. This book made me think about my own short comings. I really enjoyed the book and didn't find any parts where the story did not keep my attention.