The Spoils of War

by Thomas Fleming

A general-turned-powerbroker, his southern-born wife and revolutionist son, an ardent feminist, and assorted elitists, politicians, and newsmen cope with the passions, griefs, and realities of post-Civil War America

Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction, Civil War

524 pages, Hardcover

First published March 13, 1985

About the author

Librarian note:
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name

Thomas James Fleming was an historian and historical novelist, with a special interest in the American Revolution. He was born in 1927 in Jersey City, New Jersey, the son of a World War I hero who was a leader in Jersey City politics for three decades. Before her marriage, his mother, Katherine Dolan Fleming, was a teacher in the Jersey City Public School System.

After graduating from St. Peter's Preparatory School in Jersey City, Fleming spent a year in the United States Navy. He received a Bachelor's degree, with honors, from Fordham University in 1950. After brief stints as a newspaperman and magazine editor, he became a full-time writer in 1960. His first history book, Now We Are Enemies, an account of the Battle of Bunker Hill, was published that same year. It was a best-seller, reviewed in more than 75 newspapers and featured as a main selection of the Literary Guild.

Fleming published books about various events and figures of the Revolutionary era. He also wrote about other periods of American history and wrote over a dozen well-received novels set against various historical backgrounds. He said, "I never wanted to be an Irish American writer, my whole idea was to get across that bridge and be an American writer".

Fleming died at his home in New York City on July 23, 2017, at the age of 90.

Reviews

[Bamboozlepig]

Two stars for the first half. The second half? Not so much. I hit a point midway through this where I just lost interest in the story and the characters. I can't pinpoint any one thing that made my interest shut down, other than it just felt really bland. It's in a series about the Stapleton family but all the books in the series work as standalones as well. Still, I'm not all that interested in trying to track down the rest of the books in the series.

[Barbara]

Overwrought melodrama about men who make war and the women they ruin. Finished it only because I wanted to know more about the end of the 19th century, the rise of yellow journalism and the Spanish American war. Since Fleming is a respected historian, I suppose this is fairly accurate but so florid, I’m not sure. No wonder it’s been ignored.

[Jenny]

I love historical fiction, particularly from the Civil War time period, so this book was right up my alley. One thing I really liked about it was that it took place in the years after the Civil War had ended and so it showed what it was like as the country tried to heal. The book follows Jonathan (a former Union general) and his second wife, Cynthia (a former southern belle), and the conflicts that inflict their marriage due to their different values and beliefs. Yet, those conflicts also occur in the society around them as former enemies try to once again become "brothers."

Another key emphasis of this book is the beginning of the women's rights movement. Through another main character, Genevieve, the reader sees the conflict within some women of those days who wrestled with whether they had to choose to be an "independent woman" or a wife/mother--or if they could be both at the same time.

I really liked the development of the characters--even if I did get frustrated with some of them sometimes! Each of the main characters grew and changed as the times around them changed--again, giving a picture of what it must have been like to live during those times.

Overall, I definitely enjoyed this book and am now interested in reading more (fiction or non-fiction) from this time period!

[Valynda]

sold 2009

[Cws]

F Fle

[Rebecca]

Loved this story, I really fell in love with the characters.