A Beckoning Hellfire: A Novel of the Civil War

by J.D.R. Hawkins

Book Overview

A B.R.A.G. Medallion Honoree

During the bloody American Civil War, the stark reality of death leads one young man on a course of revenge that takes him from his quiet farm in northern Alabama to the horrific battlefields of Virginia and Pennsylvania. On Christmas Eve 1862, David Summers receives dreadful news. Reeling with grief and thoughts of vengeance, he enlists and sets off for Richmond to join the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1648030777
• ISBN13: 9781648030772
• Release Date: August 2021
• Publisher: Westwood Books Publishing
• Length: 252 Pages
• Weight: 0.82 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Ms. Hawkins intrigued me sufficiently to read volume two.

Following his father's death at Fredericksburg, Virginia in December 1862, his 18 year old son, David Summers and David's best friend, Jake left their northern Alabama farms to join with J.E.B. Stuart's cavalry in Virginia. On arrival in Richmond, Jake's horse died and he was forced to join an infantry regiment, and was subsequently killed. David found his body and buried Jake on the field of battle. David with his super horse Renegade joined Stuart's Cavalry. Many adventures follow. Renegade has an injured hoof but helps David escape while on picket duty. At the conclusion of her story David, following Gettysburg is wounded and trapped in a barn. Renegade leaves him and David is left to die alone. His thoughts turned toward home, his mother and sisters. He felt the life oozing out of him and prepared to join his father and Jake, closing his eyes as the "Star Spangled Banner" accompanied him toward impending death. The next and last line is "To be continued." This novel is not "Gone with the Wind" or "Cold Mountain" or "The Crater," but it does have a good, if predictable plot. The conversations among the characters do not "ring true" and I'm left with the mystery of why the "Star Spangled Banner" was accompanying Confederate David Summers march toward death. I enjoyed reading this book, checking facts and locations and finding some fault, but Ms. Hawkins intrigued me sufficiently to read volume two. Richard N. Larsen Reviewer

The Beckoning Hellfire is an excellent book!

With all the negative attitudes about the war in Iraq, it's sometimes hard to remember that in many instances war is seen as noble. Soldiers trying to bring glory to their homeland, convinced in their actions' rightness, sure that the feeling of invincibility is enough to keep them alive. Nobility played a large part in the Civil War, and that image of fighting for your country's independence is what opens J.D.R. Hawkins' novel "A Beckoning Hellfire." Focused on a young man in a divisive atmosphere, "Hellfire" is a solid tale of what happens when doing the right thing meets bloody reality. David Summers is one of thousands of Southeners driven to enlist, desiring pure vengeance following his father's death at the Battle of Fredericksburg. Leaving his home state of Alabama he enlists in the cavalry, joining an offensive riding all the way to Pennsylvania to strike at the Union's heart. But the long journey, punctuated with absolutely vicious battles, soon strip him of his optimism and leave him hoping only to survive what comes next. Hawkins does an excellent job of portraying David's emotions, showing everything a young soldier would experience on his first tour. The thrill of seeing a camp of soldiers is soon followed by surprise at how disorderly they seem, and a gradual comfort as he joins their games. The drive to kill invading Yankees goes away quickly, replaced with numbness over taking lives and rage at losing more friends after each clash. David has to learn the difference between ideals and reality quickly, and "Hellfire" is set up to portray that. Events happen at a quick pace, beginning with a train ride out of Alabama and moving through soldiers training and looting. There's little long-term calm, as on one page David is praised by Robert E. Lee himself and on the next is swept up in a Yankee ambush. The writing paces the story perfectly, with no out-of-character hyperbole or brooding. Although David emphasizes his boredom regularly and the battles cover only a couple pages apiece, Hawkins doesn't skimp on details. Several scenes keep "Hellfire" interesting, such as Northern and Southern soldiers dueling with songs across a river and David discovering his patrol placed him in a bone-strewn battlefield. A particularly vivid image comes when David hurls a Christmas tree outside and lights it on fire, a gesture of grief and rage foreshadowing what is to come. Gestures like that fuel "A Beckoning Hellfire," and keep David's crusade for justice interesting until the very end. It's a novel that shows people who enter war looking for something profound and finding only monotony and blood, and understands how hard it can be to keep going sometimes.

A Beckoning Hellfire

A reccommended read! Each chapter doves deeper into the horror & heroism of the lead character in the Civil War. Could'nt put it down...

A must historical read.

This is a compelling historical account of the American Civil War with the fictional characters of two 18 year old friends, David and Jake, who go off to join the Confederate cavalry. They start off from their farms in Alambama and travel to Richmond, Virginia in 1862. The romantic and idealistic side of war that they envisioned is replaced by the cold realities of war. Death, isolation, suffering and cruelty. The book takes the reader on a whirlwind of battles as their unit moves northward into Pennsylvania. It evokes the strongest of emotions and makes one reacess their viewpoints towards war and the propensity of man's innate aggressive nature.

Awesome book with amazing accuracy

This book was really cool. The character progression that protagonist, David, goes through is deep and compelling. And the battle scenes made my stomach churn (but in a good way) from their gritty realism. Definitely pick this book up!