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I knew I was in for a doozy when I started The Blue Cloak. You see, I'd heard of the Harpe brothers years ago while reading an old magazine about treasure hunting. I vaguely remembered them as river pirates around the Cave-In-Rock area and that they were particularly vicious murderers. Uh, yeah, I kinda didn't fully remember just how BAD they really were.
I've read, and enjoyed, all of the books so far in the True Colors series, and, despite the fact that each one has taken on some pretty evil historical villains or places I think this book was the darkest. The horrific crimes the Harpe brothers perpetrated are unimaginable. But in all of it Shannon McNear wove a thread of faith. Her depiction of the power of prayer in the face of evil is inspiring. I also appreciated how she didn't sugercoat the facts but kept the on-page violence from being gratuitous.
There is a lot to The Blue Cloak and I could go on about how much I learned from the story, about the time and the area, how I didn't know that the Harpe brothers had traveled with women and even children, but I really don't think those are the important things. No, aside from the power of prayer which I already mentioned, there's the importance of listening to the spiritual senses that God sometimes sends as warnings of evil. In addition, Shannon McNear's portrayal of women, through the eyes of the heroine's friend Sally Harpe, trapped by fear and abuse is, I think sadly accurate. It's easy to judge when you are on the outside but this book will open your eyes to compassion for the victims, both obvious and unseen.
The True Colors series does feature stories of historical crimes but they also have a romance element that I would be remiss in not mentioning. It was interesting to watch the relationship between Rachel and Ben slowly grow despite the darkness surrounding them. And it was nice to have that thread provide a little light to the story.
If you want to read a good story that mixes true crime with historical romance you should check out The Blue Cloak which is Shannon McNear's addition to the fascinating True Colors series.
(I received a copy of this book from the publisher. All opinions are entirely my own.)
Tena Kay
Mar 3, 2020
What did Sally get herself into?!
THE BLUE CLOAK (True Colors Series, Historical Stories of American Crime)
By: Shannon McNear
Form: Paperback
Pages: 256
Published: 3/1/2020
Isbn: 1643523147
Publisher: Barbour Books
Reviewed by: mrsboone4, Green Forest, AR USA
Date: 3/3/2020
Rating: 5 Stars
Sally Rice is a minister's daughter. She and a young man are caught in a compromising position and they have to get married. She loves Wiley Harpe, her new husband. Her childhood as a minister's daughter in no way prepared her for the horrible life she will live with her husband, his brother Micajah and two additional women.
Sally thinks that she and Wiley are on their way home, where they will live and she will keep house and raise their babies. She is sadly mistaken. Wiley has them meet up with his older brother Micajah and two other women-one of whom Micajah later marries up with. Then, Micajah informs her that He will share her, Sally also! Sally is horrified. She has no other choice. The other two women Susan and Betsey were kidnapped as young pre-teen girls and held by these two evil men. They tell Sally to submit to both men and keep her mouth shut, don't complain and you will live.
Micajah and Wiley decide to start murdering anyone whom they come into contact with. Everyone is advised on the Wilderness Trail, to join up with another group to prevent and deter crime against the settlers on the Wilderness Trail. But, what happens when you unknowingly join up with the wild Harpe Brothers? You will be hacked to pieces and all of your belongings stolen, even your clothes and your horse.
Sally's girlhood friend Rachel gives her a lovely blue cloak for a wedding gift. Rachel's family owns several trading posts along the Wilderness Trail. Rachel gives Sally a hug and tells her that she is praying for her. That's all Sally has to hold onto, as she is carried off into the wilds of Tennessee.
Ben's cousin Thomas is not very responsible and Thomas ends up being murdered by the Harpe Brothers. Ben stops in at a trading post and asks about joining up with a posse who is going after the murderers. He is gone a long time. Eventually, Micajah is killed. The women are rescued. Ben continues his hunt for Wiley.
Ben and Rachel fall in love. Wiley is eventually captured and killed as well.
It is all very hard for Sally and Rachel, because neither ever thought that Sally would be involved with this class of fiends.
Exciting story. Ms. McNear has done extensive historical research to get the information she needed to tell all about the Harpe Brothers.
Many thanks to Barbour Books for the complimentary copy and I was under no obligation to post a review.
Claudia
Mar 1, 2020
True Crime
In the front matter the author describes how difficult it was for her to write this book. She touches upon that again at the end of her Historical Notes section. Each True Colors book, of which this is number five in the series, centers around a true American crime or criminal. The Blue Cloak focuses on the story of Micajah and Wiley Harpe, AKA Roberts, serial killers that plagued Tennessee and Kentucky in the late 1700s. It is also the story of Susan, Betsey, and Sally, three women who were controlled by the Harpe men and who served as wives to them both. Susan and Betsey were stolen by the men as young girls in or near their teens. Wiley, living up to his name, tricked Sally, a Baptist preacher's daughter, into marrying him before she learned of the lifestyle they would be living. McNear successfully tackled the daunting task of writing a Christian fiction piece that could truly claim that descriptor while telling of the horrors perpetrated by Micajah and Wiley. Having the name of my current hometown of Elizabethtown, Kentucky, mentioned several times made the story all the more real to me, horrifyingly real.
This book will appeal to those who like historical fiction as well as those who like thrillers. I am grateful to have received a copy from Barbour Publishing via NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion. I was under no obligation to provide a positive review, and received no monetary compensation.
