I picked up this book on a whim because I was in the bargain for a historical novel with gothic undertones and with a palpable historical backdrop.  However, The Widow of the South failed to grab me and take me to the world of its characters and time setting alike.  The Widow of the South is a fictional account on the life of Carrie McGavock, a grieving Confederate wife who has lost interest in life in general after the Civil War battle begins and her home is commandeered for a field hospital and cemetery.  She lives a miserable life after the death of three of her children, and pays little attention to her remaining living children and of her plantation, which is now under the care of a slave called Mariah.  Carrie lives quite a lonely, empty existence, wearing black gowns all the time, grieving the loss of her children.  But her life isn't the same after she meets Zachariah Cashwell, a solider who loses one of his legs during the battle.  Zachariah and Carrie begin a strange, disturbing relationship that has some very disarming moments.  There are various twists throughout the novel.

The novel started out well at first.  The Civil War has always fascinated me and the account of Carrie McGavock is quite interesting in spite of the fact that I hadn't heard about the aforementioned person until now.  The scenes centered on the battles and the things people go through due to the war are rather riveting at times and I enjoyed that part of the novel very much.  However, the story of Carrie and Zachariah put me off this story.  This "love story," though dark and morbid at times, wasn't interesting or literary to me in the slightest.  I was left wishing that the author had continued to concentrate more on the Civil War than on interactions between these two characters.  And so, the overall novel failed to grab me at that point.  Also, I wanted to know more about Carrie, about her grief and her children and about her husband, stories that weren't developed enough for my taste.  Overall, The Widow of the South is a little too disjointed for me.  There are some wonderful scenes and some symbolism thrown in for good measure, but at the end I wasn't compelled with this book and I couldn't wait to finish it.  The premise was interesting, but the plot left much to be desired.  I guess I'll have to read a more satisfactory novel with the backdrop of the Civil War elsewhere.
I picked up this book on a whim because I was in the bargain for a historical novel with gothic undertones and with a palpable historical backdrop. However, The Widow of the South failed to grab me and take me to the world of its characters and time setting alike. The Widow of the South is a fictional account on the life of Carrie McGavock, a grieving Confederate wife who has lost interest in life in general after the Civil War battle begins and her home is commandeered for a field hospital and cemetery. She lives a miserable life after the death of three of her children, and pays little attention to her remaining living children and of her plantation, which is now under the care of a slave called Mariah. Carrie lives quite a lonely, empty existence, wearing black gowns all the time, grieving the loss of her children. But her life isn't the same after she meets Zachariah Cashwell, a solider who loses one of his legs during the battle. Zachariah and Carrie begin a strange, disturbing relationship that has some very disarming moments. There are various twists throughout the novel. The novel started out well at first. The Civil War has always fascinated me and the account of Carrie McGavock is quite interesting in spite of the fact that I hadn't heard about the aforementioned person until now. The scenes centered on the battles and the things people go through due to the war are rather riveting at times and I enjoyed that part of the novel very much. However, the story of Carrie and Zachariah put me off this story. This "love story," though dark and morbid at times, wasn't interesting or literary to me in the slightest. I was left wishing that the author had continued to concentrate more on the Civil War than on interactions between these two characters. And so, the overall novel failed to grab me at that point. Also, I wanted to know more about Carrie, about her grief and her children and about her husband, stories that weren't developed enough for my taste. Overall, The Widow of the South is a little too disjointed for me. There are some wonderful scenes and some symbolism thrown in for good measure, but at the end I wasn't compelled with this book and I couldn't wait to finish it. The premise was interesting, but the plot left much to be desired. I guess I'll have to read a more satisfactory novel with the backdrop of the Civil War elsewhere.