Review by Sharon2056 -- The McCoys Before The Feud

[Sharon2056]

[Following is a volunteer review of "The McCoys Before The Feud" by Thomas McCoy.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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The McCoys: Before The Feud by Thomas A. McCoy is a thrilling and captivating historical fiction that delves deeper into the family of the McCoy’s clan during the civil war. The McCoys family is committed to bringing back all the bounty that was stolen from the southerners by the northern soldiers during the civil war.

The book begins with Thomas McCoy Junior mostly known as Tommy and Thomas senior his father, planning how to assemble all the men in the war from the McCoy clan, so as to plan the raid which was meant to salvage all the valuables stolen from the southerners by the northerners. The decision to plan the raid came from the letter Tommy’s girlfriend, Terry, sent her informing him about the stolen valuables. Terry asks Tommy to give meet him as soon as the war is over so that he could tell him more about what she knows. Tommy’s meeting with Terry occurs soon after all the McCoys were assembled in one place after the war, and the information obtained from Terry is more than enough to help them locate the places the valuables were hidden, but the main problem was whether they could successfully obtain the valuables unharmed.

Planning the raid was interesting as all of the McCoys men were willing to help out. Often after the war, most individuals' lives are fully changed. This was no different with the McCoys men as most of them were willing to start all over. Therefore, gaining the hidden valuables would be a great way to help them start or add to whatever was left in their homes. All the men were assigned roles to do with regards to their previous roles in the army. For instance, the McCoys men who were snipers in the army would be tasked to do the same in the mission. With everyone delegated with tasks, the main aim of the mission was to salvage the valuables in four locations spread across the country.

McCoy is an adept storyteller, this is because; although the book is a historical fiction he makes it seem so real. It’s important to note that the author states he’s a direct descendant of the McCoy family, and he wrote the fiction version of the story from the facts he’d found out about his family. The story is fast-paced even though the author highlights every action that occurred. The intelligence employed in most of the raid plans and execution is fascinating making one continuously read the book to the end.

There are several themes that the author puts across in the book, however; one that stood out was the unity of the McCoys family. Their unity enabled them to triumph many obstacles in their quest to do good to the southerners. Also, their unity made the mission feel like everyone’s responsibility to ensure they are successful in the mission. In most cases, such missions are usually left to the group leaders to decide everything while others follow the lead. This was not the case as other individuals like Wiley, Oliver, Festus, and Aron, were fully participating in the planning of the raid as well as its execution.

The book was exceptionally edited and I did not encounter any grammatical mistakes. However, I must note that the part of the descriptions of the raid was repetitive thus making it a little boring. Despite this, I did not encounter any other flaw; there was no use of vulgar language in the book. I rate the book 3 out of 4 stars. I would have awarded the book four stars were it not for the repetitive descriptions of the raids. I highly recommend it to individuals who like historical fiction and anyone who would like a captivating and interesting read.

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The McCoys Before The Feud
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