Review by Read_Terri -- The McCoys Before The Feud

[Read_Terri]

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

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2 out of 4 stars

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All hope of winning the Civil War is lost. Tommy McCoy, a Confederate soldier, receives a letter from his former betrothed, Terry. Terry mentions, “rumors of all the valuables taken from the Southerners” and “come to me as fast as you can when the war is over.” Tommy suspects what Terry may want to tell him, and a plan begins to form. The McCoys are a close family with high morals. Tommy includes any male family members that hear of his plan and want to help. Can Tommy and his family recover any of the valuables taken from the South?

A western tale filled with historical facts is a story full of honorable McCoy men who want to take back the property of the South. They do not wish to be robbers but take their share for a new start, and since the valuables came from the South, the return what’s left to other Southerners. The McCoys Before the Feud has a lot of humor and has many likable characters. The characters stick to a plan and follow it through with honor and integrity. Thomas McCoy is descriptive in his writing of the west during the period. I found myself picturing the men around the campfire playing checkers or riding their horses and covering their tracks on the trails. While his description of the west was excellent, the dialog at times seem to modern to fit the time. Other times, the dialog would be more fitting. The dialog felt disjointed, and I wished the book contained a more consistent dialog. Also, the novel seemed telling facts rather than bringing the characters to life. McCoy was able to give the reader a look at the men’s passion, honor and ability to cooperate well but lacked in developing strong characters that made me connect with any. For example, I wanted to pull for Tommy and Terry’s relationship, but the relationship thread lacked nurturing to care what happened.

It may appear that I disliked the book more than I liked it. However, this is a refreshing clean story written by a direct descendant of the McCoys and his pride shows through his writing. I appreciated no need of foul words or strong romantic text. It was a pleasant fact telling tale.

This book gets a 2 out of 4 rating. As a historical western tale, I enjoyed the book. The McCoys Before the Feud had a strong storyline and held my interest. However, I gave a lower rating because the book has numerous editing errors. In addition, the beginning of the book has many complex sentences. The sentences felt too wordy and did not flow well. I believe it would have been an easier read if not filled with so many long sentences.

I would recommend this book to a wide range of readers; those, like myself, who have never read a western, those who like westerns, and those that like historical stories. Also, don’t let the west historical theme stop anyone from giving this book a try. It is a refreshing story and I look forward to the next in the series.

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The McCoys Before The Feud
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