If You Enjoy These Authors, You May Enjoy Raven's Son
Discovering a new author can be a bit of a gamble. You know what you enjoy reading, but how do you know whether an unfamiliar writer will give you that same experience?
If you enjoy historical fiction, alternate history, or stories that follow a character through decades of personal and political change, Raven's Son: A Vision Reshaping A Nation's History by Rick Surles may be worth a look.
Here are a few familiar authors and books that offer a sense of what to expect.
If You Enjoy Lucia St. Clair Robson...
Readers of Ride the Wind and Walk in My Soul know that Robson brings nineteenth-century American history to life through the people who experienced it, particularly those whose lives crossed cultural boundaries.
Raven's Son shares that interest in Indigenous history, relationships, and the complicated world of the American frontier.
In fact, Walk in My Soul helped inspire Rick Surles to write the novel. Reading about Sam Houston's relationship with Cherokee woman Tiana Rogers led him to wonder what might have happened if the couple had a son.
If You Enjoy Eric Flint...
In 1632, Eric Flint takes a historical impossibility and explores what happens when the established course of history is disrupted.
Rick Surles approaches alternate history from a different direction. There are no modern Americans transported into the past. Instead, one fictional person's existence introduces new possibilities into the history of Texas, the Cherokee Nation, and the expanding United States.
If you enjoy watching an alternate timeline develop through political decisions, alliances, conflicts, and unintended consequences, you'll find familiar territory here.
If You Enjoy Kim Stanley Robinson...
In The Years of Rice and Salt, Kim Stanley Robinson explores how civilizations might have developed if one major historical event had unfolded differently.
Raven's Son asks a smaller question with potentially enormous consequences: What if Sam Houston had a Cherokee son?
Both novels take an interest in the way cultures and political systems develop, and how changing history can produce unexpected results.
Rick's approach, however, stays close to one man's experiences rather than following civilizations across centuries.
If You Enjoy Following a Character Through an Entire Life...
There's another reason you might enjoy Raven's Son, even if alternate history isn't your usual reading choice.
Sam Rogers tells his own story, beginning with his childhood in Indian Territory. His friendships, family relationships, education, adventures, mistakes, and responsibilities unfold against a changing historical background.
You'll encounter historical figures, tribal politics, military campaigns, and diplomatic negotiations. But you'll also get to know Sam and the people who matter to him.
The novel follows him through much of the nineteenth century, allowing readers to see how his experiences change him over time.
Is Raven's Son Your Kind of Book?
If you like historically grounded fiction, enjoy wondering what if, and appreciate stories in which personal lives intersect with major historical events, Raven's Son: A Vision Reshaping A Nation's History may be a good addition to your reading list.
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