Rating: 
Summary: Second-Book Doldrums?
Review: I picked up this sequel to A Faded Coat of Blue with enthusiasm. However, I was disappointed by the time I finished the book. The sequel paled in comparison to Parry's debut. The plot was thin to the point of there not being any and because of that lack, the book seemed to drag. However, the characters were well drawn and many returned from A Faded Coat of Blue. And Parry's descriptions of the uncertain times remain unparalleled. I hope this is merely a case of second-book doldrums and that Parry will return to form in the third installment of what promises to be a fine series.
Rating: 
Summary: Civil War + suspense +great writing!
Review: I'm a sucker for novels about the Civil War. Generally buy them and read them however bad they might be. Then I bought Owen Parry's FADED COAT OF BLUE. Fantastic. Found out that SHADOWS OF GLORY was just out and had to have it. Got it. Even better. You see this is not just interesting historical genre fiction. This is good literature. Mr. Parry (which I believe is a pseudonym and I wish I knew who the writer really was) places sentences with really incredibly-crafted imagery into every page. With most books we're lucky to get a good line per chapter. With this book there are several per page. Paraphrasing one I can remember when protagonist Major Abel Jones enters the house of a minister in Pen Yan, NY in the dead of winter. He describes it as "... a lean shiver of a house." Brrr. You can feel the chill to your bones. So buy this book if you like good historical fiction, but savor all the tasty, well-baked phrases. Read slowly because you'll be sorry when it's over.
Rating:
Summary: "Shadows" a fine sequel to "Faded Coat"
Review: In this fine sequel to "Faded Coat of Blue," Parry surpasses his earlier effort. Besides writng a ripping good yarn, Parry's ear for dialogue and elegant language are among the chief pleasures for me in this book. His prose has a highly musical quality and it pleasingly reverberates in the mind as one reads. The principal character, Abel Jones, is more complex and human in this tale, and his character deepens with somewhat darker, more ambiguous overtones. The plot takes place far from Civil War battlefields, mostly in upstate New York. The intellectual and social ferment of that place in that time is vividly evoked, and offers some fascinating historical insights along the way. Parry has researched this millieu thoroughly and his linguistic and historical awareness magnifies the novel's impact. Highly recommended, and I look forward with hope and anticipation to a third Abel Jones story...
Rating:
Summary: A Spirited End to a Long Summer
Review: Just as I was beginning to wilt in this summer's heat, along comes Owen parry with "Shadows of Glory," the second in his projected series of novels detailing the adventures of Abel Jones during the American Civil War. "Shadows" picks up where "Faded Coat of Blue," the first book in the series ends. Protagonist Abel Jones, the Welsh immigrant, is now promoted to major in the Union Army and a "confidential" agent of the U. S. government, is dispatched to the Finger Lakes region of New York State. There's something ominous brewing up there. Federal agents have been murdered and there are strange doings in the neighborhood of Penn Yan and Lake Keuka. Are the Rebels at work up there? Well, Jones is just the man to find out what. Upstate New York? The Civil War? How can anyone tie the two together? Well, Parry does and he does it with the same mastery of place, time, character and language that made "Faded Coat of Blue" such a refreshing plowing of that hallowed literary ground that was the Civil War. Now I come from those parts where the story takes place and Mr. Parry has walked the hills and lakeshores up there, wandered through those haunted woods and immersed himself in the mid-nineteenth century history of Upstate New York. Almost forgotten now is the Spiritualist movement that enthralled Americans back in the 1850s and '60s. The Spiritualists thought they could communicate with the dead through "mediums," mostly rather ordinary women through whom the dead were believed to communicate with the living when the medium was in a state of unconsciousness or "trance." Many prominent people, among them the clergy, believed in Spiritualism. The movement plays a big part in this story and Parry to his credit treats it not with ridicule but with the respect any historical event deserves. But there is one incident in this book that made the hair stand up on the back of my neck. Maybe there was something to it after all? Historical figures who were very much a part of the 1860s scene in Upstate New York -- Susan B. Anthony and Fredrick Douglass -- make appearances. Abel Jones looks at these greats through the eyes of a contemporary, a refreshing view to say the least! But what's going on up there? Why is Secretary of State Seward concerned? Is it the Irish immigrants, the dreaded Fenians? Are Confederate agents at work? What role is the "learned professor," Master of Spiritualism, Mesmerism, Egyptology, Kildare (or is it Kilraine?) playing? What is he doing up in Rochester, meeting with a high-born Englishman? And what of the irascible Catholic Priest, Fr. McCorkle? What does he know that he's not telling? And what of Nellie Kildaire, the Professor's daughter? Does she really talk to the dead? Is she insane? And what is this hold she seems to have on Major Jones, the stalwart Christian soldier? Overshadowning everything is nature, the woods, mysterious and deep, the isolation of the farms in the countryside and one of the worst winters anybody can remember. Parry keeps us in touch with the war in the South through letters written to him by Mick Tyrone, the Irish-born surgeon now serving with Grant in Cairo, Illinois. This is a delicious literary tool because I suspect these letters are harbingers of stories yet to come before our resourceful Mr. Parry is done. Owen Parry has done it again. If this book does not establish him as one of the best contemporary writers of historical fiction in America, he's certainly one of the most original. Come on, book No. 3!
Rating:
Summary: A Spirited End to a Long Summer
Review: Just as I was beginning to wilt in this summer's heat, along comes Owen parry with "Shadows of Glory," the second in his projected series of novels detailing the adventures of Abel Jones during the American Civil War. "Shadows" picks up where "Faded Coat of Blue," the first book in the series ends. Protagonist Abel Jones, the Welsh immigrant, is now promoted to major in the Union Army and a "confidential" agent of the U. S. government, is dispatched to the Finger Lakes region of New York State. There's something ominous brewing up there. Federal agents have been murdered and there are strange doings in the neighborhood of Penn Yan and Lake Keuka. Are the Rebels at work up there? Well, Jones is just the man to find out what. Upstate New York? The Civil War? How can anyone tie the two together? Well, Parry does and he does it with the same mastery of place, time, character and language that made "Faded Coat of Blue" such a refreshing plowing of that hallowed literary ground that was the Civil War. Now I come from those parts where the story takes place and Mr. Parry has walked the hills and lakeshores up there, wandered through those haunted woods and immersed himself in the mid-nineteenth century history of Upstate New York. Almost forgotten now is the Spiritualist movement that enthralled Americans back in the 1850s and '60s. The Spiritualists thought they could communicate with the dead through "mediums," mostly rather ordinary women through whom the dead were believed to communicate with the living when the medium was in a state of unconsciousness or "trance." Many prominent people, among them the clergy, believed in Spiritualism. The movement plays a big part in this story and Parry to his credit treats it not with ridicule but with the respect any historical event deserves. But there is one incident in this book that made the hair stand up on the back of my neck. Maybe there was something to it after all? Historical figures who were very much a part of the 1860s scene in Upstate New York -- Susan B. Anthony and Fredrick Douglass -- make appearances. Abel Jones looks at these greats through the eyes of a contemporary, a refreshing view to say the least! But what's going on up there? Why is Secretary of State Seward concerned? Is it the Irish immigrants, the dreaded Fenians? Are Confederate agents at work? What role is the "learned professor," Master of Spiritualism, Mesmerism, Egyptology, Kildare (or is it Kilraine?) playing? What is he doing up in Rochester, meeting with a high-born Englishman? And what of the irascible Catholic Priest, Fr. McCorkle? What does he know that he's not telling? And what of Nellie Kildaire, the Professor's daughter? Does she really talk to the dead? Is she insane? And what is this hold she seems to have on Major Jones, the stalwart Christian soldier? Overshadowning everything is nature, the woods, mysterious and deep, the isolation of the farms in the countryside and one of the worst winters anybody can remember. Parry keeps us in touch with the war in the South through letters written to him by Mick Tyrone, the Irish-born surgeon now serving with Grant in Cairo, Illinois. This is a delicious literary tool because I suspect these letters are harbingers of stories yet to come before our resourceful Mr. Parry is done. Owen Parry has done it again. If this book does not establish him as one of the best contemporary writers of historical fiction in America, he's certainly one of the most original. Come on, book No. 3!
Rating:
Summary: Parry Does it Again
Review: Like with the first book (Faded Coat of Blue, Owen Parry manges to present a reasonable picture of what civil war America could have been like. It is as close as any or us are likely to get without a time machine. This time the action takes place in up state New York. A rebellion of the Irish is suspected and two agents have already been killed before Able Jones even arrives. Parry introduces historical figures we have read about in a lively and interesting way. He sneaks in history lessons painlessly. This would be useful in a high school setting. Some reviewers complain about the pace, but I believe it is appropriate to the time and place described. This is a series well worth investigating.
Rating:
Summary: Parry Does it Again
Review: Like with the first book (Faded Coat of Blue, Owen Parry manges to present a reasonable picture of what civil war America could have been like. It is as close as any or us are likely to get without a time machine. This time the action takes place in up state New York. A rebellion of the Irish is suspected and two agents have already been killed before Able Jones even arrives. Parry introduces historical figures we have read about in a lively and interesting way. He sneaks in history lessons painlessly. This would be useful in a high school setting. Some reviewers complain about the pace, but I believe it is appropriate to the time and place described. This is a series well worth investigating.
Rating: 
Summary: LIFELESS
Review: Okay, Owen Parry certainly knows his Civil War history. And even though I enjoyed his first novel, "Faded Coat of Blue," I could not get interested in this novel, so unfortunately, I abandoned it mid-way through. Why? In spite of the marvelous character of Abel Jones, there was no suspense in the first half, nothing to really reach out and grab me, make me want to find out anything, because up to this point, the mystery has been so secondary. Page after page of musings and elaborately drawn scenarios, but no real focusing on plot. Characters and situations are introduced and then left unattended. I'm sure somewhere in the book, we find out a little more about the victims, but sorry guys I couldn't keep from snoring on this one!
Rating:
Summary: LIFELESS
Review: Okay, Owen Parry certainly knows his Civil War history. And even though I enjoyed his first novel, "Faded Coat of Blue," I could not get interested in this novel, so unfortunately, I abandoned it mid-way through. Why? In spite of the marvelous character of Abel Jones, there was no suspense in the first half, nothing to really reach out and grab me, make me want to find out anything, because up to this point, the mystery has been so secondary. Page after page of musings and elaborately drawn scenarios, but no real focusing on plot. Characters and situations are introduced and then left unattended. I'm sure somewhere in the book, we find out a little more about the victims, but sorry guys I couldn't keep from snoring on this one!
Rating:
Summary: wow
Review: Owen Parry has a way with words. He created a great story, and his prose is excellent. Even if this story wasn't any good, it would be worth it to read this book just to see how Parry weaves his words together. It's a great one. A must read.
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