# Looking for a historical novel set during the American Revolution on a par with "The Revenant" **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** books-writing-myths\ **Created:** [February 4, 2022, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-historical-novel-set-during-the-american-revolution-on-a-par-with-the-revenant/958897 "2022-02-04T14:43:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Octagon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/2acd7d/32.png) [@Octagon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Octagon)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2022, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-historical-novel-set-during-the-american-revolution-on-a-par-with-the-revenant/958897/1 "2022-02-04T14:43:19Z")
I’m looking for a well-researched historical novel similar in style, depth and compelling interest as "The Revenant’ by Michael Punke. If it takes place on land and sea, even better. I’m looking for a novel that captures the grittiness of frontier life but also the culture of that period but told in an elegantly descriptive fashion. Any suggestion would be welcome. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2022, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-historical-novel-set-during-the-american-revolution-on-a-par-with-the-revenant/958897/2 "2022-02-04T14:47:21Z")
It’s set about a hundred years earlier, and it’s a bit schlocky, but I enjoyed “Speaks the Nightbird” by Robert McCammon quite a bit. I found it a good mix of history (or “history”) and action. ---
**Author:** ![Octagon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/2acd7d/32.png) [@Octagon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Octagon)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2022, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-historical-novel-set-during-the-american-revolution-on-a-par-with-the-revenant/958897/3 "2022-02-04T15:42:59Z")
Thanks iiandyiiii. I’ll look into it. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2022, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-historical-novel-set-during-the-american-revolution-on-a-par-with-the-revenant/958897/4 "2022-02-04T15:52:09Z")
I’m not familiar with _The Revenant_, so I don’t know whether my suggestion is anything like it or like what the OP is looking for, but I enjoyed [From Sea To Shining Sea](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/317176.From_Sea_to_Shining_Sea) by James Alexander Thom. The first part is set during the Revolutionary War, and the second part follows the Lewis and Clark expedition. ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2022, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-historical-novel-set-during-the-american-revolution-on-a-par-with-the-revenant/958897/5 "2022-02-04T18:15:05Z")
The Bastard by John Jakes and its following series was the go to book for historical fiction when I was a kid. From pre-revolution to post civil war if I recall. ---
**Author:** ![Octagon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/2acd7d/32.png) [@Octagon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Octagon)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2022, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-historical-novel-set-during-the-american-revolution-on-a-par-with-the-revenant/958897/6 "2022-02-04T22:17:14Z")
Thanks Thundlow\_Boink. The period around the Lewis & Clark expedition is also of interest to me. ---
**Author:** ![Octagon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/2acd7d/32.png) [@Octagon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Octagon)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2022, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-historical-novel-set-during-the-american-revolution-on-a-par-with-the-revenant/958897/7 "2022-02-04T22:18:00Z")
Thanks Si\_Amigo. I’ll take a look at it. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2022, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-historical-novel-set-during-the-american-revolution-on-a-par-with-the-revenant/958897/8 "2022-02-04T22:54:45Z")
Not really a novel, but neither is it purely nonfiction, I really enjoyed this 1000 page doorstop spanning US frontier history between the Revolution and War of 1812. [https://www.amazon.com/Sorrow-Our-Heart-Life-Tecumseh/dp/055356174X](https://www.amazon.com/Sorrow-Our-Heart-Life-Tecumseh/dp/055356174X) ---
**Author:** ![Old\_Wench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecccb3/32.png) [@Old\_Wench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Old_Wench)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2022, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-historical-novel-set-during-the-american-revolution-on-a-par-with-the-revenant/958897/9 "2022-02-04T23:10:40Z")
You might like Allan Eckert’s “The Winning of America” books that begins with “The Frontiersman.” I haven’t read them but the late Kopek devoured them all and thought highly of Mr. Eckert’s writing. There are 6 books in the series. > **[Winning of America Series by Allan W. Eckert](https://www.goodreads.com/series/57708-winning-of-america)** > > Allan W. Eckert's narrative historical fiction series. The Frontiersmen, Wilderness Empire (Winning of America), The Conquerors: A Narrative, The Wildern... ---
**Author:** ![Marvin\_the\_Martian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/marvin_the_martian/32/2898_2.png) [@Marvin\_the\_Martian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marvin_the_Martian)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2022, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-historical-novel-set-during-the-american-revolution-on-a-par-with-the-revenant/958897/10 "2022-02-04T23:12:37Z")
> [@Si\_Amigo](#): > > The Bastard by John Jakes and its following series was the go to book for historical fiction when I was a kid. > > From pre-revolution to post civil war if I recall. AKA the Kent Family Chronicles. Be warned, the main characters interact with an unrealistic and increasingly annoying number of famous historical figures. I made it midway through the third book until one of the characters met baby Abraham Lincoln - that was enough. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2022, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-historical-novel-set-during-the-american-revolution-on-a-par-with-the-revenant/958897/11 "2022-02-04T23:46:18Z")
> [@Marvin\_the\_Martian](#): > > Be warned, the main characters interact with an unrealistic and increasingly annoying number of famous historical figures. _Johnny Tremain_ for adults.