In the 16th novel featuring Barnaby Skye--the British seaman who carves out an amazing life for himself in the North American Wilderness--the famed mountain man takes a party of young people to the southwestern desert where they hope to be healed. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.

Barnaby Skye returns for his 16th stirring western (after The Canyon of Bones) set primarily in pre Civil War southern Utah. Skye, exiled from England, views himself as an outcast, an empty-purse man of the wilderness, who makes his living guiding Yanks in their endless westering. He has two Native American wives, Mary, a Shoshone, and Victoria, an Absaroka Crow. Mary's recently given birth to his son Dirk (whose Indian name is North Star) and Skye's hungry for a job to support them. He agrees to guide Hiram Peacock's New Bedford Infirmary Company wagon train which includes 10 young seriously ill consumptives in hope of a cure to a desert place. With wives and son in tow, Skye guides Peacock's charges, overcoming obstacles from other immigrant trains who fear the plague party as they follow the California Trail and pass through unknown territory. Unfortunately, they must deal with Paiute Indians and militias drawn from angry Mormon settlements in conflict with the government over polygamy. Wheeler's lucid prose and excellent eye for detail make history come alive once again. (Mar.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information

The sixteenth entry in this consistently popular series finds the English-seaman-turned-mountain-man Barnaby Skye shepherding a group of tubercular youngsters to the Virgin River, where the dry climate is thought to offer a respite for their condition. Accompanying Skye are his two Crow Indian wives and a particularly difficult horse that provides comic relief. Among the hardships the group endures are the weather, hostile Indians, and equally hostile travelers who fear catching TB. Skye and his little band also find themselves in the crosshairs between Mormon militia and U.S. government troops looking to drive the Latter-day Saints from their land. Wheeler states in a foreword that, while his book is fiction, it mirrors actual conditions in 1857 Utah. Fans of the series will find Skye older, more pragmatic, and less prone to violence, though he remains a formidable opponent to those who cross him. The period detail is wonderful, the primary players memorable, and even the minor characters are nicely fleshed out. Entertaining fare for both strict western fans and historical-fiction readers. Lukowsky, Wes. From: Syndetics Solutions, Inc. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.