Andrew Joyce

Molly Lee starts life out as a simple farm girl until she falls for a man named Huck. When he leaves without taking her with him, Molly decides to set out after him. What starts out as a young girls crush, becomes an adventure and not always a pleasant one. Along the way though, Molly learns how to survive and make something of herself.
Molly is a strong, tough character who takes what life throws at her on the chin and keeps going. She is smart and soon becomes business savvy. The story was well written and complelling. It drew me in and I wanted to read more about Molly Lee. I would definitely recommend this book.… (mehr)

Yellow Hair is an action-packed epic saga sharing the life story of a man coming to grips with his destiny. From the first page of this book, the reader is thrust inside the life journey of Jacob Ariesen, a young man whose family was looking for a better way of life in California. Leaving Massachusetts behind, and heading west on the Oregon Trail, the Arisen's meet up with a wagon train headed to California in the mid-1800’s and set out toward gold country.

Most of the travelers were Eastern businesspeople, and they weren’t prepared to face the hardships on the trail. Careless errors of judgment by the pioneers results in the deaths of many family members. The people were greenhorns and had no clear idea what they had gotten themselves into. Throw in a crippling bout of cholera, and you have a clear picture of the tribulations suffered by the brave folks who traveled West looking for a better way of life. In the blink of an eye, Jacob’s entire family is wiped out, and he becomes the sole survivor.

With the dead and dying all around him, Jacob Ariesen becomes infected with cholera, and his days are numbered. Help is at hand, when a prophetic Native American woman, named Suni, finds her destiny with the fair-haired Jacob. Suni nurses him back to health, and she calls him, “Yellow Hair.” With no family of his own, Yellow Hair embraces the Dakota tribe who adopts him. He learns to speak the native languages of the Great Plains Indians and lives his life as a member of the Dakota tribe.

Jacob Ariesen, a.k.a. Yellow Hair takes his place in history framed by the U.S. government’s policy of placing the Dakota Sioux Indian tribes onto reservations after breaking treaty after treaty with the native peoples. The rest of the story belongs to Yellow Hair, told from his point of view.
I felt both sides (Native American and Whites) were portrayed as accurately as history could allow. The difference is in perspective, when you the reader, have the chance to witnesses the historical events through the eyes of a white man who considers himself to be an Indian.

I thought the author, Andrew Joyce, was entirely fair in his depiction of all the events. I never felt one side was glorified over another. The historical facts are woven in between the author’s interpretation of the events making history come alive.

History has a way of repeating itself, and I was quite moved with the parallels between the novel, and real life events unfolding at the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation and the Dakota Access Pipeline. I must admit I shed a few tears at the brutality of humanity on both sides of the spectrum.

I enjoyed this book from start to finish and could not put it down. And, as the author reminds us, “This is history,” which means many of these happenings are hard to swallow from a humanitarian point of view.

This is one of my favorite books from my expanding library of Andrew Joyce novels. If you love historical fiction set in the American West, you will love Yellow Hair.

Character Believability: 5
Flow and Pace: 5
Reader Engagement: 5
Reader Enrichment: 5
Reader Enjoyment: 5
Overall Rate: 5 out of 5 stars
… (mehr)

I first met, Molly Lee McMasters in Andrew Joyce's book entitled Molly Lee, the second volume in his Tom Sawyer-Huckleberry Finn adventure series. I fell in love with her character and style.

I was excited when Resolution came out and as usual, the author did not disappoint! Molly and Huck are so believable, I expected them to walk off the pages and shake my hand.

Resolution is the third book in the series and in my humble opinion, my favorite. Do you remember reading Call of the Wild, by Jack London when you were a kid? I must have read that book at least ten times. I enjoy a book where an animal becomes an entire piece of the narrative.

Let's put it this way… A new star was born from the pages of this novel and his name is "Bright," a Husky, and the lead sled dog. The personality of the dog shines throughout the novel. Huck and Bright share a special bond. This story would not have been the same without Bright leading the path back to civilization.

However, you can't help but love the characters of Molly and Huck. They are the true heroes we think of staring in American westerns. Both characters are propelled through life by the morality and code of the old west. When they give their word, they mean it and they don't abandon their friends, no matter who they may be.

One of my favorite things about Andrew Joyce's writing is his use of rich descriptions. Through his accounts, I was transported back in time to 1896 Alaska. The gold rush had barely begun and trappers abandoned their traps for the lure of easy money. The visuals of the wilderness, the weather, and the people Huck and Molly met along the way were stunning.

Here is an example of a description that took my breath away:

"…It had stopped snowing by the time twilight crept over the mountain. In gloaming's grayness, one of the prominences of snow moved slightly. Without warning, as a volcano, it erupted and the man sat upright, throwing off his blanket of snowfall…"

When I read a novel, I want to close my eyes and imagine myself in that setting. Andrew Joyce's skills in storytelling lead the reader on an amazing adventure where all of your senses come into play. In fact, I have one of those reading hangovers. You know, when the writing touches you and you miss the characters and the story…

Thank goodness, Yellow Hair, another Andrew Joyce historical western is soon to be published. To peak your curiosity, I want to share the author's note about the new book:

"Every death, murder, battle and outrage that I write about in this book actually took place—from the first to the last. The historical figures that play a role in my story were real people and I used their real names. I conjured up my protagonist only to weave together the various events conveyed in this fact-based tale of fiction. This is American history. Andrew Joyce"

Stay tuned! You are going to love Resolution!… (mehr)

*A copy of this book was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review, which follows.

The first time 18-year-old Molly Lee meets “Lieutenant” Huck Finn and “Captain” Tom Sawyer it is 1861. The Civil War has just begun to rear its ugly head. Her mother nurses Tom Sawyer back to life when a fever sets in.
When a Yankee soldier attempts to commandeer Molly’s virtue and cause harm to her family, 24-year-old Huck Finn comes to their rescue. Molly falls head over heels in love with the dashing Huck. She begs to be allowed to follow him when he leaves her family farm.

Huck strongly advises her not to come with him because, “He considers himself an honorable man, and honorable men don’t accept the hospitality of another man, and then ride off with the man’s daughter.”

Molly begs and begs, finally wearing Huck down long enough to say that she can accompany him the next morning. When Molly awakens that fateful day, on July 23, 1861, it is to the realization that the two men have left without her. Not to have her love denied, Molly saddles a horse and sets forth on a trip of a lifetime to find the man she loves.

The adventures of Molly Lee take her from Virginia to Missouri and all the way to the Montana Territory. Spanning her life from 18 years to 56 years, this is her story. From whore houses to school rooms, Indians to cattle drives, Molly Lee pulls you into the saddle of the life adventures of a woman searching for the man she loves.

I loved the way the Andrew Joyce portrayed Molly. She is a strong, independent woman, not afraid to say what she thinks. When Molly loses a lover in a catastrophic fire, I thought she had reached the end of her rope. Instead, she finds the courage to go on with her life, always searching for the elusive man of her dreams, Huck Finn.

The drive and ambition to find Huck Finn take Molly through many challenges and heartaches. To me, her ability to live by her own wits and survive, reminded me of the heroes from the old fashioned Western books I read as a young woman myself, written by Louis L’Amour.
Joyce writes in an easy, smooth, flowing manner. I especially enjoyed the portrayal of the cowboys and the cattle drive, as I experienced some of the same practices still in use today when I worked for a Montana cattle ranch some years ago. A few times, I know I felt the rush of the wind, and tasted the dust in my mouth, the descriptions were so perfect.
It should be noted that this book is a sequel to “Redemption,” also written by Joyce. However, not having read the first book, I felt this book stood alone in its own rights as an excellent read.

I enjoyed this rough ride through American western history, as seen through the eyes of a woman. Molly’s unique perspectives on life give credence to the belief that if you want something bad enough, you will eventually get it. Oh, and the best part is… Joyce is writing another book called, “Huck and Molly!” I can’t wait to read it!

RATINGS
Realistic Characterization: 4/5
Made Me Think: 3/5
Overall enjoyment: 4/5
Readability: 5/5
Recommended: 4/5
Overall Rating: 4.5
… (mehr)