Burt Solomon

What if Willie Lincoln, son of Abraham Lincoln didn't die in 1862 because of illness? What if he was murdered instead? Who would kill a child? And why? Could it be that someone hated his father enough to kill the son? Lincoln asks his trusted aid John Hay, to investigate Willie's death, to find out if the boy's death could have been brought on by someone in the White House.

The Murder of Willie Lincoln is a "What If" story about Abraham Lincolns sons' death. This historical mystery book felt very well-researched, I particularly liked the author's note at the end of the book where he explained how much is true in the story. Personally, did I find the story both engrossed me, but also there were parts when I felt the investigation dragged on a bit. I have to admit that I sometimes found the story a bit hard to focus on as John Hay dug for information and interviewed people. But, there are also moments that shined, and that's often when Abraham or his wife Mary Lincoln was involved in the story. Those moments, their loss of their son was so gripping. I thought after finishing the book that I wouldn't have minded the book without the mystery, and I love historical mystery books.

Now, it may sound that I did not enjoy the mystery of Willie's death, but I did. It was just that it did not grip me the same way as the parts when the parents mourned their son. However, I was still curious to learn the truth and I was, to be honest, astonished about the ending of the book.

I found The Murder of Willie to be an interesting book and it made me want to read more about Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War.

I want to thank the publisher for providing me with a free copy through NetGalley for an honest review!… (mehr)

5739. FDR v. The Constitution The Court-Packing Fight and the Triumph of Democracy, by Burt Solomon (read 10 Mar 2021) This book covers much the same territory as Supreme Power, which I read on 6 March, immediately before I read this book. I found this book extremely riveting reading, although not as scholarly as Supreme Power and the title of this book is, I think, inaccurate, or may be misunderstood. The 1937 fight over the Supreme Court did result in a defeat for FDR but he got just what he wanted in that during and after the fight the Supreme Court upheld all of the New Deal laws which came before it and within a short time after the fight FDR appointed the justices he wanted so that the Court became more liberal and recognized that the country needed what FDR tried to do for it. Truly, FDR lost the battle in 1937 but won the war, as anyone who knows what the Court did after 1936 must admit. In fact, I am glad that the Court was not expanded in 1937 but if FDR had not tried to expand it who knows what the Court might have done. It did not want to be expanded and so it handed down more reasonable and abler decisions and the country was better off, thanks to FDR's actions.… (mehr)

Author Burt Solomon transports readers back to Washington City in 1862. Abraham Lincoln is the president; America is embattled in a great Civil War. The Lincoln family is devastated when their middle surviving son, William Wallace, better known as Willie, dies from typhoid fever. Students of the Lincolns can with confidence that neither Abe nor his wife Mary is ever the same.

Lincoln is so beside himself with grief, and given the political climate of the time, he begins to wonder how little Willie could have died. He asks his personal secretary, John Hay, to discreetly look into Willie’s death, just to make sure that he didn’t suffer at another’s hands.

This is not a fast read; it wasn’t a page-turner for me. However, what I did find riveting what the details. Solomon has done an excellent job in recreating the period so that readers may feel they have traveled to the 1860s.

Right before the ending was revealed, Hay made his case for Willie’s death at the hands of a well-known traitor. The fact that this person had not been seen before in the storyline was a little disconcerting, but it’s fiction, so I was willing to let it slide. But as Hay further drew his net, an settled on a completely different person, I found it unrealistic. The motive makes sense, but Solomon isn’t able to make a strong case.

The Murder of Willie Lincoln receives 3 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.… (mehr)