About Slant of Light: A Novel of Utopian Dreams and Civil War
• Trade Paperback: 305 pages
• Publisher: Blank Slate Press (April, 2012)
With the nation moving toward Civil War, James Turner, a charming, impulsive writer and lecturer, Charlotte, his down-to-earth bride, and Cabot, an idealistic Harvard-educated abolitionist, are drawn together in a social experiment deep in the Missouri Ozarks.
Inspired by utopian dreams of building a new society, Turner is given a tract of land to found the community of Daybreak. But not everyone involved in the project is a willing partner and being the leader of a farming community out in the middle of nowhere isn’t exactly the life Turner envisioned. Charlotte, confronted with the hardships of rural life, must mature in a hurry to deal with the challenges of building the community while facing her husband’s betrayals and her growing attraction to Cabot. In turn, Cabot struggles to reconcile his need to leave Daybreak to join the fight against slavery and his desire to stay near the woman he loves.
As the war draws ever closer, the utopians try to remain neutral and friendly to all, but soon find neutrality is not an option. In the wake of a deadly bushwhacking, Turner discovers that he too has the capacity for ferocious violence. When war finally breaks out, Missouri descends into its uniquely savage brand of conflict in which guerrilla bands terrorize the countryside while Federal troops control the cities, and in which neither side offers or expects quarter. Ultimately, each member of Daybreak must take a stand—both in their political and personal lives.
Slant of Light is that remarkable novel that not only embeds us in a bygone time and place, but also wakens us to a wide and presently shared dawn of love, violence, frailty, and possibility.” –Steve Yates, author of Morkan’s Quarry: A Novel
If you’re a historical fiction fan, you must put “Slant of Light” at the top of your to-be-read list.–Margo L. Dill, Champaign News-Gazette (Champaign, IL)
For more information about Slant of Light and its publisher, Blank Slate Press, check out their website, blankslatepress.com, and their Facebook page.
About Steve Wiegenstein
Steve Wiegenstein grew up in the eastern Missouri Ozarks and roams its back roads every chance he gets. The Black River and the Annapolis Branch Library were his two main haunts as a kid, and they remain his Mecca and Medina to this day. He is a longtime scholar of the 19th century Icarian movement in America, which provided the inspiration for Slant of Light. He particularly enjoyed weaving the real-life story of Sam Hildebrand—the notorious Confederate bushwhacker who murdered one of Steve’s ancestors–into the novel. Steve and his wife, Sharon Buzzard, both academics, live in Columbia, MO. Slant of Light, the first book in his Daybreak series, is his first novel.
Steve Wiegenstein’s TLC Book Tours TOUR STOPS:
Monday, May 14th: Unabridged Chick
Wednesday, May 16th: WV Stitcher
Monday, May 21st: Life in Review
Tuesday, May 22nd: Unabridged Chick – author interview
Wednesday, May 23rd: So Simply Sara
Thursday, May 24th: Bookish Habits
Monday, May 28th: Historical Tapestry – author guest post
Tuesday, May 29th: A Novel Source
Thursday, May 31st: Life is Short. Read Fast.
Monday, June 4th: Chaos is a Friend of Mine
Tuesday, June 5th: Chaos is a Friend of Mine – author guest post
Wednesday, June 6th: Just One More Paragraph
Thursday, June 7th: Bookish Habits – author Q&A
Saturday, June 9th: Colloquium – author guest post