The Whiskey Rebels: A Novel

I've read Liss's series (and prequel!) about Ben Weaver. And very enjoyable they were - I look forward to any future Weaver books. But Whiskey Rebels is another step up - helped maybe by being at least for the time being a self contained novel. But it is a rich meal - the two strands, off-putting in the first few pages when you are wondering even if they are connected, but really gripping all the way through. Only criticism is towards (I believe) Random House who have their own odd reasons for not publishing this and other novels for the kindle.

Through a well written plot based on actual events (the Whiskey Rebellion, a tax protest that started in 1791 and ended in 1794 during the presidency of George Washington, and the creation of the First Bank of the United States in 1795), seen through the 1st person account of two main characters, this novel immerses you into the complex society of the early United States, only a few years after the Declaration of Independence and the end of the independence war. The stark contrast between the extremely rough living conditions of the settlers in western Pennsylvania (which, at the time, was the Far West) and the relative sophistication and frivolity of the nascent bourgeoisies of Philadelphia and New York, with their speculative fevers, as painted by David Liss, is striking. The principal protagonists, with their qualities and numerous faults, are sufficiently complex to escape predictability. Some secondary characters are more superficially sketched, but that's ok as long as the main ones remain intriguing and finally endearing, as is the case in this novel. In summary, a very interesting immersion in a place and time period that is a quite uncommon, but interesting setting for a piece of historical fiction, and a very enjoyable read. One of the best from Liss that I have read so far.

Very much enjoyed this historical novel. Good characters and a fine writer.

The Whiskey Rebels is David Liss' historical thriller set in Philadelphia, New York, and western Pennsylvania in the 1780s and 1790s. The book is told from the alternating points of view of the two main characters, Ethan Saunders and Joan Maycott. Ethan's story takes place in 1792, and Joan's begins about a decade earlier. Eventually, the two characters' paths will cross, but at first you don't know how and when, and part of the suspense of the novel is figuring out how the two stories will intersect.Ethan Saunders, a charming rogue, was one of George Washington's top spies during the Revolutionary War, but he was disgraced and his career in the army ruined after he was falsely accused of treason. Ethan has always thought Alexander Hamilton was responsible for his ruin, but, towards the beginning of the novel, he finds out this was not so, and, in fact, Hamilton saved him by not allowing him to be formally charged with treason. The suspicion alone was enough to ruin him. Now Ethan is a drunk, gambler, and womanizer, but soon he sees a chance of redemption. Before his disgrace, Ethan had been in love with Cynthia, the daughter of his mentor who was ruined along with him, but when she heard of his downfall, she married another man. When her husband, Jacob Pearson, an investor in Hamilton's Bank of the United States, goes missing, and there are threats against Cynthia and her children, Ethan decides to find Pearson, especially when he finds out that Hamilton, who at this time is Secretary of the Treasury, is also interested in discovering what happened to him. He thinks success in his search for the missing man will redeem him in Hamilton's eyes and bring him back into favor. As Ethan soon finds, Pearson's disappearance is only part of an intricate plot against the Bank of the United States, and much more is at stake than he ever realized--even the fate of the republic itself.Joan Maycott is a farmer's daughter who wants to write a novel, even though she realizes she does not have enough life experience to write one. She marries Andrew, a Revolutionary War veteran who has not had much success in his carpentry business. When financial speculator William Duer, an associate of Hamilton's, offers Joan and Andrew a deal, she leaps at the chance: Andrew will trade in his war debt for land in the western Pennsylvania frontier. Joan believes her experience in the west will give her material for her novel. Soon Joan and Andrew realize they have been tricked: Duer has sold them a worthless piece of forest land, when he had promised them farmland, and he hasn't even sold it outright, but only sold them the right to use it. The whole area is under the control of a cruel landlord, who promises the couple a piece of farmland if Joan will sleep with him. She absolutely refuses, and the landlord keeps finding ways to make life difficult for the couple. Joan and Andrew survive under brutal conditions, in an area full of rough men. Then their fortunes change when Andrew discovers a new method of distilling whiskey. His whiskey is more flavorful than anything the people in the area have tasted before, and Joan and Andrew prosper. But then Hamilton's tax on whiskey, which he uses to fund the Bank of the United States, ruins their lives. Andrew is killed in a confrontation with the landlord and his henchmen, and Joan, now a widow, is determined to get her revenge on Hamilton and Duer, the man who tricked her and her husband into buying the land in the first place. Along with several of her friends from the frontier, Joan travels to Philadelphia and concocts a plot to destroy the Bank of the United States by getting people to sell their shares and invest in another bank, called the Million Bank. She hopes to cause a financial panic that will ruin Hamilton and Duer.The two protagonists, Ethan and Joan, find themselves on opposite sides of the conflict, with Ethan trying to save the bank and Joan trying to cause it to fail. As it turns out, Joan is manipulating Ethan in a way he never suspects, and eventually they become both allies and enemies. Which of the two will prevail? The Whiskey Rebels is a highly suspenseful novel, with an intricate plot and many twists and turns. The reader learns a lot about the financial world of the late 18th century United States, and how business was conducted. At that time, people traded stocks in coffeehouses and taverns, and a coffeehouse on Wall Street was one of the principal locations where trading took place.Ethan and Joan are both fascinating characters, with many flaws, and the reader feels sympathy for both of them. I wasn't sure I was going to like Ethan at first, but he grew on me. He is a charming character, with a great sense of humor. Joan is manipulative, and will do anything to get what she wants, but she has good reasons for what she does. Even though the protagonists are opposed to each other through most of the book, you find yourself rooting for each protagonist in his or her chapters. Although Ethan and Joan are fictional, Liss portrays many historical characters, especially Hamilton and Duer, in his novel. Hamilton comes off as a very complex character. Joan sees him as a villain, and so does Ethan at first, even though he later realizes it was Hamilton who rescued what is left of his reputation. In the end, Hamilton comes across as not exactly a hero, but definitely not a villain, either. Duer, on the other hand, is a true villain, a man for whom greed is everything, and who cares nothing about ruining people's lives in order to make more money. You find yourself hoping to witness his downfall. This was a world where greed and financial speculation ran rampant, and Liss portrays it very well. The book was published in 2008, in the midst of the financial crisis and, as Liss says in an interview at the end, this was no coincidence. I highly recommend the book as both a thriller and a portrait of the United States in the years following the Revolutionary War.

This is our most recent book club pick. Set just after the end of the Revolutionary War, the book follows two threads - that of Ethan Saunders, an alcoholic war veteran tarnished with accusations of treason and Joan Maycott, a strong-willed woman set to make her mark on this new, American world. Both characters are engaging narrators and Ethan in particular is surprisingly funny. It’s an enjoyable, though lengthy read, and moves at a fast pace despite the heft of my hard cover version. As the storylines continue, the book only becomes more interesting and it’s impressive how strong and equally balanced both of the narratives are. I am especially impressed with Joan’s narrative as Liss demonstrates his talents as a male author capable of creating authentic female voices.The time period feels well-researched and reminds me of my AP US History classes where we discussed how the aftermath of the Revolutionary War laid the groundwork for the Civil War to follow. Liss picks up that thread and it is quite evident through the course of the novel how East versus West sentiments will soon shift to North versus South. The two storylines work well together despite the differences in their chronology and as they begin to merge together, the story only becomes all the more exciting. The occasional levity in Ethan’s observations and comments in particular nicely breaks up the dramatic tension - it is a pleasant surprise to actually laugh out loud at times!This is a strong piece of historical fiction, made all the more impressive because it succeeds on taking what may at first seem a relatively minor part of history and dramatizing its conflicts and characters. It’s impressively done and both the plot and characters grow more complex with each page. The ending itself does not quite align with the breadth of the pages preceding it (the epilogue in particular feels too one-sided), but it is all together a quite satisfying read. Ethan has quickly become one of my new favorite characters in fiction! I am definitely looking forward to reading more by Liss and discussing this one with my book club!