This may be my least favorite Paulette Jiles book. As the Civil War is winding down, the title
character puts together a ragtag but talented musical group that meanders
through southwest Texas, playing gigs at parties, saloons, and hotels. Simon becomes smitten with Doris, a beautiful
Irish lass who is serving out a 3-year contract as the governess for Colonel
Webb’s daughter. Doris is constantly
having to fight off the Colonel’s attempts to get her alone at his new home in
San Antonio, while Simon plots how to make his way there from Galveston and
marry her. They surreptitiously send
letters to one another via the Colonel’s maid, as the Colonel has forbidden
almost all outside contact for Doris. This
has the makings of a very good novel, and the author’s writing is exquisite,
but the storyline is just not very peppy.
The beginning is lively, and so is the ending, but the middle drags, and
the characters of Simon’s bandmates are not fully developed. Sure, one of them likes to quote Poe, but the
other two, except for an early letter-writing subterfuge, could have been left
out altogether.
News
of the World was such a standout, but this novel was a bit of a
disappointment.
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