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Nov 23, 2023posie12 rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
Southern writer's view of the folly and horror of the civil war in America. Charismatic leaders draw people into minefields of ruin and hate for their own benefit.
Feb 27, 2023Griffeth rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
The Varina of the title (or ‘V,’ as she is mostly known throughout this book) refers to Varina Davis, widow of Jefferson Davis, the first, and only, President of the Confederacy. The most important name thus far in my review, however, is…
Jul 18, 2021valeriaedwards rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
Historic fiction, Varina is Jefferson Davis’s wife.
Jul 09, 2019INVS rated this title 1.5 out of 5 stars
I'm not overly enthused with this story, but for me Cold Mountain is unbeatable. I've tried all Frasier's books, he is most definitely of the Southern attitude, who better to tell these stories? Normally I do not read stories of the…
Mar 25, 2019chamc01 rated this title 2.5 out of 5 stars
Slow and boring. Varina remains more or less a mystery to the reader.
Mar 24, 2019
If she had not been married to Jefferson Davis, history would not remember Varina Davis. She lived a privileged life in Richmond, sheltered from most of the ravages and savagery of the war. The novel commits the unpardonable sin of being…
Jan 02, 2019DCLadults rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
A New & Noteworthy Best of 2018 pick. The story of the Civil War told by Varina Davis, the first lady of the Confederacy. Varina is strong and fascinating and brings alive the chaos and devastation of the Civil War.
Dec 12, 2018tjdickey rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Frazer, who so captivated his readers in "Cold Mountain," is completely back on form. He invites us across a panoply of historical landscapes from ante-bellum plantations on the Mississippi river to Saratoga Springs and Paris, navigates…
Oct 31, 2018JCLHeatherM rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
Varina recounts the story of Varina Davis, the First Lady of the Confederacy, from an uncertain childhood that resulted in an arranged marriage, to fleeing for her life after the Confederacy is left in ruins during the Civil War.
Sep 29, 2018peacebenow rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
I enjoyed this book but did find it disjointed at times. She was a women of seemingly strong character who was well educated and often seemed an odd fit w/ her husband Jefferson Davis. Given the time she lived it is difficult to judge her…
Sep 24, 2018ArapahoeAnnaL rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
A great literary historical novel with a refreshingly bright, self-reliant protagonist who nonetheless gets swept up in the fight for the Confederacy and only too late realizes the full horror of the cause.
Sep 10, 2018Einer2 rated this title 1.5 out of 5 stars
Reads more like creative non fiction than a novel. I finished it because I knew very little about this woman but it was slow going. Doesn’t come close to come close to Cold Mountain.
Aug 07, 2018furlan rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
This was a beautifully written, interesting historical novel about Jefferson Davis' wife , Varina. It also touches on the devastation in the south from the civil war and it's affect on the lives of soldiers, society, civilians and the…
Aug 06, 2018
This is a beautifully written novel! Metaphors make the environment come alive. The characterization makes the reader admire this woman placed in an unbearable situation. I loved her and grieved for her at the end.
Jul 11, 2018wendybird rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
I am a big Charles Frazier fan -- I've read all his novels, and "Cold Mountain" will forever remain one of my very favorites. With Varina, he returns to the American Civil War for plot, and to his incredible way with language. This time…
Jun 13, 2018EmilyEm rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Varina Howell Davis, much younger second wife of Jefferson Davis, looks back at her life when formerly enslaved James Blake comes to call seven summer Sundays at a hotel called The Retreat in Saratoga, NY. V, as author Frazier refers to…
Jun 12, 2018brangwinn rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
I didn’t know much about the wife of the Confederate State President, Jefferson Davis, but now I do. I think she’s a person I’d like to know and I would love to have Oprah interview. Varina was an intelligent, strong willed woman who was…
Jun 11, 2018TheresaAJ rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
This is a book you read for eloquent language and sentence structure. Frazier can share a lot of historical detail in just a sentence or two. One can only imagine the amount of research he did to let you know that a child's doll was used…
May 01, 2018
Read 50 pages then reluctantly gave up. I couldn't get into it.
LyndaLovelyWright
Apr 17, 2018LyndaLovelyWright rated this title 2 out of 5 stars
Lost interest, just seemed to go on and on