Rule of Ranging 3 - Cloud Rising in the West, The

MWSA Review

In book three of the series The Rule of Ranging 3 - Cloud Rising in the West, author Tomothy M Kestrel sets forth an action packed story that should appeal to a wide assortment of readers.

This book finds our hero Finn thust into the middle of the savage fighting that took place in the mid-eighteenth century during the French and Indian Wars. Kestrel expertly sets the scene, describing the hardships, the environment, and the brutal fighting in a way that pulls the reader into the scene. In fact, he vividly describes the fighting in a way that only a veteran Army Ranger can.  In the middle of this conflict the author weaves in a developing romance that appears to be doomed from the start.  Kestrel doesn't hold back any punches, and I believe, provides a picture of life and hardships very realistic for the era. I enjoyed reading Cloud Rising in the West and recommend it to all who enjoy reading historical fiction and to everyone else who enjoys a good book.

Reviewed by: Bob Doerr (2015)

Author's Summary

This historical, action-adventure drama, set in the 1750s in Colonial America during the time of the French and Indian War (aka the Seven Years' War), is the culmination of the epic trilogy The Rule of Ranging by former US Army Ranger Timothy M. Kestrel.

In Cloud Rising in the West, brave hero Finn discovers that the meaning of life is found even in the grimmest of circumstances--including suffering, sacrifice, and death--as he battles under the direction of Major Robert Rogers alongside his loyal best friends: a freed slave Gus, an eccentric wanderer and mentor figure Fronto, and a fierce Wappinger warrior Daniel.

Nicknamed "Most True" by the Iroquois, the handsome and strong Finn fights not because he wants to, but because he truly believes it is his duty. He calls on his ability to hunt, which he learned at an early age tracking the movements of wildlife through the forests of his Finland home, to assist him on the battlefield that is the grand natural scenery of upstate New York and Pennsylvania.

Finn's grim determination to survive the war as a member of the legendary Rogers' Rangers takes him on a journey through the untamed wilderness of North America as he expertly fights the French in a major push toward Montreal. But it is the inner battle that proves to be Finn's harshest struggle as he attempts to quell the arrogant boy he once was to become the man--and potential loving husband and father--he hopes to be.

Through the historically accurate text that is reminiscent of medieval romances looms the specter of the notorious Hessian mercenary Johan "Totenkopf" Kopf--the man who left Finn an orphan and who will finally drive him toward his valiant end.

Ultimately, the empathetic Finn learns the most important life lesson is to distinguish between what can be controlled and what cannot. But will he develop the wisdom to tell the difference?