These Honored Dead: A Lincoln and Speed Mystery - Hardcover

Putnam, Jonathan F.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1629537772 ISBN 13: 9781629537771

Publisher: Crooked Lane Books, 2016

Synopsis

Joshua Speed, the enterprising second son of a wealthy plantation owner, has struck off on his own. But before long, he makes a surprising and crucial new acquaintance—a freshly minted lawyer by the name of Abraham Lincoln.

When an orphaned girl from a neighboring town is found murdered and suspicion falls on her aunt, Speed makes it his mission to clear her good name. Of course, he'll need the legal expertise of his unusual new friend. Together, Lincoln and Speed fight to bring justice to their small town. But as more bodies are discovered and the investigation starts to come apart at the seams, there's one question on everyone's lips: does Lincoln have what it takes to crack his first murder case?

Inspired by actual events from the American frontier, Jonathan Putnam's thrilling debut These Honored Dead brings renewed verve and vigor to the historical mystery genre that readers haven't seen since Caleb Carr's The Alienist.

About this title

From the Inside Flap

"Putnam's well-researched first novel...does a fine job presenting a recognizable young Abraham Lincoln."
--Publishers Weekly starred review

"[A] well-researched debut mystery... Eye-opening historical details on hunting runaway slaves and 19th-century poorhouses will interest readers who enjoy works by Caleb Carr and E.L. Doctorow."
--Library Journal

"Lawyer Putnam bases his debut novel on a solid historical foundation...in the first of what looks to be a winning historical-mystery series."
--Booklist

This book is a time machine, and the mystery at its core is equally elegant and brutal. Just like our history. But, man, is it fun to root for Abraham Lincoln.”
--Brad Meltzer, bestselling author of The President’s Shadow

"What a splendid debut novel! Jonathan Putnam combines an historian’s understanding of character and context with a remarkable narrative drive that kept me fascinated from start to finish as I tried to figure out how the mystery would unfold. I read history during the days and mysteries every night before going to sleep, so for me, These Honored Dead was one of the most enjoyable works of fiction I have read in a long time."
--Doris Kearns Goodwin, Pulitzer Prize winner and author of The Bully Pulpit

"Putnam combines the historical fact of a lifelong friendship with lively fiction in a debut set on the edge of the American frontier."
--Kirkus

"Putnam takes the real-life friendship of Lincoln and Speed and spins a wonderful fictional history of their first years together... A well-researched book that will appeal to fans of historical fiction, and a book that should be on a Lincoln buff’s reading list."
--Historical Novel Society

"These Honored Dead feels so completely authentic that it might very well be a recovered journal from the nineteenth century, peopled with true-life investigators named Lincoln and Speed. But the pacing is so assured, and the mystery is so intriguing that it can't be anything but a masterfully crafted modern novel. Jonathan Putnam has crafted the most gripping debut in years, and I can't wait to read his next book."
--Alex Grecian, national bestselling author of the Scotland Yard Murder Squad series

"Young Mr. Lincoln makes a crackerjack detective. He and the narrator, Speed, are a fine Holmes and Watson. Putnam's book is historical mystery at its best."
--Will Thomas, Barry and Shamus Award-nominated author of Anatomy of Evil

"Anatomy of a Murder, frontier-style; Lincoln lives again in this sharp and engaging period mystery. Great characters, solid research, and effective twists."
--Stephen Gallagher, critically-acclaimed author of The Kingdom of Bones and The Bedlam Detective|Inspired by actual events from the American frontier, Jonathan Putnam's remarkable depiction of Abraham Lincoln brings a renewed verve and vigor to the historical mystery genre that readers haven't seen since Caleb Carr's The Alienist.

Joshua Speed, the enterprising second son of a wealthy plantation owner, has struck off on his own, opening a general store in Springfield, Illinois. But before long, he makes a surprising and crucial new acquaintance--a freshly minted lawyer by the name of Abraham Lincoln.

When an orphaned girl from a neighboring town is found murdered and suspicion falls on her aunt, Rebecca Harriman, Speed makes it his mission to clear her good name. A widowed storekeeper who took in her niece and nephew, Rebecca is also Speed's former paramour. He knows she could never be a murderer but needs the legal expertise of his unusual new friend to prove it.

Together, Lincoln and Speed fight to bring justice to their small town, aided by the arrival of Speed's sister Martha, a headstrong young woman who is determined not to be confined by the prevailing notions of proper conduct for a well-born girl. In the process, they are forced to confront their very different views toward slavery and equal rights--a disagreement that threatens to destroy their friendship. But as more bodies are discovered and the investigation starts to come apart at the seams, there's one question on everyone's lips: does Lincoln have what it takes to crack his first murder case?

From the Back Cover

"These Honored Dead feels so completely authentic that it might very well be a recovered journal from the nineteenth century, peopled with true-life investigators named Lincoln and Speed. But the pacing is so assured, and the mystery is so intriguing that it can't be anything but a masterfully crafted modern novel. Jonathan Putnam has crafted the most gripping debut in years, and I can't wait to read his next book."
--Alex Grecian, national bestselling author of the Scotland Yard Murder Squad series

About this edition

• Publisher: Crooked Lane Books
• Publication date: 2016
• ISBN 10: 1629537772
• ISBN 13: 9781629537771
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 304