Author Personalizes & Dignifies the South’s Story of the Civil War Era
Reynolds to Speak of Historical Fiction Mission at Blount County Public Library
Written by Travis E. Reynolds

    

Book Covers of From These Ashes trilogy & Reynolds photo courtesy of Travis E. Reynolds

  In his new historical fiction trilogy, From These Ashes, debut author Travis E. Reynolds explores how Civil War politics and bloodshed would forever change the landscape of the American South and its people in a sweeping wartime epic.
Reynolds will discuss “Writing Historical Fiction” and his compelling mission to portray the South’s “side” of the Civil War in a presentation at the Blount County Public Library on Monday, June 27, at 7 p.m.
In part one, A Friend Loveth at All Times, Reynolds presents a tender story of ill-fated love and friendship, opening the reader’s mind to a very real conflict experienced by slaves who felt loyalty to kind masters.  A conflict between allegiance to friends and the powerful tug on the heart for freedom emerges when James Travis, the heir to the cotton plantation of White Oaks, buys a slave family against his father’s wishes.  A bittersweet love triangle develops after the family settles into White Oaks.
            Suffering from a broken heart and death wish, an old friend is able to convince James to join the army.  In part two, A Brother Offended, James leaves the plantation and begins an arduous journey of self-discovery while serving in the 2nd South Carolina Calvary under Edgefield’s M.C. Butler - sharing in such adventures as Brandy Station, Hampton’s cattle raid and the harsh return to South Carolina to fight against Kilpatrick’s Army, who gloried in burning a path from the low country to Columbia with more vengeance than Sherman dealt Georgia.
After four tragic years of warfare, James comes home to find still another challenge.  Following true accounts of the Reconstruction in South Carolina, Through Wisdom is a House Built places the characters into this challenging time and shares a little-known history with the reader. From the ashes left behind by Kilpatrick’s army and the Carpetbaggers’ invasion, James does what is necessary to save his home and to secure a safe future for those he loves.
            American history buffs and readers fascinated by the narratives of those intimately involved in the events leading up to equal rights struggle that began after the War Between the States will be transported back to the 19th century.  Reynolds’ From These Ashes series masterfully captures the brave spirit of Southerners, both black and white, and the daily conflicts they faced that dramatically shaped turn-of-the-century America.
In 1859 the South stood on the threshold of war. The end to an era boldly knocked on every Southern door until even the peacemakers had no recourse but to allow its entrance. Without mercy, the war changed Southern lives forever. No amount of blood sacrifice shed during those tragic four years would atone for errors of past generations or gain empathy for those who so bravely fought for Southern independence.
Travis E. Reynolds, who considers himself a 21st century freedom fighter, realizes so much history of the South’s struggle for independence has been written by the victor.  Being a student of the War Between the States for the past forty years, he felt called to tell this tale.  Believing he has heard the voices of countless, honorable good men in gray, who served for a cause they believed in, crying out to be heard and not forgotten, he has written the story because he believes it is time the truth be told.
            Reynolds presents a compelling story that reveals a valuable truth to all Americans.  He hopes his story will draw a reader with no interest in this era into the daily conflicts faced by those who lived during that time and provide them with an insight into the events that dramatically shaped 20th century America.

            From These Ashes celebrates positive qualities in men of both colors - the good that was present then and is now.  President Lincoln once said when meeting Harriet Beecher Stowe, “So you’re the little lady who wrote the book that started this great war!”  Reynolds shares a veiled history with a new generation of Americans hoping that knowledge brings understanding and understanding empathy.  So with this tale his prayer is set free… Let the South be free to celebrate her Confederate heritage.