The Dutchman

During the Gilded Age in 1868, following the death of the woman he loved and their unborn child, HARKE De JONG flees his Dutch homeland with only a packet of old love letters and a promissory note from George Washington to claim his heritage in the New World.

Harke DeJong had loved Lainie Van Huel since the moment he first saw her, but their family members were at the oposiher family were members of the liberal elite who ruled the Dutch government, and Harke's father was the leader of a group of Dutch Seceders who secretly opposed the liberal views of the state church. 

When Lainie's body is discovered floating in a rain-swollen stream, her brother, Dirk, threatens to bring ruin upon Harke's family in retaliation for her death. 

Haunted by grief over Lainie's death and consumed by guilt for the hardships now facing his family, Harke flees his homeland to seek a better life in America. 

Armed with an old promissory note from George Washington and a packet of love letters written to his grandmother by a Dutch privateer, he sets out to pursue his fortune. 

On the way to America, he befriends Jelle Schippers, a naïve young man traveling to Wisconsin in the hopes of rescuing his uncle from financial ruin, and Catherine Weller, the independent daughter of an American railroad baron. 

Hank soon learns that his ability to survive in the American West depends on his ability to navigate a world filled with greed and graft, fueled by the siren's call of railroad speculation. 

When Catherine is kidnapped and Jelle is murdered in an attempt to recover the promissory note, Hark is forced to come to grips with his guilt and leave the past behind in order to find redemption and learn to love again. 

The Dutchman is a heartfelt and moving account of a young man's journey to redemption and self-awareness set against the backdrop of the Gilded Age of railroad expansion in America. Award-winning author, Wanda DeHaven Pyle taps into an old family legend to create a portrait of a nation on the brink of change.

I raised my eyebrows to Jelle who shrugged sheepishly. "I may have embellished the story somewhat in the telling."

This is a great description and gives feeling to the character. It is an example of the feel of the entire book and how everything comes alive for the reader.

This compelling story is set in the late 1860s during the Gilded Age. The main character travels from his Dutch homeland to America after suffering the loss of his unborn child and the love of his life. He wants and needs a new beginning. Yet his loss keeps him feeling sad, guilty, and alone. He is filled with conflict. He is overwhelmed emotionally as he tries to deal with what has happened and decide on the next steps in his life. It is all set against the backdrop of history and everything else that is happening around him.

The writer has given sharp focus to the characters and her fictional account helps define her vision for a satisfying and touching story. There is more to this than a historical fiction story. Details bring the story alive for the reader. We feel grief in may forms throughout the story. We share the characters memories. When he is haunted, we are haunted. As he deals with mounting guilt, we feel that guilt.

The writer has written a great story full of feeling and imagery. She has handled this story eloquently, telling an inspirational story. Written as historical fiction, she works from a legend told by her family over time, adding to the intrigue to the story. -editorial review by International Review of Books