Of Blood and Brothers: Book One (E.Michael Helms)


In 1927 Calvin Hogue, a new reporter is on assignment to cover the Malburn family reunion. There he learns two of the brothers fought on opposite sides of the civil war. He interviews both of the brothers Daniel and Elijah. The family is from the panhandle of Florida and after the war problems arise and brothers are divided.

He finds out that Elijah , while working the salt mines is taken prisoner and forced to work for the Union. It is not an easy task for him, since he has to invade territory that was once his home.

Well written, with graphic detail, told from three points of view, the reader gets the actual feel of what it was like during that era and in the war. Book one leaves off with the reader wanting to know more, and it does have Chapter one of Book two at the end. I look forward to reading more from E. Michael Helms. ( )

Of Blood and Brothers: Book Two by E. Michael Helms

Calvin Hogue, a writer is writing the story of Daniel and Elijah Malburn, brothers who fought on opposites sides of the civil war. A well written historical piece told through the voice of each character. The story shows how families were torn apart during the war, brought back together, of love and loss.

I liked how history of the war was woven into a fiction story. The writing was very good, I actually had a feel of what it was like to live during that time period and I could relate to, and understand how each person felt.

Historical and Civil War readers should greatly enjoy this fast paced page Turner ( )

This is the 3rd of his books I've read, 2nd in this series.
Helms has a talent that allows him to delve into a subject and bring it and its characters to life. The reader feels as tho they are a sideline participant, feeling the raw emotions, smelling the smoke of the fires, suffering from the hunger, the cold, and appreciating the ties of family bonds. The language of the times and the vernacular of the area flow easily from his mind to paper!

You don't have to be a Civil War afficiando to appreciate this series. Novels perhaps...but you know that somewhere at some point the storyline in these books could be / must be part of a bigger reality.

Of Blood And Brothers: Book One

E. Michael Helms
Koehler Books (2013)
ISBN 9781938467516
Reviewed by F.T. Donereau for RebeccasReads (6/13)

Perhaps the greatest feat achieved by E. Michael Helms in his novel on the Civil War, "Of Blood And Brothers," is the authenticity of the voices: they ring southern and direct, as if they were alive today, telling their story to you at a backyard barbecue, or around a pot bellied stove in some quaint kitchen. The premise of the books confessional tale is the delving into a family saga by a cub reporter, Calvin Hogue. He is sent by his boss to interview brothers Daniel and Elijah Malburn. Helms manages to capture the feel of a reporters way in 1927; you can truly sense the era and the person in reporter Hogue. And this is only the jumping off point. The story really is of the Civil War and its aftermath, the hell the brothers and the Malburn clan suffer because of this bloody, incestuous calamity.

Certainly the other great gift E. Michael Helms brings to the table is that he himself is a veteran, a former U.S. Marine who served combat in Vietnam. Is it his experience with war, or his ability as a scribe, that brings this historical work of fiction alive on the page? It would be impossible to say. Thankfully, it is unnecessary to try. The action on the fields of battle are rendered faultlessly; you do not feel you are being fed some movie makers idea of conflict and death. The language is plain, colloquial. The taste is of people, not Hollywood's cut from the mold presentation of soldiers. The home life rendered here stands alive as well, real and pulsing, ringing with truth. A soldier perhaps could bring forth one aspect but not the other. A writer who happens to have once been a soldier, can do both. Mr. Helms delivers the full package.

We all know war is hell. It would be foolish though, not to admit we have a fascination with it. However, too few who set out to depict it delve into the full ramifications. "Of Blood And Brothers" lets you see deep into the bone of those afflicted by combat. The Civil War itself famously pitted brother against brother, all but tearing a nation asunder. By focusing on a family, on two brothers, Helms is able to get down into the horror of what occurs while battles rage, to get at what lingers long after, what carves away at the men and women who have suffered through it.

Thankfully our author keeps his prose steady to the wall; he does not indulge in flowery sentiment. He lays the story down and lets it tell itself. He brings it fully alive, most often in the narrative flow of the singular voice of Daniel Malburn.

Here, as an example, is Daniel's voice:

Daniel scraped his shoes on a woven rope mat in front of the stoop, then opened the unlocked door and stepped inside. “Ain't no telling when this rain'll let up. No sense trying the road to Bennet in this gullywasher." He turned and motioned to me. "Come on in and sit a spell.”

All is straight language here, but for the small use of "gullywasher" and "sit a spell." These turns of phrases, employed as they are, are enough, and not too much, all at once. Such writing allows the taste of a place and an era, without overselling the mood. This passage takes place at the beginning of the book. I assure you the essence of Daniel, his folksy southernisms, his charm and directness, survives throughout. His voice remains alive. His telling of things, the style of the man remembering, the way in which he imprints all, brings each character wholly to life.

There is death in this story, senseless and true. There is honor and forthrightness too. You will also find a love story of a kind. The Malburn brother's hearts each go in the same direction. The ladies name is Annie Gainer. You will know her and all she brings forth. You will bear witness to the joys, pains and wonders of the fast moving world realized between these covers. The brother's battles will sit with you as your own. Really, more than a single war, "Of Blood And Brothers" speaks of war all the time.

Gracefully, it allows for redemption, for reconciliation. Full lives are lived here, tragically and happily. I implore you, take this novel and read it, and allow it to come alive inside you. ( )