Homeland

I really enjoyed this novel by Barbara Hambly, which tells the stories of Cora and Susanna through their letters to each other during the American Civil War. Cora is a Northerner married to a Southerner who is fighting for the Confederacy, and Susanna is his young Southern neighbor who Cora has befriended. Cora spends the war with her family on a remote Maine island, and Susanna spends the war with her sister and other family members in various parts of the South. Their letters to each other, both send and unsent, tell how each survives the war, and the vagaries of daily life.

The characters are really well-rounded, despite existing only in letters to each other. And Hambly does not romanticize the war - her novel is a lot like Cold Mountain in that regard. It was a compelling read, with a great ending. I highly recommend it for Civil War buffs and anyone - male or female - who enjoys a good novel.