Tucson, Arizona author Sally Rutledge Moore has released her debut novel “Fever Season” set during the Siege of Vicksburg.

This new work of historical fiction draws readers into the events surrounding Vicksburg as its citizens wait for General Ulysses S. Grant to arrive with his troops.  

Moore weaves the fictional story of the Tolliver family together with historic characters on both sides of the War between the States. 

“‘Fever Season’ captures the agony and the ecstasy of war as well as the overarching divine fingerprints evidenced in the lives of the characters during the conflict,” Moore said of her work. “Primarily set during the devastating siege of Vicksburg, this family saga follows the Tollivers as they struggle to navigate the war, the siege and afterward the spirit-crushing years of Reconstruction. As the stage is set for a long siege by Grant’s forces, some of the Tolliver family are in Vicksburg, while others are on the battlefield with Gen. Lee at Gettysburg. Everyone is in peril.”

Moore said, years later, when it looks as though they could finally start fresh, disaster strikes once more for the Tollivers as, in the frigid darkness of New Year’s Eve 1869, Jeanette Tolliver pries a bloody axe from her uncle’s hands and helps him drag the body of a Union major into the shadows. Their most pressing problem, she said, is solved that night, but as a new decade dawns other problems take its place. Now the Tollivers must flee Vicksburg to escape the heavy hand of post-war injustice.

Moore said a story set during the Civil War can still be very relevant to readers today. 

“Good storytelling is always relevant,” she said. “This entire period in our history was cataclysmic for America. It decimated the population base, cost an absolute fortune and crippled half the country for decades. The issues we see today may be different, but our society is facing the same level of fundamental paradigm shifting. I hope we can look back at history and learn from such devastating mistakes before it is too late.”

The novel points to a remedy for these issues, she said.

“I believe the remedy to every problem is Jesus.True Christianity resolves hatred, racism, unforgiveness and angry political strife. True Christianity doesn’t keep people in bondage – it sets people free, shines light on what is corrupt, delivers and restores relationships and nations.”

Moore is originally from Dallas, with deep roots in the South, but has lived all over the United States. She returned to the Tucson area in 2019 after a lengthy sojourn in Southwestern Colorado, where she wrote the book. 

Moore holds a degree in journalism from Baylor University. A retired journalist, she has combined her interest in history, storytelling and faith to begin the “Fever Season” saga.

Book two of the series, “Gold Fever” is set to follow in 2025, published by J & J Ranch Productions, a Houston based publishing house. 

“Fever Season” is available for purchase on Amazon.com and on Moore’s website at www.feverseasonbooks.com.