Brisk, absorbing, and grounded in real lives, an industrial epic with a human heartbeat.
Flanders’s ambitious and richly textured historical novel brings the birth of the American oil industry vividly to life through three intersecting lives. In the aftermath of America’s first oil strike, three men are drawn to the muddy banks of Oil Creek in western Pennsylvania: a daring photographer, an ambitious power broker, and a former soldier turned journalist, each navigating risk, wealth, and upheaval as oil transforms a quiet region into the center of a new industry. As wealth accumulates and standing collapses, their families are pulled into the dangerous churn of a boomtown in constant motion.
Set in western Pennsylvania in the mid-to-late nineteenth century, the novel beautifully captures the grit of the oilfields and the social upheaval of the era. Flanders seamlessly integrates personal narratives into a wide historical framework, employing precise, readable prose that captures the oil boom’s scale while remaining firmly grounded in character. Progress emerges not as legend, but as volatile, perilous, and profoundly human. Lovers of historical fiction who value authenticity, layered characterization, and a clear sense of place will find much to admire here.
Austin Macauley
Pub date June 20, 2025
ISBN 979-8895431429
Price $17.95 (USD) Paperback
