The Spy

by James Fenimore Cooper
Category: "Fiction - Historical"
Pages:333
Year of Publication:1821
Date Added:08/28/2008
Date Read:03/07/2015
Notes:Set in no-man's-land between the British in New York and the American forces along the Hudson during the Revolutionary War. Much of the action centers around the home of the Whartons, a family with loyalties on both sides. The son, Henry, a British officer, has sneaked through the lines in disguise to visit his father, sisters and aunt. When American Major Dunwoodie, who is courting Henry's sister Frances, arrives, he has no choice but to take Henry prisoner but promises to intervene on his behalf with General Washington. The action continues through a couple skirmishes and raids by brigands. Always on the edge of things is Harvey Birch, a peddler though to be spying for the British and sought diligently by the Americans. In the end, he helps Henry escape back to the British and vanishes. He is rediscovered years later by Dunwoodie's son who finds a letter from Washington praising Birch for his service.
My Rating: 6

Reviews for The Spy

Review - Spy, The

There's a whole lot more the story than is included in my summary. Characters pop in and out and each have their own sub-plots, but none of them amount to much and some of them are left dangling. Cooper's publisher, in a attempt to shorten and hasten the publication, had him write the final chapter before he wrote the second half of the book. Cooper then found it necessary to rush through to the end, giving some characters little more than a one-sentence brush-off. Still, it was an entertaining enough read about an interesting time.

Reviewed by Roger on 2015-03-07 16:44:13

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