THE EMPRESARIO'S WIFE

Seeber’s historical novel, inspired by the history of the author’s ancestor, explores the period leading to the 1835 Texas Revolution against Mexico.

Sarah Seely was raised in St. Louis, Missouri, where she met and married Green DeWitt. He was not her first love; that would be Will Jones, her childhood friend and the boy she assumed she would marry. But when Will, an adventurer, left St. Louis, a heartbroken Sarah feared she would not see him again. Two years later, Will returned to find Sarah married to Green, holding the couple’s first baby. Now it is 1827, and Sarah, Green, and four of their five children are approaching the border of the new colony Green is establishing in the northern Mexican state of Texas. As “Destiny” would have it, Will is traveling with them as Green’s deputy. Green has been appointed Empresario (“land agent”) by the Mexican government for what is to become the DeWitt Colony. In exchange for helping to settle this untamed portion of Mexico’s northern frontier, he will receive a sizable land holding. Although reluctant to leave St. Louis, Sarah puts her trust in Green’s vision (“blue-eyed, silver-tongued, smooth-talking Green conjures the future from thin air”), despite the plethora of hardships—in addition to the primitive living conditions and the constant political wrangling between the Mexican government and the Anglo settlers, there are the ever-present dangers of disease and Comanche raids. Seeber’s novel is prodigiously researched and richly detailed (the narrative contains a wealth of historical nuggets), a textured and atmospheric recreation of time and place with a vividly drawn female lead. Through Sarah’s personal struggles and development, readers are viscerally brought into a piece of history that is traditionally dominated by accounts of the military battles. This is a story of female grit and determination in the face of overwhelming challenges. There is enough romance, tragedy, and excitement—especially in the section where Sarah is kidnapped by a band of vengeful Comanches—to keep the pages turning. A concluding glossary of Spanish and period-relevant English terminology is a useful addition.

An engrossing, drama-fueled addition to Lone Star State chronicles.