Tim Wendel

We'd finished taping the podcast at the Spy Museum in Washington, D.C., when the producer mentioned, "They have your book in the gift shop."

The podcast's topic had been my novel REBEL FALLS, which is about espionage on the U.S.-Canada border in the last months of the Civil War. How Confederate operatives targeted the U.S.S. Michigan, the only Union frigate left on the Great Lakes. Their goal was to seize the warship and shell Toledo, Cleveland and Buffalo on the eve of the presidential election. It was left to a young woman spy, Rory Chase, to stop them. The novel is inspired by true events.

So, I stopped by the museum gift store, expecting to find a handful of copies on sale. Instead, there were at least 20 at various spots throughout the store. I was stunned. But not too surprised to thank the museum folk and sign copies.

The publishing industry is so nonsensical these days. But these 'little victories' can keep you going.

For the past month, I've been living that old Johnny Cash song. I've been to Buffalo, Medina, Leroy, Auburn, Petoskey, Traverse City, and many bookstores in between, promoting REBEL FALLS.

Thanks to everyone who turned out. It was grand to see so many familiar faces and friends, and make new acquaintances along the way.

The road is always full of surprises. For example, so many folks turned up at Author's Note in Medina, N.Y., that we did back-to-back, hour-long sessions due to fire-code regulations. We had a SRO crowd at the prestigious Politics & Prose in D.C. And we had such a great response in northern Michigan that the novel went to No. 1 last week in sales at Brilliant Books, the great indie bookstore in Traverse City, topping such luminaries as Jacqueline Winspear and Stephen King.

Good fun. So much so, plans are afoot to hit the road again in the near future. 

Few things more gratifying or humbling for a writer than to appear at Politics & Prose, the prestigious independent bookstore in Washington, D.C. Thanks to everyone who attended (a SRO crowd) and special thanks to my friend E. Ethelbert Miller for being in conversation with me last Sunday afternoon.

It's 1864, and amid the ongoing U.S. Civil War, an impassioned Rebecca "Rory" Chase has just buried her last remaining family member. Spurred to action, she disguises herself as a man to enlist in a New York State Union regiment, but she is quickly found out.

Downcast and frustrated, Rory returns home to Auburn, where she is approached by her childhood friend Fanny Seward, daughter of Secretary of State William Seward. It turns out that Rory can defend her beloved Union. Two Confederate rebels suspected of planning a coup have been sighted along the Canada border.

She signs on as a courier, or spy, and is sent to Niagara Falls to uncover what she can of the rebels' complex plot. As Rory works to befriend the Confederate targets, she reconnects with people from her mother's past.

When the rebels' plans intensify, Rory finds herself in a race against time and significant odds. Based on actual yet long-obscured events, Wendel's absorbing novel is rich in dramatic history, while his depiction of Rory's internal conflicts brings depth to her high-stakes mission.

— Leah Strauss, Booklist

Cover blurbs for REBEL FALLS have arrived from Ken Burns, SiriusXM's Larry Kirwan and more. I'll roll more of those in the weeks ahead.

But recently I've been focusing on appearances in support of my new historical novel.

Going on tour always has its ups and down, shocks and surprises, so I detailed several in my latest Substack column,  https://timwendel.substack.com/p/book-tour-trials-and-tribulations

See why I'm not the biggest Harry Potter fan.

Asking for cover endorsements or 'blurbs' is among the most humbling things I know of. But then you have a lightning bolt moment like this.

Here's Ken Burns assessment of 'Rebel Falls,' my new novel, which will be out this spring:

"Once again, Tim Wendel finds a riveting story to tell, this time in a little-known theater of our most complicated of wars.  Instead of great armies on familiar fields, this saga leads us to the shadowy world of spies and the improbable battleground at our northern border.  Wendel's narrative is strong, emotional and driven by one of his best characters yet, a heroine with more than her fair share of grit and bravery."

Here's the cover from REBEL FALLS, my historical novel, which will be out this spring.

The story opens in the summer of 1864. That's when Rory Chase, a young woman with a troubled past, reluctantly returns to Niagara Falls and the border with British Canada. Her assignment? Somehow keep Confederate spies John Yates Beall and Bennet Burley from seizing the lone Union gunship remaining on the Great Lakes.

 If Beall and Burley can commandeer the U.S.S. Michigan, they plan to bombard Cleveland and Buffalo on the eve of upcoming presidential election. This will certainly end Abraham Lincoln's chances of a second term.

Based upon true events, REBEL FALLS tells a forgotten chapter of the epic struggle. A time when the clash wasn't between armies and generals, but spies and unlikely allies. A place of extreme beauty where the Civil War briefly hung in the balance.

Many of the old landmarks from the American side of the Falls -- the Cataract House hotel, the Ferry Landing and the Suspension Bridge -- are the sites for major scenes and reveals.

A hardcover Spring 2024 release from Three Hills, the trade imprint for Cornell University Press, REBEL FALLS has garnered advance praise. "This is history that goes down smoothly," writes Burt Solomon, author of THE MURDER OF WILLIE LINCOLN. "You feel like you're there."

Thanks to everyone who made the launch for ESCAPE FROM CASTRO'S CUBA such a success.

A tip of the cap to ONE MORE PAGE BOOKS in northern Virginia, BOOKS & BOOKS in the Miami area and those who bought the novel in book, ebook or audible form.

The sequel to CASTRO'S CURVEBALL has been out for almost eight weeks now and one of the high-water marks was this virtual conversation with Saul Wisnia, who did Luis Tiant's autobiography, SON OF HAVANA -- https://bit.ly/3uhMefj.

Perhaps the most intriguing questions I received at such gatherings was, Will there be a third novel featuring the intrepid Billy Bryan? To be honest, I hadn't planned on one, but it's got me to thinking. Let me know where you'd like the onetime catcher to head next? As my friend Jane Leavy said in endorsing ESCAPE, "In Billy Bryan, Tim Wendel has created the perfect baseball man."

Indeed, Billy is a fun guy to write about. 

Thrilled to be returning to the L.A. to discuss the "Summer of '68: The Year That Changed Baseball -- And America -- Forever.

On Thursday, Oct. 25, at 7 p.m., I'll be at Villalobos Hall, Whittier College (13507 Earlham Drive, Whittier, Calif.) For more information, (562) 907-4803, (626) 791-7647, or terymar@earthlink.net

On Saturday, Oct. 27, 2 p.m., I'll be at the Allendale Branch Library (1130 S. Marengo Ave., Pasadena, Calif.) For more information, (626) 791-7647, (626) 744-7260, or terymar@earthlink.net

The first seven chapters of "Cancer Crossings: A Brother, His Doctors and the Quest to Cure Childhood Leukemia" are available through the end of this week on BookGrabbr. Here you go -- https://grabbr.com/contentpage/558-celebrate-life-ccam-cancer-crossings-giveaway#.W5a3p-gCI_w.gmail