Review: History comes alive in ‘Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy’

In her latest work of historical nonfiction, “Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy,” Karen Abbott examines the role of four women during the Civil War who risk their lives for their beliefs. Each chapter shifts in focus, alternating between Union and Confederate sympathizers and cycling through the stories of Belle Boyd, Emma Edmonds, Rose O’Neal Greenhow and Elizabeth Van Lew.

Drawing from original source material, Abbott makes these women and their histories come alive, illuminating the women’s war and how these unsung heroines influenced the course of history.

Boyd and Greenhow — two women whose allegiance lay with the Confederacy — use seduction to discover the secrets of Union soldiers and Northern politicians. Motivated by vanity and a desire for fame, 17-year-old Boyd becomes a courier and spy for the Confederate army.

Greenhow, the widow of a high-ranking official in the State Department, undertakes espionage at the request of Captain Thomas Jordan and President Jefferson Davis. Engaging in romantic affairs with influential and powerful men, Greenhow uncovers information and sends it to Southern generals through her daughter. Both women find themselves in increasing danger; however, their allegiance to the South never wavers.

Two other featured women, Edmonds and Van Lew, assist the Union in different ways. Edmonds disguises herself as a man and enlists in the Union army as private Frank Thompson. Abbott writes that “as many as four hundred women, in both North and South, were posing and fighting as men” during the Civil War. Edmonds tends to soldiers’ wounds, works to avoid detection, and witnesses some of the bloodiest battles of the war.

Van Lew, a wealthy Virginian abolitionist, hides behind her carefully constructed identity and respectable family name while visiting Union prisoners. In addition, she mobilizes an espionage ring that operates under the noses of the Confederacy — she even uses her influence to place a spy inside the Confederate White House, displaying an intrepid and brazen boldness.

Abbott sprinkles dialogue throughout “Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy,” a unique aspect of the book. In a note preceding Part One, Abbott asserts: “This is a work of nonfiction, with no invented dialogue.” While historians may balk at this claim, Abbott defends it. An impeccably researched work, anything that appears within quotation marks comes from “a book, diary, letter, archival note, or transcript, or, in the case of Elizabeth Van Lew, from stories passed down by her descendants.”

Exchanges throughout the narrative animate these stories and characters, keeping readers engaged. For this reason, Abbott’s book may simulate a novel at times, a strength rather than a weakness.

Although the genre “historical nonfiction” may give some readers pause, Abbott strikes a balance between narrative and fact that transcends generic boundaries and makes history accessible, entertaining and enlightening to readers. Appealing to readers of fiction and nonfiction alike, “Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy” expands upon women’s roles during a pivotal moment in our country’s history.

This story was originally published February 18, 2016 at 2:59 PM with the headline "Review: History comes alive in ‘Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy’."