Conflicting Interests

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I haven't read any of the earlier Ballantyne novels published before this, but take place after it in time. If the characters in those books are anything like Mungo St. John, the protagonist (I saw this with some really wide latitude) in the Call of the Raven, I can't say I have any desire to go further. The story line of the book isn't poorly conceived, but it reads like a good old boys novel where men do despicable things even though they know better, the women are either helpless or heartless and it's all about grand adventure and revenge. Mungo is summoned home to Virginia from Cambridge after the death of his father. Accustomed to the easy life and getting what he wants, the theft of his home and the loss of the slave woman, Camilla, that he's in love with, leads him on a path of revenge that covers Europe, Africa, Cuba and New Orleans to hunt down Chester Marion, the man who stole everything from him. While I could certainly understand this, Mungo's willingness to do things he either knows are wrong or that incredibly distasteful and considered wrong in current times makes him someone I can't like either. If all you want is a swash-buckling revenge adventure this book is probably perfect. If you're looking complex characters with morals, probably not so much.