Saint's Fire.

The so-called "Civil War" was now over. But, it was this ending that launched the new America into its most uncivil era of civilizing the West. The stage is set with characters returning from the just-finished "War Between the States." Our protagonist, Jim Bob Witt, who had been too young to be a soldier, is about to endure his own personal war. His father (whose whereabouts "out West" are unknown) is to inherit a fortune from his grandfather in England, but he must claim it within two years or it will be passed to those of the next generation (Jim Bob and his twin cousins). The ever-optimistic lad decides he must strike out in the direction of the setting sun to find his father. Prefacing his departure, a strange phenomenon - the fabled Saint's Fire - sparkles in the distance, becoming his token and tormentor.

While J.B.'s former tutor, Sol Abram, is visiting the Witt homestead, word comes that President Lincoln has been assassinated. J.B.'s former tutor, now a member of the Secret Service, must immediately return to Washington, D.C. Sol is hated by the twins because of his alliance with the North during the War, while they were Rebel soldiers. Sol takes J.B. with him and gets the young man a job as a guard on the entourage of railway cars to escort Lincoln's body to his Illinois burial. This would be the first leg of his journey to "Sin City," California, in search of his father. The dastardly twin cousins follow him, intent upon keeping Jim Bob from finding his father, so that they, together, will get two-thirds of the fortune.

Though the bigger-than-life J.B.meets and gets the backing of personages such as General Grant, Mark Twain, "Wild Bill" Hickock, "Calamity Jane" and Lawyer Maverick, he must endure unspeakable offenses before he rides into the sunset with the beautiful maiden whom he met at Lincoln's funeral.

- Excerpted from the book's jacket and the synopsis provided on the publisher's web site.

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