Book Review: Geronimo’s Gold by Ted Richardson

I’ve teased you about this one already – now it’s time to seal the deal and make sure you pick it up…

I met Ted Richardson – and his protagonist, the indomitable Matt Hawkins – in 2016, when he asked if I would be interested in reviewing his second Matt Hawkins novel, The Abolition of Evil. I agreed, and thoroughly enjoyed the experience. I love history and historical fiction, and Ted has a knack for both. His Matt Hawkins novels blend superbly researched history, usually into some lesser-known aspect of the early American republic, with delectably crafted tales of intrigue, conspiracy, and corruption that spread their tentacles outward in time to the present day. The books are a spot-on blend of fact and fiction that never fails to entertain and educate.

In this third outing – my favorite of the three by a decent measure, which is saying something – Matt finds himself embroiled in a conspiracy after the inexplicable death of an old friend. In a Matt Hawkins novel there’s ALWAYS a conspiracy, but in Richardson’s talented hands, the conspiracy always manages to feel like a fresh hell of scarily believable proportions, even when on its face it should not. The conspiracy takes the reader on a journey through time and topic, covering such seemingly unrelated (but really incredibly intertwined) events as Geronimo’s childhood and imprisonment, Teddy Roosevelt’s second term decisions about fiscal policy and land management, and modern-day Wall Street investment banking and the gold in Fort Knox. Along the way, Matt revisits a conspiracy he’s confronted on a more personal level (The Ring and Buzz Penberthy – and you’ll just have to read the earlier novels to know who and what they are, because to say more would be a spoiler of significant and annoying proportions), and that journey proves just as interesting as the historical one…

These books never fail to satisfy. The protagonist is a fascinating character in and of himself. He’s surrounded by an excellent supporting cast that adds color, drama, and the type of snappy interactions you only find among old friends. The history is always presented with a dash of elan, and the shifts back-and-forth to solve the historical as well as contemporary mystery are handled smoothly and keep the reader engaged in all aspects of the story. If you like your history slightly off the beaten path, delivered in a highly entertaining package by a dashing hero, this is definitely a series you should pick up!