Through the Eyes of a Captive

I found this book an excellent read because it showed a captured White woman who truly fell in love with her Native American husband and with his people. She was a very strong woman! She stood up to White men who condemed her for loving her husband and because she continued to live with them when she had many chances to leave and go back home to Washington. She told these White men they were wrong in believing that Native Americans were savages! And that in fact the White man was the savage for not holding to the treaties the government had written!
It is not often you read about a White woman who wanted to stay with the tribe that she grew to love. I was very impressed with this book!

First, let me say, this book can be read by anyone that appreciates history, honesty and adventure. There is violence but that was the old west with Indian raids, military action and fighting for your own land. I loved this book. It’s what happened in history with the Indians trying to keep their lands and the government making treaties but often not keeping them. Feeling they had no choice but to leave Washington, Alfred and Lily head west. Lt. Colonel Custer is out west using the strong arm of the military to destroy villages, gain control of land, selfishly wanting gold and creating mayhem. This story-line is one you won’t forget as the Indians fight for survival. Yes, there were problems on both sides of the issues, but this book brings forth the many lives affected.

This was an enjoyable read about two people from ver different cultures coming together under extraordinary circumstances. There was an ultimate realization that we are all the same and can find love based on caring for a person because of who they are as an individual.

Our novel opens with Lily traveling west with her somewhat surly husband; the open plains seemingly leading to endless possibilities. It doesn’t take long though before this outlook of hope and possibility drastically changes course to one of violence as a band of Indians attacks this train of innocent travelers. We as the reader knew the attack was coming. It’s outlined right there in the synopsis. What I wasn’t expecting was the ruthlessness of the attack. The author certainly doesn’t shirk away from some gruesome details.

We start off with the violent death of Lily’s husband, who was unexpectedly shot mid-conversation with a slew of arrows, before being stabbed repeatedly and even scalped. As Lily is captured, we see the brutal ends of her fellow travelers. Men, women, and even children whose throats were slit, or innocent bodies were penetrated by arrows. My initial question as a reader was whether or not the vicious details of such an attack were necessary. Then I realized that while the specifics were undoubtedly painful to read, you must also commend the author for not shying away from the stark authenticity of these kinds of attacks. When these two opposing worlds clashed together, violence like this was a reality. It was a harsh reality, but it was reality nonetheless. Why try to sugarcoat it?

When Lily is bound and captured, she immediately goes into survival mode. Escape doesn’t cross her mind, as she knows it would be futile. She has no choice but to follow her captors. At this point Lily’s entire life has been thrown into disarray. She just witnessed the slaughter of her husband and the wagon train. She’s been taken captive, traded to another tribe, and forced to marry their strongest warrior, Tahatan. Now, if it were me? I’d be curled up in a ball, shaking back and forth, and wracked by uncontrollable sobbing. For Lily, she learns how to adapt to an entirely new way of life, in a new environment, surrounded by people speaking a language she doesn’t understand. She comes to appreciate the beauty and calm of nature more than she ever felt for the bustling city streets she once knew. Her new husband speaks English, and while he initially admits he never had any intention of marrying again after the death of his first wife, the two eventually come to an understanding of friendship. Which soon blossoms into something more.

You might be asking yourself how it’s possible Lily could come to love another man so soon after the tragic death of her husband. The truth is that by marrying Tahatan she now has the opportunity to reflect on her previous marriage to Alfred. As they traveled the wagon train we saw glimpses that not all was well in their marriage. Lily now starts to question if she every truly loved him, or if it was simply the institution of marriage that she was attracted to. Time passes in this Lakota village she’s come to inhabit with her new husband, and she slowly starts to see the harsh mask of this warrior fade away into one of a gentle and caring person. He teaches her the ways and traditions of his people. They learn to trust each other. To confide in each other. And eventually how to love each other. However, as Lily learns to appreciate this new way of life, and this newfound love with her husband, dangerous forces start to encroach upon her newfound serenity.

Enter Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer and his band of soldiers. When the story opened we witnessed a gruesome attack of Cherokee against a wagon train. Now we see the reverse, as government soldiers heedlessly cut down innocent Lakota tribes-people in their villages. Once again, we see the violent slaughter of men, women and children come full circle, and it begs to question what either side is fighting for where death seems to be the only answer. For the Cherokee, the Lakota, and the other tribes, they are defending their homes, their traditions, and their very way of life from the slew of people invading their lands. For Custer and his men? It’s greed. Gold. The loss of innocent lives on either side is unforgivable, but to see the lengths that some men will go to simply for material wealth…it’s a tragedy that brings tears to my eyes even now. To read this fictional romance is one thing, but then to acknowledge that this story is steeped in the harsh truths of history makes these senseless deaths even more poignant.

For the first times in their lives, both Lily and Tahatan feel whole. Their love is pure, deep, and all-consuming. This becomes particularly evident when the possibility of Tahatan becoming swept up in the ensuing war between tribes and soldiers grows nearer. While Lily feels whole for the first time in her life, she also feels fear unlike anything she’s felt before over the thought of losing someone close to her. When she and Alfred were traveling along the wagon train she knew the dangers and risks of attacks were lurking, but it never crossed her mind what it would be like to lose Alfred; to have to live a life without him. Now that she’s finally confronted with the possibility of losing Tahatan, she is filled with a crippling fear which makes her question if she’d be able to survive if he were to die.

Following the initial attack on the wagon train I found none of the characters believable. Lily’s attitude would not have been tolerated by her captors. I don’t believe they would have allow her to be involved with any discussion concerning her. I don’t believe Lakota Indians sought white females to marry. Tahatan, a “great warrior” would have many of his own people hoping for an alliance. He could have accepted Lily as a slave. Her being his property would have protected her without marriage involved. I could not continue reading this story.

I enjoyed reading Through the Eyes of a Captive because it was entertaining and imaginative during the pandemic; however, not too true to life, as captives were not treated well ~ according to history.