Sons of Alabama: Heartbreak in the Heartland

A WAR HE DIDN'T BELIEVE IN. A PROMISE HE COULDN'T BREAK.Inspired by the true story of Harrison and Nancy Sartain, Sons of Alabama is a haunting Civil War saga in the tradition of Cold Mountain.The spring of 1862 brings war to the Alabama heartland, tearing apart the quiet community of Big Creek. Facing certain Confederate conscription, Harrison Sartain enlists alongside his best friend, Green, and his innocent younger brother, Daniel. For Harrison, a promise is sacred. He has vowed to return to his beloved wife, Nancy, to protect Daniel, and to see his friends safely home. But his integrity becomes his heaviest burden as the war tests whether any man can honor such vows and survive the carnage.From the suicide charge of his Orphan Brigade at Stones River to the final surrender at Appomattox, each battle extracts its price in blood. Raised by an abolitionist father, Harrison fights for a cause he cannot support-struggling to keep his brother alive while the world he knew crumbles around him.But war takes its toll on both fronts. At home in Tuscaloosa County, Nancy and the family struggle to survive with six brothers gone to fight across the South. As the Union army closes in, Harrison is left powerless to protect the very home he is fighting to return to.Through it all, Harrison safeguards his Sergeant's Orderly records, meticulously documenting each march, battle, and loss.This novel is based on those actual records: Harrison Sartain carried his papers home from Appomattox in 1865 and preserved them until donating them to the Alabama Department of Archives and History in 1904, providing an invaluable firsthand account of the war. Every promise demands a price. Every battle takes its toll.Harrison vows to return, but as the war consumes everything in its path, one question remains: If he survives, will there be anything left to come home to?