The Whiskey Rebels is set in 1792 when the U.S. was a young country struggling to determine not just its identity, but the central tenets of its life and governance. Ethan Saunders was a spy for General Washington during the war, but his life had unraveled since he was accused of being a traitor. He's asked by his ex-fiancee to find her missing husband, and in doing so, he uncovers a plot against Alexander Hamilton's new federal bank. Joan Maycott and her husband have moved to the American frontier, western Pennsylvania, where they are the victims of a land swindle. Like many of the others trying to eke out a living in this harsh land, they turn to whiskey distilling as a way of bartering for their goods. When Alexander Hamilton declares a tax on their whiskey, they return to the idea of self-determination in the face of tyranny, and launch the Whiskey Rebellion. David Liss' novel has received positive reviews with the St. Petersburg Times saying, "David Liss (
A Conspiracy of Paper,
A Spectacle of Corruption) vividly reveals a brash, vibrant era.
The Whiskey Rebels is a highly entertaining blend of historical fiction and swashbuckling."
