Synopsis
When a Harvard history professor receives a thesis paper titled Jesse James and the Secret Legend of Captain Coytus, from Ulysses Hercules Baxter-an underwhelming student-he assumes the paper must be a prank. He has never read such maniacal balderdash in his life. But after he calls a meeting with the student, Professor Gladstone is dismayed when Baxter declares the work is his own. As he takes a very unwilling Professor Gladstone back in time via his thesis, Baxter's grade hangs in the balance as he attempts to prove his theory. It is 1864 as philanderer and crusader Captain Coytus embarks on a mission to avenge his father's death and infiltrates the Confederate Bushwacker posse looking for the man responsible, Jesse Woodson James. Accompanied by the woman of his dreams, Coytus soon finds himself temporarily appointed to be the sheriff of Booneville and commissions his less-than-loyal deputy to help him carry out his plan. But when tragedy strikes, the Captain is forced to change his immature ways and redefine his lofty mission-more or less.
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Review
The character that stood out the most for me is the Captain. From the time he was introduced, he held my attention. As the book progressed, I enjoyed learning more about him, and by the end of the novel I thought his character had been really well developed, and I found myself smiling quite a few times as I read about his exploits. I also thought the way he dealt with certain people showed a lot of ingenuity, and I really liked him by the end of the book. Since this story is historical fiction, I also liked the use of Jesse James and his brother Frank as characters in the story as well.
I found this book to be a fun read, even though it was rather long, coming in at 100 plus chapters. They're relatively short, which made the book move faster. I'd recommend this book to readers of historical fiction who enjoy comedy and humor as well. My rating is 4/5 platypires.