What if Abraham Lincoln, our beloved Civil War president, did not die when John Wilkes Booth attempted to kill him at Ford’s Theatre on Good Friday in 1865?  What if he recovered from his wounds and within a short time was once again facing the criticisms of how he handled the war and the reconstruction of the south?  Stephen Carter has written an intricately plotted, historically detailed story that captures the time period and weaves a fascinating alternate history.

A young black woman joins the law firm that is representing Lincoln in the impeachment suit.  Abigail Canner hopes to clerk at the firm and work toward a law degree but she faces the obstacles of race, age and sex.  Nevertheless her brilliant mind begins to impress the firms partners and she is soon embroiled in the court proceedings and sleuthing a murder. Try this alternate history thriller and you will learn much about life in the 1860′s in Washington City and how divided the country was after the Civil War.