9.—The Knights of the Horse Shoe, a Tale of the Old Dominion. Wetumpka, Ala. 1845.
The plot of this work is not very deep or artificial. It approaches more nearly to the narrative style, than to that of the romance. It exhibits a certain reach of inventive power, for, after all, it is a work of fiction, but there is nothing strained, nothing unnatural in it,—nothing that we should not expect to find at the period, and among the people the author describes. What we particularly like in this work is, its truth and fidelity, its nice discrimination of character, and its pure and graceful style. We have not, for some time past, read a better moral—certainly not from the pen of any American writer. We hope that the author, who is a citizen of the South, and a gentleman of fine literary tastes, may be induced to contribute still further to the department of our fictitious literature. From such hands, we need not fear that any thing will proceed, calculated to injure the morals of the age, or corrupt public sentiment. We hear it intimated, and we learn the fact with pleasure, that he has another novel in course of preparation, which may be expected to make its appearance before long. We are glad to see that this work is issued from a Southern press,—a bold step for any author to take nowadays, who wishes to be popular.
