The Soul Catcher, is a historical drama with added romance and gives the reader a detailed account of the ills of slavery. The book begins a few years before the American Civil War at the time when Americans are drifting apart due to political views. We meet up with Augustus Cain, a former solider who fought in the Mexican American War in the 1840s. Cain now is trying his best to make a measly living catching runaway slaves, the slaves nicknamed this kind of work 'a soul catcher'.
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Augustus is rather good at what he does, but he has grown tired of this type of work and wishes to find a new job. While playing poker, Cain loses his horse and a good sum of money. In an agreement with the man whom he lost money to, a Virginia planter, he is sent out to find his two missing runaway slaves, Rosetta and Henry. If he finds these two and returns them the debt will be considered paid in full.
The book now shows the reader just what a soul catcher does, but Cain is a mild sort of man with a big heart. Cain meets up with three other soul catchers, the Strofe brothers and Preacher. This group of men are polar opposite of one another. The Strofe brothers for example; one is slow and complacent, while the other is thuggish and brutal. Preacher works for himself and hires himself out to the highest bidder, he is emotionless and has a rotten filthy mouth.
The Fugitive Slave Act allowed Southerners to travel North and capture runaways slaves and bring them back to their masters. This group of four men set out from Virginia, and track the two runaway slaves from New York to Boston. When in Boston, they will find Rosetta at a safe house. She is pregnant, but strikingly beautiful. Cain understands the minute he saw Rosetta why her master wants her back. Rosetta does not want to return to slavery nor have her unborn child enter into that cruel institution. Cain is forced with a moral dilemma, he needs money, but he also has a heart.
Best part of story, including ending:
Clear descriptions in this book on just why slaves runaway and the lengths they will go to so that they will never again be a salve.
Best scene in story:
When Cain sees Rosetta for the first time. It is a very emotion scene.
Opinion about the main character:
He is a likable character who is in many ways forced to do a job that goes against his will. Moral and upright Augustus is, and he will be forced between money or morality.
