Thomas E. Crocker

Empire's Eagles is two books: the first covers, well, the Fate of the Napoleonic Elite in America (the many senior generals and elites-including Joseph, Napoleon's older brother-who managed to escape the end of the Hundred Days and the restoration of the Bourbon monarchy), and their efforts to survive and thrive (and occasionally scheme and dream for bigger endeavors) in the new America; the second (but larger section) covers the mystery over P. S. Ney, and whether he was or was not Marshal Michel Ney, "le brave des brave".

Either one of these would have made fine books on their own, but by forcing them together, it feels like a lot was sacrificed to bring it in to a manageable length. I would have liked to have learned more about the Society for the Cultivation of the Vine and Olive, or about the atmosphere that flourished in Philadelphia with all the French elites taking up residence there, and how they impacted America. I would have liked to have learned more about the history of P. S. Ney and the hunt for who he is. Braddock is a good enough writer and I learned a lot reading it so that I can't say it was a bad book; it just felt like there were two better books we could have gotten.… (mais)