Missouri Compromise: A Young Trapper’s Tale is now available on Kindle Vella. Missouri Compromise is a coming-of-age short story in my historical fiction series Tailing Times. The story follows fourteen-year-old Guillaume Pelletier (Guy) on his first trapping voyage up the Missouri.
At only 15 episodes, 2 per week, the story will run on Vella for just over a month, starting with 4 episodes October 13, 2022. Last month we talked a bit about my research for the story. This month readers of my newsletter get a peek at Episode 1: The Men.
Missouri Compromise
Like Buffalo Chasers: A Wild West Show, Missouri Compromise: A Young Trapper’s Tale is a prequel to the Tailing Times Mysteries, a western detective series about an amateur sleuth, Chester, in the Colorado gold fields during the Pikes Peak Gold Rush. Missouri Compromise tells the coming of age story of Guillaume Pelletier, Chester’s mentor and sidekick in the Tailing Times Mysteries.
Guillaume (Guy) was born in St. Louis to a fur trapping and trading family who worked the Missouri River and its western tributaries. In 1833, Guy’s father was killed during an Indian attack on his trapping party. At fourteen, Guy must join the same trapping party to help his mother support his little sisters. Although his uncle owns the trapping company, the superstitious voyageurs don’t welcome him. And Guy’s inexperience puts the whole party at risk. Will the trapping party all reach the summer rendezvous?
Through this tale of Guy’s coming of age, we learn about his character, what motivates him, and how he is similar to and different from Chester. More than a character background, Missouri Compromise is an exciting adventure story about the perils of traveling and trapping the vast wilderness of the western territories.
As a prequel, does that mean Missouri Compromise doesn’t make sense without reading more of the Tailing Times series? As much as I would love you to read everything in the Tailing Times setting, the answer is “no.” Missouri Compromise is a stand-alone short story that has meaning whether or not you read anything else in the Tailing Times series. If you enjoy stories about a boy coming of age in the American frontier, you might like this one.
Cover image by Marzolino/shutterstock.com. Used under license from Shutterstock.com.
Thanks for the article!
You bet. Thanks for reading!