The Whiskey Rebels

David Liss has found his niche as a historical novelist, and The Whiskey Rebels is an entertaining, if slightly uneven, slice of Americana. Liss's strength here lies in the details, particularly in the historical figures who play minor roles—George Washington, Aaron Burr, Phillip Freneau, and Hugh Henry Brackenridge among them. Those characters add color to the plot and evoke the late 18th-century history that many of us (for shame) have forgotten. Despite some sharp dialogue, though, the story slows in places, and several critics mention a tendency for the complex plot to hinge on predictable or contrived elements. Still, Liss is a master of the genre, and The Whiskey Rebels is good fun.