The Queen of Cotton by Laurie Moore-Moore
QUEEN OF COTTON
By Laurie Moore-Moore
Historical Fiction
Publisher: Goat Mountain Press
Publication Date: September 9, 2025
1861: The Civil War is raging. The men have gone to fight, leaving the women behind to cope. Cotton is the lifeblood of the South.
Sara, a young wife, risks her life and reputation to lead an official Confederate Camel Caravan hundreds of miles across Texas to Matamoros, Mexico. There, cotton can be sold and shipped to the buyer, avoiding the Union blockade and providing critical funds for the South and desperate Dallas cotton growers.
But . . .“It’s not a job for a woman.” The Texas frontier is fraught with danger. The caravan will face fierce Comanche, bandits, extreme weather, internal vandalism, and unforgiving desert. The Mexican cotton market is complex and full of fraudsters. The trail home, carrying gold and armaments, makes the caravan a rich target.
Joining Sara on the adventure are a fascinating mix of real and fictional characters, including a slave— who quotes Machiavelli—and forty-six camels! Can Sara face peril and uncertainty with grit and unyielding determination? Can she survive, succeed, and as a result, shed the past that haunts her? QUEEN OF COTTON, Confederate Camel Caravan is a woman’s adventure with roots in true history. Climb aboard, your camel is waiting.
A stand-alone novel and book two in the Texas Brave & Strong series.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Laurie Moore-Moore and her husband, Roger, have been blessed with many adventures—from trekking across India’s Thar desert on camels (and sleeping in the sand on camel blankets) to repeating marriage vows in a remote Maasi village in Kenya (Laurie’s dowry was one cow and one goat). Laurie’s favorite adventure? As a fifth generation Texan, Laurie says, “It is discovering more and more Texas history and writing about it!
After decades in Dallas, Texas the couple moved to a mountain-top overlooking a lake in The Cherokee Nation. “The cabin is unique.” Laurie says, “There is a nine foot chainsaw bear in our entry hall. The house was built around it. Never thought I’d own a piece of chainsaw art, much less a nine foot bear. Life is full of surprises–just like a good historical novel.”
Laurie is a retired entrepreneur who has built and sold multiple businesses and served on the Board of Directors of an international corporation.
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REVIEW
This is the second book I’ve read
by Texas author Laurie Moore-Moore, it’s book 2 in her Texas Brave and Strong
series. In book one, we met Sara, a young married woman whose husband decided
to move from Tennessee to Dallas, Texas. A dusty little town in the middle on
nowhere. When Sara’s husband died, she started a dry goods store and made a
life for herself in the fledging town. Falls in love and marries the local
cotton broker, Benjamin Brown.
Book two opens in September 1861.
The Civil War has begun and Texas has joined the Confederacy. Benjamin has
joined the Texas Mounted Rifles and is leaving to patrol the state. While it is
a relief that he won’t be going into battle, there are enemies enough in Texas,
the Comanche, deserters, and more. With the agent gone, who will get the cotton
to Matamoros where it is to be sold? Sara, of course. But there are no wagons,
no horses, no mules. How will she transport the crop? With camels, of course!
I really enjoyed book one in this
series and was excited to read the next chapter in Sara’s life. I will admit
that I had to swallow my distaste for the Confederacy and put it out of my mind
while reading. As a historical fiction buff and a fellow Texan, I really appreciate
the history that fills the pages of this book. Details of life in the 1860s
bring Sara and her world to life.
I had never heard the story of
the camel caravan that carried the growers' cotton from Dallas all the way to Matamoros,
Mexico. The fact that Sara was in charge makes the story even better. The
author takes us on the journey with her, to Austin, San Antonio, Fredricksburg
and then south into the deserts of Texas. Along the way, the caravan is
attacked by the Comanche, robbers and rogue soldiers. Sara faces it all with equanimity.
Accompanying Sara is an enslaved man
who is highly educated. He is there to help keep her safe, and he does,
repeatedly. Although Sara calls him a friend and seems to treat him as her
equal, she never once acknowledges the injustice of his enslavement. That was a
disappointment for me.
Despite this, I found the book
enjoyable and certainly learned a lot about Texas during the Civil War. I look
forward to, hopefully, a third installment of Sara’s life. I highly recommend
this book to readers who enjoy historical fiction, Texas history and Women’s
history.
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