Welcome to July's Reader's Den and as another Fourth of July passes we will be discussing Karen Abbott's book Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy. The role of women in the Civil War is usually thought of as Scarlett O'Hara of Gone with the Wind letting the fortunes of war roll over them passively, and without control; maybe rolling bandages or wiping soldiers brows, if they were willing. The four women in Abbot's book not only took their destinies into their own hands, but became heroines in their own right, for their own prospective sides. 

They embodied the ideals of Union or Confederacy and decided to risk it all no matter the cost to their families and reputations. One even paid the ultimate price. These women are a part of the history of the United States that is not very well known, but their stories need to be told.  Using both primary sources and descendant interviews, Karen Abbot tells the story of the war as these women lived it.