Blood on the River, by Elisa Carbone, is an enticing book based on the early settlement of Jamestown, in the New World (aka, America). It’s set in the early 1600s and is in first person. When Samuel Colliez, a former street urchin, becomes Captain John Smith’s page, he can’t believe his luck; He’s on a boat, headed to a land where “gold washes ashore with every tide.” All is well until the new colonists start running into the native people, mysterious illnesses, and starvation. It is then that Samuel realizes that the New World is not the paradise it was told to be. As he starts learning the Algonquian language and observes Captain Smith’s wise democratic meetings, Samuel realizes that “he can be whoever he wants to be in this new land.”

I loved this book because it was filled with action, but based off events that actually happened. Historical fiction isn’t usually my preferred genre, but this was pretty good.I’d take a look at this book if you like history or Native Americans, but If you’re more into sci-fi or fantasy, this might not appeal to you that much.

It’s not that lengthy, so I was able to read it in fifth and fourth grade, but this might be a little thick for grades below that.

When judging the book, I also took into account its appearance. The cover of this book is not the most exciting, at least to me, but it depicts the story really well, and has an air of mystery that makes the book look really enticing. As well as looking good, it also felt nice. The smooth-elastic like feel really caught my attention, and added to the overall appearance.

Taking into account the story and cover,  I’d say, on a scale of one to ten, the presentation of this book was about six, in terms of my opinion, but the read was around seven point ninety-five.