A squandered opportunity to be an extremely interesting review of the conflicting claims around who killed the great Indian Chief Tecumseh. Kuron should have done a more in-depth analysis of trustworthiness of certain sources, specifically evaluating how all of the stories change over time. There is no specific valuing of earlier sources. Accounts from grandchildren of participants regaled in 1895 are treated with equal weight as diary entries written in the immediate aftermath of the battle.

I wanted the book to explore Richard Mentor Johnson's evolving story, the creation of a legend in the aftermath of a war, and the effect of the election of 1836. Campaign efforts around RMJ's election to Vice President MUST have played a significant roll in how the story was remembered by those who fought at the Thames some 20 years earlier, potentially sullying their stories.

The cherry on top is the weak-sauce ending. Kuron doesn't come to any conclusion other than anything is possible. There was a mention of an Indian whose name translated roughly to "Fish Who Interprets the Earth". Kuron doesn't interpret anything at all, no deciphering of the facts, and bold declaration convicting King, Johnson or Whitley as the true killer-- just a simple regurgitation of the facts. One is better left reading wikipedia.