#52 Uncivil War (31st Anniversary Review)

[tomswift2002]

Published: June 1991, September 1998 (in The Hardy Boys Collector's Edition #2)
Publisher: Archway Paperbacks (1991-1997) (1998-2001)
Author: Unknown as June 2022

Plot: A little bit of danger can be fun——to much can be fatal!

Hit shots!

Historian Andrew Donnell invites the Hardy's to Tennessee to join in a reenactment of the battle of Shiloh—-Frank in Confederate gray, Joe in Union blue.  But soon both boys are seeing red.  Rifles are raised, shots ring out, and Donnell falls to the ground——cut down by real bullets!

The Hardy's check out the nearby Civil War theme park, where their fun soon turns to terror.  The tunnel of love, the hall of mirrors, and the Rebel Yell roller coaster have been rigged to thrill the boys to death.  The war games are over, the true battle has begun—-and Frank and Joe are directly in the line of fire!

Review: I remember as a kid not enjoying this book.  Otherwise I don't really remember it.

But as I was typing out the back cover write-up, I was reminded of the The Secret of the Lost Tunnel.

[tomswift2002]

Of course if S&S ever reissued Uncivil War I wonder if they would alter the cover artwork as it features two Confederate flags on the front cover.  (The UK version doesn't feature the flag.)  In 1991 the Confederate flag was as controversial as it is now in 2022. 

[tomswift2002]

I finished Uncivil War this morning.  Even now decades later I still didn't like it.  The author kind of had a half-baked idea and never really figured out what to do with it.  Even the resolution I was unsure about, as even the sheriff had no idea what to charge the crooks with.  And I was still wondering what the whole plot was about.

Rating: 3/10

[MacGyver]

Of course if S&S ever reissued Uncivil War I wonder if they would alter the cover artwork as it features two Confederate flags on the front cover.  (The UK version doesn't feature the flag.)  In 1991 the Confederate flag was as controversial as it is now in 2022. 

I would hope it would stay on the cover only because it would make sense for historical purposes.
(And I say that as one who is not a fan of the Confederate flag by any means and who has long spoken against it because of what it symbolizes for so many people.)
    I don't remember a ton about this book but I liked it fairly well, probably because of the historical aspect, as I'm a fan of history.
And Uncivil War makes for a pretty neat book title too.

[tomswift2002]

It's funny but in both Uncivil War and The Secret of the Lost Tunnel, Joe fires some sort of gun with live ammunition.  And in both books, Joe's "official age" is 17 (but in Uncivil War Joe is closer to 19, with UW taking place between the events of Disaster For Hire & Scene of the Crime).

[CalvinKnox]

Since I just finished rereading Uncivil War, I thought I'd comment here instead of starting a new thread.  As a kid I was really looking forward to getting my hands on this one, Civil War and reenactments were two things I was really interested in. 
It was one of the biggest disappointments, so many plot holes, and the crime was so convoluted that the author needed to have Frank spell it all out for us step by step in the last chapter, and the solution wasn't arrived at by the logical collection of facts and clues, instead the Hardys tumble around getting attacked, before Frank seemingly randomly guesses that a certain character is the key that could solve the case.
I did appreciate how the author incorporated a lot of facts about the Battle of Shiloh, although he mentions "cannonballs splashing into the Tennessee River", something that wouldn't be happening during a reenactment.

[MysteryFan89]

Since I just finished rereading Uncivil War, I thought I'd comment here instead of starting a new thread.  As a kid I was really looking forward to getting my hands on this one, Civil War and reenactments were two things I was really interested in. 
It was one of the biggest disappointments, so many plot holes, and the crime was so convoluted that the author needed to have Frank spell it all out for us step by step in the last chapter, and the solution wasn't arrived at by the logical collection of facts and clues, instead the Hardys tumble around getting attacked, before Frank seemingly randomly guesses that a certain character is the key that could solve the case.
I did appreciate how the author incorporated a lot of facts about the Battle of Shiloh, although he mentions "cannonballs splashing into the Tennessee River", something that wouldn't be happening during a reenactment.

Thanks for saying what I was thinking about this book, it wasn't one of my favorites. 

[CalvinKnox]

Also, a reenactment scene with Frank and Joe wearing uniforms would have made fora pretty nifty cover

[MysteryFan89]

Also, a reenactment scene with Frank and Joe wearing uniforms would have made fora pretty nifty cover

Yes, it would've.