Not Between Brothers

“Wilkinson is a gifted storyteller who brings Texas history to life with a tale rich in adventure and high emotions.”
— Publishers Weekly
“Wilkinson’s page-turning narrative spares no one. There are no good guys here. As events cascade beyond the control of the principal characters, Wilkinson’s deft storytelling finds a saving grace, the suggestion of a Texas that might have been. The tragedy of missed opportunities leaves the reader wondering: What if?”
— Jesús Salvador Treviño, author, screenwriter/director of “Seguin,” & activist
“ I found Not Between Brothers fascinating. The author especially shines in his detailed knowledge of Tejano and Native American cultures. Readers will learn a great deal from this book while enjoying every word.”
— William Goetzmann, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian 
“This is simply the best historical novel about Texas published in more than a decade. Author David Marion Wilkinson studied a tremendous amount of reputable primary and secondary sources and then fashioned a thrilling epic around them.””
— The Review of Texas Books

An epic that spans a crucial period of American westward expansion, Not Between Brothers is the bloody and gripping tale of the birth of the Lone Star State.

Comprising a large cast of characters that includes memorable historical figures such as Stephen Austin and Sam Houston, David Marion Wilkinson’s debut novel takes a balanced look at the forces that helped transform Texas from a depository for undesirables to the most fiercely contested territory of its time.

Remy Fuqua, an orphan whose understanding of his fellow man is almost as great as his predilection for battle and his fierce national pride. When he marries a well-born Tejana, Remy is tempted to abandon the world he comes from until a tragic loss catapults him straight to the front lines in the battle for Texan independence— the landmark battle of San Jacinto.

The fearless Comanche warrior Kills White Bear doesn’t trust the white man, a sentiment that turns to enmity when a virulent smallpox plague brought by white traders wipes out his family and decimates his people. His vendetta eventually and inexorably makes Remy his greatest enemy. As the two men stalk each other across the Texas prairie, their struggle pits nation against nation, husband against wife, and, unforgettably, brother against brother.

David Marion Wilkinson’s award-winning first novel is a rich tapestry that captures the risks men and women took by staking their claim to a frontier that already belonged to another people and what price they were willing to pay to realize their own territorial imperative.

Awards & Distinctions