Road to Empire #01 - The Frontier

I've mostly enjoyed the historical adventure novels by British writer Griff Hosker. He's authored over 150 novels in 25 distinct series titles. Previously, I read and reviewed the first of his East Indiaman and Dragon Heart series. As of this writing, Hosker has launched a new title called The Road to Empire, set in the turbulent American frontier of the 1750s. The first, The Frontier, was published in June of 2026 and works as the obligatory origin tale revealing the backstory and early beginnings of Robbie Coulter, a 20-year-old baker who joins the Virginia Regiment.

The Frontier begins with George Washington's famous mission to warn the French of their “invasion” of the King's valuable Ohio River territory. The time period is between 1753 and 1755. These early chapters do a bit of world-building to thrust the reader into this rugged, much-contended landscape carved out by Native Americans, French, and British forces. This leads to the introduction of Robert “Robbie” Coulter.

Robbie is working in the family bakery in Williamsburg, Virginia. Washington and his men are looking for recruits for the British forces, and Robbie, seeking adventure, joins the 1st Virginia Regiment. His close friend, Frank, joins the fellow recruits, and we get a buddy team-up with the two youngsters thriving in the makeshift boot-camp and training exercises. Both men are avid hunters and outdoorsmen, so Washington hand-picks the two as standout leaders and scouts.

While the skirmishes with Native Americans and the French are the main plot points, there are a couple of side quests that Robbie and the men embark on. These include rescuing women and children from raiders while liberating a treed town from the bad guys. There are also some pesky deserters that create a diverse assortment of enemies and villains.

Real historical events and people are included in Hosker's rowdy adventure, including the Battle of Fort Necessity, the construction of Fort Cumberland, and preparations for Fort Duquesne. People like Christopher Gist, Governor Dinwiddie, Daniel Morgan, and even Daniel Boone make appearances and cameos. The narrative works up to the climax, which is General Braddock's 1755 expedition and catastrophic defeat on the Monongahela. While I'm a slight history buff, some of these detailed facts and occurrences were new to me.

Hosker is a terrific writer, but he has two major flaws. One, he has characters peeing often, which he refers to in all of his books as “making water”. It's fine, but an annoying thing that I wish an editor would just carve out. The other is that Hosker is a surface-level presenter, meaning that he doesn't get into the headspace of any characters. The reader never really understands or knows what the characters' thoughts are. Instead, the narrative just focuses on action sequences, some as dull as cleaning a rifle or digging a trench. The negative is that these pages seem unnecessary, but the positive is that Hosker is trying to create an authentic look at the daily routines of historical characters – no matter how insignificant that might be. 

The Frontier is a recommended read. I enjoyed Robbie's characterization, loved the buddy chemistry with Frank, and the action sequences were all top-notch. I'm anxiously awaiting the next installment. Get this book HERE.