Point of View

The novel is written in third person from the limited perspective of Johnny Boyleston Watkins. The limitation means the reader generally does not know anything unless Johnny has the same information, too. This allows the author to provide the major twists in the story line, mainly related to the fact that Peter learns the truth about Johnny's ethnicity and that Marcia plans to break off their engagement the moment she knows the truth, though she does not admit it to Johnny. There are some other details that are kept secret until Johnny learns them, such as the true identity of a man who is writing slanderous articles about John Adams.

The fact that the novel is written in a historically-accurate setting means there are some pieces of information available to the reader before Johnny has it. Johnny waits anxiously for the results of the 1800 election...