I like some of Ambrose's work too...I think Undaunted Courage is my favorite, it leaned heavily on first hand journals and the later collaboration with Ken Burns for the TV special on Lewis and Clark expedition was pretty good too. That whole story and what the endured is amazing. I just wish better information on the death of Lewis was included, Ambrose dismissed any talk of murder out of hand, he simply would not follow the evidence there. I think it obvious that he was murdered. The Grinder testimony is weak and contradcitory, the wounds are highly problematic for a suicide, Jefferson heard rumors it was not a suicide, the family didn't believe the suicide story, the only doctor to examine him (40 years later) concluded it was murder, a soldier (Maj Neely) giving testimony to the scene had to have given a false statement (under higher orders?) because he was more than two days ride away (60 miles) giving testimony on another matter for which there is a court record he was in fact there and not at Grinders Stand, and Maj Russell like Neely had ties to General Wilkinson, a notorious snake, cheat, and swindler who lusted the governorship of the territory he once had before Lewis came along. Everybody in the story seems to have ties back to the snake Wilkinson. And the clothes of Lewis prove the wounds could not have been slef-inflicted. Lewis was assassinated, period. Ambrose chose to ignore it all, much to his discredit.