Escape to Falmouth: a Novel

When a feisty, Cherokee beauty and a strong-willed, male, runaway slave lock their destinies together in a headlong pursuit of freedom, they unleash forces that deny their liberty, threaten to destroy their love and propel them into dangerous exploits. Displaced by a presidential edict in 1838, Awanessa, and her entire Cherokee tribe, must leave their homeland in the Southeast United States to march thousands of miles on the arduous Trail of Tears. Meanwhile, Awanessa wages a personal battle that leads her to rescue Jeremiah, a slave on the run, who is being attacked by trackers and bloodhounds. As the couple's lives intersect, they yearn to find their place in an intolerant world. In a desperate race for survival, Awanessa and Jeremiah flee the Smoky Mountains to the Okenofee Swamps of Georgia with the Seminoles, and later, St. Augustine, Florida. By a twist of fate, they end up in post-emancipation Jamaica where they discover a new world of possibilities while confronting jealousy, mistrust, deception and obeah. As they boldly stake a claim for their future, vengeance strikes, loyalties are put to the test, a life is perilously at risk and they wonder, what price will they have to pay for freedom?