I think my most favorite of my own books are "The Freedom Thief" , "The Return of the Freedom Thief', and my newest book, "Murder and Macchiatos." I have been enthralled by the Civil War since I was a kid and first learned about it in school. I had a brother who was 12 years older than I, but however unlikely, we were very close. He was killed in WWII. He taught me a lot about family closeness, and when I began to learn about the Civil War and how it destroyed families who had different philosophies, it just seemed unreal. So when I started to write, I wanted to write about that War but I wanted to do it right. So, in doing research to know exactly what I was talking about, my husband and I took a two week barge trip down the Ohio and up the Mississippi Rivers, visiting small towns on those rivers which were active in the War but never talked about in history books.
The Freedom Thief is about a 13, almost 14 year old boy living on a slavery plantation in Kentucky. His best friend is a young slave boy who is crippled. When Ben McKenna learns that his father plans to sell Josiah, even though Josiah's mother Bess and father Jesse will still be on the plantation, Ben decides to arrange an escape for all three. The time for the escape came before Ben could make any real plans, as the slave buyer was coming the very next day. That night, Ben took his friend Josiah, and his parents Bess and Jesse, and they embarked on an escape journey filled with danger, fear, and not really knowing what was coming next. The only thing Ben really knew was that he and his friends had to find the Ohio River, and he had to, somehow, get them across that river into the safety that lay beyond. Every step of the way they were met with hostility, deception and dangerous situations. They are plagued with fear, hunger, and exhaustion, often on the run from slave hunters and their dogs...dogs that seem to be able to follow their scent no matter what they do to disguise it. Hidden barns, tiny attic rooms, cellars full of rotting fruit and vegetables were often their only means of safety. Sometimes they were given the luxury of a ride in the bottom of a wagon or in a casket on a glass-enclosed horse-drawn hearse, but treachery seemed to all around them all the time, and neither Ben nor the slaves were sure that someday, they might find the safety and freedom of the Ohio River.
The Return of the Freedom Thief: When Ben McKenna finally returns home after getting his friends to safety, he is met with anger and hostility from his parents and two older brothers. Only his grandmother, a not-so-secret Abolitionist, is happy to see him. Shortly after his return in 1861, the Civil War begins and his two brothers go off to join the Confederate Army. Soon after, Ben realizes he can no longer stay at home with parents who are still hostile to him, so he decides to become a spy for the Union Army. His grandmother helps him by sending him to a friend of hers in Lexington who has secretly organized an espionage ring, which Ben joins. His first mission is hampered by a young girl who suddenly appears and refuses to leave his side. When he realizes he really can't get rid of her, he is afraid his spy future will be compromised, but Puck becomes a staunch ally and help by pretending to be his sister, and helping him in his activities. Finally, however, his missions become so dangerous that he must leave Puck behind, as he embarks upon a journey already deeply mired in danger, deceit, and deception. Every move he makes, every decision, is a constant threat to his well=being, and he often wonders if he will ever return home, as he begins to realize, perhaps too late, that his own survival is not guaranteed.
Murder and Macchiatos: Law professor Peyton Ashford has just inherited an ancient barn that has been in her family for over a hundred years. She and her District Attorney husband, Cooper, remodel it into a Books and Brews Bistro...a place to enjoy speciality coffee drinks and check out the books in the library part...and also into beautiful living quarters upstairs. During the last part of the construction a body is found buried in the back part of the barn. When Peyton finds out that it is a great-uncle that she has not seen since childhood, and who has been murdered in the exact same way that her great-great grandfather was killed 100 years ago, she is determined to find the murderer and the reason behind the murder. The local sheriff has a history with Peyton, not a pleasant one, and has refused to investigate the murder, so Peyton and her two best friends, Willow and Kylie, decided to investigate themselves. Before they can really get started, three mysterious men, a missing teen girl, an angry and very competitive fellow law professor, and a strange, vengeful woman all combine to make what might have been "just" a simple murder the most baffling crime the small, historical whaling town of Dauphin's Cove has ever seen.
All three of these books can be found at Amazon, under Author Mikki Sadil, and on Smashwords, also under Author Mikki Sadil.
They are also sold at Barnes and Noble.
Thanks so much, Janet!
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