First published 2010
Isabel believed freedom was coming. She and her sister Ruth had been promised liberty when their owner died. Instead, they find themselves sold to the Locktons, a bitter New York City couple who despise the American Revolution and treat their slaves with cruelty. Isabel meets Curzon, another enslaved person who works for the Patriots. He asks her to spy on the Locktons, who possess knowledge about British invasion plans. Isabel hesitates to risk such dangerous work. Then something terrible happens to Ruth. Isabel faces an impossible choice. She can remain loyal to owners who show her no mercy, or she can sell information to whoever offers her the one thing she desperately needs. This first book in the Seeds of America trilogy follows a girl who discovers that in wartime, survival means fighting your own battle for freedom.
Genres: american-fiction, historical-fiction, 20th-century, young-adult, 19th-century
Vibes: emotional, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, found-family
Setting: New York City
Period: American Revolution
300 pages · Paperback · Atheneum Books for Young Readers
Content warnings: slavery