First published 2016
Young artillery officer Philip Nolan carries what he believes is an official coded message into the Orleans Territory for former vice president Aaron Burr in 1807. Nolan has no idea he's participating in Burr's treasonous plot to invade the Louisiana Purchase territories. When Thomas Jefferson discovers the conspiracy, both men face military custody and charges. Burr's clever lawyers secure his acquittal, but prosecutors need a scapegoat. They expand charges against Nolan to include desertion and sedition. Furious at this betrayal, Nolan denounces his accusers in court and declares he never wants to hear the words "United States" again. The judges grant his wish with a chilling sentence: permanent exile aboard U.S. warships, forbidden from hearing news of his homeland or speaking its name. Decades later, the stateless Nolan serves under young Lieutenant Frank Curran aboard a Mediterranean frigate. When Barbary pirates capture an American whaling vessel, both men plunge into dangerous rescue operations that test their courage and force Nolan to confront what his country truly means to him.
Genres: american-fiction, historical-fiction, american, military-fiction, 19th-century
Vibes: emotional, fast-paced, suspenseful
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, fish-out-of-water
Setting: Louisiana Purchase, Mediterranean, Orleans Territory, United States
Period: 1807, 19th Century
320 pages · Kindle Edition · Naval Institute Press