The Twisted Crown

The Twisted Crown takes readers from the bustling streets of Boston during the height of the Abolitionist movement to the war-ravaged landscape of Reconstruction-era South Carolina.By 1867, the War Between the States has ended and the slaves have been freed. South Carolina remains in near ruin, and the federal government has begun the difficult process of reconstructing the political and cultural landscape of the former rebel state. Eva Phillips, a young widow whose husband was killed at Fort Wagner while fighting with the colored troops of the 54th Massachusetts Infantry, leaves the comfort and security of her home in Boston to venture into chaotic, post-war South Carolina to search for the African mother who gave her away twenty-one years ago. Eva¿s journey takes her from the streets of Charleston to The Freedman¿s Bureau in Moncks Corner, SC where she is befriended by a mysterious mulatto who is leading a double life. At an isolated plantation in Saint John¿s Berkeley, she discovers the first clue to the fate of the mother she longs to find. Her dangerous quest draws her into the lives of a wealthy northern carpetbagger, a fiery political activist, and a gutsy lady gambler who teaches Eva how to survive in the tumultuous post-war environment. When Eva¿s search threatens to expose a dangerous web of theft, lies, and murder, she is lured into a violent confrontation with a radical ex-Confederate who forces her into an explosive fight her life.