Author(s): Stephanie Dray, Laura Kamoie
Publication: March 1, 2016
By: William Morrow Paperbacks
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A MUST READ
In a compelling, richly researched novel that draws from thousands of letters and original sources, bestselling authors Stephanie Dray and Laura Kamoie tell the fascinating, untold story of Thomas Jefferson’s eldest daughter, Martha “Patsy” Jefferson Randolph—a woman who kept the secrets of our most enigmatic founding father and shaped an American legacy.
From her earliest days, Martha "Patsy" Jefferson knows that though her father loves his family dearly, his devotion to his country runs deeper still. As Thomas Jefferson’s oldest daughter, she becomes his helpmate in the wake of her mother’s death, traveling with him when he becomes American minister to France. And it is in Paris, at the glittering court and among the first tumultuous days of revolution, that she learns of her father’s liaison with Sally Hemings, a slave girl her own age.
Patsy too has fallen in love—with her father’s protégé, William Short, a staunch abolitionist intent on a career in Europe. Heartbroken at having to decide between being William’s wife or a devoted daughter, she returns to Virginia with her father and marries a man of his choosing, raising eleven children of her own.
Yet as family secrets come to light during her father's presidency, Patsy must again decide how much she will sacrifice to protect his reputation, in the process defining not just Jefferson’s political legacy, but that of the nation he founded.
*I received an eARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review*
I don't read a lot of Historical Fiction, but a few months
ago, I tripped and fell down the rabbit hole known as Hamilton (the
musical) and haven't been able to get enough of the Revolutionary War
period since.
AMERICA'S FIRST DAUGHTER is engrossing, emotional, and kept me turning the page well into the night. The extensive research the authors have done is evident, but blends together beautifully with fiction, creating a story that will satisfy even the most critical of historians while also appeasing readers (like me), who came for the chocolate drops and the hint of romance.
Read it.
AMERICA'S FIRST DAUGHTER is engrossing, emotional, and kept me turning the page well into the night. The extensive research the authors have done is evident, but blends together beautifully with fiction, creating a story that will satisfy even the most critical of historians while also appeasing readers (like me), who came for the chocolate drops and the hint of romance.
Read it.
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