The Cost of Freedom: A novel of the Civil War

The Cost of Freedom is the story of a Virginia family in the midst of the great events that thrust the United States into civil war. Beginning in 1859 with John Brown’s raid on Harpers Ferry, this historical novel follows the fortunes of three young people — twenty-two-year-old Amanda Holland and her cousins, Armistead and Arminius “Min” Carter — who together with others, both ordinary and powerful, are participants in and witnesses to the early years of the Civil War. The action ranges from Amanda’s Holland Hall plantation to a prosperous nearby Quaker farm, home of the seductive Rachel and her pacifist father, to the field of Manassas where the forces of secession and union collide in battle. Amidst a slowly maturing love, Amanda and Armistead confront conflicting loyalties to family, state, and country as war rends the social fabric that binds their close-knit family. The powerful portrayal of black people — enslaved and free — places slavery in its proper context while revealing the strength of black aspirations. Through it all looms the shadowy figure of Abner Means, a freelance intelligence agent and ruthless Abolitionist. In this meticulously researched work of historical fiction, author James R. Arnold has chosen northern Virginia, the fault line of national divide, to illustrate how individuals, buffeted by events greater than themselves, answered the most basic questions of principles and loyalty as the cost of freedom becomes apparent. The Cost of Freedom is a page-turning adventure story and a penetrating depiction of character challenged by stark circumstance.The Cost of Freedom is the story of a Virginia family in the midst of the great events that thrust the United States into civil war. Beginning in 1859 with John Brown s raid on Harpers Ferry, this historical novel follows the fortunes of three young people twenty-two-year-old Amanda Holland and her cousins, Armistead and Arminius Min Carter who together with others, both ordinary and powerful, are participants in and witnesses to the early years of the Civil War. The action ranges from Amanda s Holland Hall plantation to a prosperous nearby Quaker farm, home of the seductive Rachel and her pacifist father, to the field of Manassas where the forces of secession and union collide in battle. Amidst a slowly maturing love, Amanda and Armistead confront conflicting loyalties to family, state, and country as war rends the social fabric that binds their close-knit family. The powerful portrayal of black people enslaved and free places slavery in its proper context while revealing the strength of black aspirations. Through it all looms the shadowy figure of Abner Means, a freelance intelligence agent and ruthless Abolitionist. In this meticulously researched work of historical fiction, author James R. Arnold has chosen northern Virginia, the fault line of national divide, to illustrate how individuals, buffeted by events greater than themselves, answered the most basic questions of principles and loyalty as the cost of freedom becomes apparent. The Cost of Freedom is a page-turning adventure story and a penetrating depiction of character challenged by stark circumstance.