Carrying Independence - (A Founding-Documents Novel) by Karen A Chase (Paperback)

About the Book

With cries of war spreading across the colonies and pressure mounting to join the Revolution, an intrepid young Post Rider, Nathaniel Marten, is reluctant to raise a rifle for the cause until in a chance encounter with Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson, Nathaniel is asked to secure the remaining signatures by carrying the sole copy of the Declaration to the congressmen unable to attend the formal signing.

Book Synopsis

What if one man carried the fate of American independence in his hands?

In this gripping Revolutionary War fiction, Nathaniel Marten becomes the unlikely courier tasked with gathering the final signatures for the Declaration of Independence. Based on the true historical fact that not all delegates signed on August 2nd, Carrying Independence imagines the dangerous mission to complete America's founding document.

When Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson entrust Nathaniel with the only signed copy of the Declaration, he must traverse hostile colonial territories where British spies and Loyalist sympathizers hunt anyone connected to the rebellion. From the treacherous roads of Pennsylvania to the plantation estates of Virginia, Nathaniel journeys through enemy lines to reach the missing delegates-knowing that capture means death, and failure means the colonies remain forever divided.

This American Revolution novel brings to life the forgotten heroes who risked everything for independence. As Nathaniel faces impossible choices between love, family, and country, readers discover the human cost of creating the founding documents that shaped our nation.

Perfect for readers who love:

• Revolutionary War historical fiction with authentic period detail
• Stories of ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances
• Founding Fathers era adventure novels
• Action-packed tales set during the American Revolution

"Incredibly well-researched historical details... The author allows us to temporarily live and breathe 1776." - Kathleen Grissom, New York Times bestselling author

Winner of multiple historical fiction awards, Carrying Independence illuminates the untold story of how America's most important document survived to create the nation we know today.

Review Quotes

"Karen A. Chase's fast-paced narrative captures the drama of declaring and fighting for independence. Her sharply-observed scenes bring abstract principles to vivid life, reminding readers of the human dimensions of making a nation at a time of radical change." -Peter Onuf, University of Virginia (Emeritus)

"It is seldom we see women approaching fiction during a time period like the American Revolution, a time rife with bloody battles and political intrigue. Karen A. Chase has taken on the task with this first novel and handled it with the grace of an experienced storyteller and historian." - Beth Macy, New York Times Best selling author of Factory Man and Dopesick

"Believable characters, an engaging narrative, and a sense of historical reality... The best aspect for me, of course, is the presence of Shawnee people who are reasonable, thinking human beings." - Colin Calloway, National Book Award Finalist for The Indian World of George Washington, and Professor Native American Studies Dartmouth College

"Karen A. Chase's new novel tells the gripping story, based on historical fact, of the heroic efforts to keep the signed copy of the Declaration of Independence out of the hands of invading British forces. For anyone interested in the American Revolution and birth of our nation this is a compelling read." - James Horn, President & CO Jamestown Rediscovery Historic Jamestown and author of 1619

"Sometimes you can learn more about a war from a good novel than you can from a history book. That's what Karen A. Chase does in Carrying Independence. She vividly evokes what it was like to be in the trenches of the Revolutionary War in a way that few-if any-historians have done." - Marc Leepson, author of What So Proudly We Hailed, and Lafayette: The Idealist General