The Floating Theatre: This captivating tale of courage and redemption will sweep you away

Description

When young seamstress May Bedloe is left alone and penniless on the shore of the Ohio, she finds work on the famous floating theatre that plies its trade along the river. Her creativity and needlework skills quickly become invaluable and she settles in to life among the colourful troupe of actors. She finds friends, and possibly the promise of more... But cruising the border between the Confederate South and the 'free' North is fraught with danger. For the sake of a debt that must be repaid, May is compelled to transport secret passengers, under cover of darkness, across the river and on, along the underground railroad. But as May's secrets become harder to keep, she learns she must endanger those now dear to her. And to save the lives of others, she must risk her own...

Martha Conway's first novel, 12 Bliss Street, was nominated for an Edgar Award, and her latest novel, Thieving Forest, won the North American Book Award for Best Historical Fiction. Her short fiction has been published in The Iowa Review, The Carolina Quarterly, The Quarterly, Massachusetts Review, Epoch, Folio, and other journals. A recipient of a California Arts Council Fellowship, Martha teaches creative writing for Stanford University's Continuing Studies Program and UC Berkeley Extension. Born in Cleveland, Ohio, she is one of seven sisters. She now lives in San Francisco with her family.