Wake Not the Hangman

Thornton Guthrie works his fathers land at gunpoint. The year is 1834 and men of the establishment have total control over their kin. Escaping is out of the question. Estranged from his abused mother Thornton lives in isolation. That changes when Thorntons father buys three slaves William Ronan and Henry. Thornton loathes slavery and realizes that for the first time in fifteen years his father--and his fathers rifle--are outnumbered. Thornton dreams of joining forces with the men to plot an escape but as the slave-owners son he must convince the men he is on their side while under the watchful barrel of his fathers gun. He discovers he has something unexpected in common with thirty-six-year-old William and hazards a dangerous initial contact hoping it wont cost him everything. Thorntons bravery sets in motion an audacious escape plan that through a deadly turn of events becomes a race against the clock further complicated by a crafty interloper on Guthrie Farms Thorntons ill-timed first romance and the lethal secret of one of the captives. A tale of treachery bondage fellowship and courage Wake Not the Hangman depicts how one young mans desire to escape his wretched father leads to a much bigger quest: freedom for a band of newfound friends confined by servitude and the law. INCLUDES READERS GUIDE.