The New Land

Title: The New Land
Series:
Published by: Permuted Press
Release Date: November 30, 2021
Pages: 329
ISBN13: 9781637580806
Buy the Book: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Politics and Prose

Overview

Seeking a new life, the Oberstrasse family lands on the wild Maine coast in 1753.  They find that the American frontier teems with conniving swindlers, hostile French and Indians, killing diseases, and then a powerful movement for independence from Britain.  They have come because Christianne has decided that their infant sons will never soldier for the Landgraf of Hesse like their father, hired out to serve King George of England.

Johann finds that opportunity on the rocky coast comes from the forest, not land, so he must learn carpentry and trapping.  To advance in an English world, he adapts their name to Overstreet.

But war follows them. The French and their Indian allies attack the English settlements of New England. To protect their growing family and Broad Bay neighbors, Johann accepts the captaincy of the settlement’s militia and leads it through the British assault on the citadel of Louisbourg in Nova Scotia. Left behind in Broad Bay, Christianne, their small children, and the old and young stave off Indian attacks, hunger, and cruel privations.

Peace brings Johann success as a furniture-maker, but also searing personal losses. When the fever for American independence reaches Broad Bay in 1774, Johann is torn, then resolves to kill no more . . . unlike his son, Franklin, who leaves to stand with the Americans on Bunker Hill. At the same time, Johann faces old demons and a new crisis when an escaped prisoner—a hired Hessian soldier, just as he had been—arrives at his door.

 

ADVANCE PRAISE

"In The New Land, David O. Stewart goes deep into the lives of a band of immigrants who landed in Maine before there was a Maine.  This is the rare historical novel that has it all:  A family love story, a panoramic war story, victories and losses in the daily struggle for survival, and, from the shadows, the quiet but unmistakable thrum of the tragedy of the European invasion of North America." -- Patricia O'Toole, author of acclaimed biogrraphies of American figures, including THE FIVE OF HEARTS:  AN INTIMATE PORTRAIT OF HENRY ADAMS AND HIS FRIENDS.

"A dazzling and wrenching novel of history that marks the beginning of an American epic. A story of immigration, the inheritance of violence, and the love of a father for his son, told in language that stings with salt and sawdust and gunpowder. A novel of our revolutionary past that speaks truth to our fraught and furious times.  David Stewart is a master of history and the human heart that beats within it."  Kent Wascom, author of THE NEW INHERITORS

“Sweeping in scope, keenly researched, and deeply felt, THE NEW LAND will capture your imagination and your heart. David O. Stewart has delivered an absolutely engrossing read.” – Brad Parks, international bestselling author of UNTHINKABLE

"[Stewart] constructs a good story . . .about grand historical themes. . . [which] Stewart artfully illuminates through the imagined lives of is characters." -- Mark Spencer, Historical Novel Society

"This compelling novel brings Stewart's finely-wrought characters into danger and heartbreak in the wilds of colonial America. The brutality of survival in colonization and war is rendered in sensitive detail, making for a vivid family saga." -- Carrie Callaghan, author of A LIGHT OF HER OWN and SALT THE SNOW.

"Writing in the tradition of Kenneth Roberts, David O. Stewart has produced a well researched, rousing saga of colonial and Revolutionary War New England.  The story transports the reader to the mid-18th century German settlement of Broad Bay, on the rought and raw Maine frontier, and to the turmoils and adventures of an immigrant family who sacrifices, prospers, goes to war and helps to build the United States." -- Thomas Crocker, author of BRADDOCK'S MARCH:  HOW THE MAN SENT TO SEIZE A CONTINENT CHANGED AMERICAN HISTORY 

"David O. Stewart's historical novels always hook readers, and his new novel The New Land will have fans eager for the rest of the coming trilogy. Stewart shines as one of our leading authors of historical fiction." -- James Grady, author of SIX DAYS OF THE CONDOR and MAD DOGS.

In THE NEW LAND, a grand saga begins. David O. Stewart tells the classic tale of European settlers arriving on the New England coast, where they encounter hardship, winter, war, and a world indifferent to their sufferings and strivings. But he tells it from a fresh new perspective, through the eyes of German immigrants, like the skilled story-teller he is. You will live in this world. You will come to know these people. You will root for them. You will want more of the Overstreet family. And you'll get it in Part II and beyond. But you must begin here to let David Stewart sweep you into the past. You'll be happy you did. -- William Martin, New York Times bestselling author of CAPE COD and BOUNT FOR GOLD.

“When Johann Oberstrasse moves his family to America in the 1750s, the wilderness of coastal Maine is a dangerous place, as cogently presented in this thrilling new novel by well-known author/historian David O. Stewart. The New Land is compelling reading, full of suspenseful surprises and rich in detail as the Overstreets (their new American name) build meaningful lives up to the American Revolution. This first volume in the Overstreet Saga trilogy, will attract well-deserved kudos from a wide reading audience." --  James Kirby Martin, co-author of A Respectable Army: the Military Origins of the Republic, and Surviving Dresden: A Novel about Life, Death, and Redemption in World War II

“Sweeping across a panorama of pre-Revolutionary War New England, The New Land presents memorable and engaging characters who show us—sometimes uncomfortably—what life was like as our nation was being formed. David Stewart’s deep experience in chronicling those fraught and fascinating times pays off many times over with a multigenerational family saga, a love story and an action adventure of real people trying to carve out a llegacy in a new and unforgiving land. David’s fans, both long-time and newcomers, will eagerly await the next installments of the Overstreet saga.” —Mark Olshaker, novelist, documentary filmmaker and coauthor of MINDHUNTER and THE KILLER ACROSS THE TABLE

“A compelling origin story of an American family and the new nation where they carve out a home. David O. Stewart's prose makes you feel the sea-spray, hear the saw's rasp, and smell the musket smoke." --Tom Young, author of SILVER WINGS, IRON CROSS

“David O. Stewart reminds us that the people who invented America weren’t Americans when they came here, they were improvisers and gamblers laying odds that this rough wilderness would be better than the servitude they fled. . .  If you love historical adventures, THE NEW LAND delivers history with the punch of a thriller.” -- Eric Dezenhall, author of FALSE LIGHT and THE DEVIL HIMSELF

“An engrossing saga of hope, determination, and bravery. Johann and Christiane risk everything to cross the Atlantic to Broad Bay, where they are devastated by the false promises of charlatans, the harsh land, and the ever-present threat of native attacks. Only through faith, grit, and the power of love do they secure a future and build their family's legacy. David O. Stewart’s action-filled prose creates an unforgettable story.”  -- M.K. Tod, author of PARIS IN RUINS

"David O. Stewart is a rare talent -- a superb historian who is also a gifted storyteller.  THE NEW LAND marks the arrival of an inventive, thrillingly vivid American saga." -- Daniel Stashower, author of THE HOUR OF PERIL: THE SECRET PLOT TO MURDER LINCOLN BEFORE THE CIVIL WAR

“No one knows U.S. history – its nuance, intrigue and back stories – better than David O. Stewart. In THE NEW LAND, he takes us back to the frontier of a new nation, and to hopes and struggles that resonate with us today.” -- Tim Wendel, author of “ESCAPE FROM CASTRO’S CUBA” and “RED RAIN”

Publicist: Melissa Smith, melissa@posthillpress.com, 615‑261‑4646 x119