Thoreau in Phantom Bog by B. B. Oak

Julia is in love with Adam, has been her whole life.  When his grandmother tells them they are cousins, she goes away to grieve over her lost love.  When she marries a kind man she met aboard the ship, she finds he's not a kind man.  He is also a slaver.  So she runs again, this time back to the states.  And it doesn't take long until she finds herself in Adam's arms again.  She finds out he's not really her cousin, his father was from another family.  She can't marry him because she's already married but she's still seeing him.  She never expected her husband to come to America from France to retrieve her...

Kensington Books and Net Galley allowed me to read this book for review (thank you).  It will be published August 25th.

Thoreau is working with the Underground Railroad to help slaves get to freedom.  Julia talks to him about it because she has a big house and believes she conceal them for a night or two.  By pure chance, she leads a family to safety in the next town.  Adam gets very upset.  Thoreau tells him to calm down, he'll keep her safe.

When a conductor is killed transporting a slave, everyone goes out to the bog and searches for her body.  She didn't fall in the bog.  She also didn't show up at the next safe house.  Where could she be?

The slave's owner loves her and comes after her.  He's even sold his big bay horse he loved like a child to do so.  He's looking for her; so are other people.  There's a fake Quaker in town and a traveling photographer.  The policeman is useless.  So Thoreau, Julia, and Adam try to figure out what's going on.  There are three different plots here and it keeps the story exciting.

Thoreau is a laid back character who knows odd facts and how to handle almost anything.  My favorite characters are Julia and Adam.  They are facing impossible odds and now she's pregnant with his child but they aren't giving up.  I admire people like that.  This was enjoyable read.