Monticello by Sally Cabot Gunning
Releases on September 6, 2016 by William Morrow
From the critically acclaimed author of The Widow’s War comes a captivating work of literary historical fiction, set in America in the years after the Revolution, that explores the tenuous relationship between the brilliant and complex founding father Thomas Jefferson and his devoted daughter, Martha Jefferson Randolph.
After the early death of her mother, young Martha Jefferson accompanied her father, Thomas Jefferson, on his first diplomatic mission to Paris. Five years later, father and daughter have come home to Monticello, the family’s beloved plantation set high in the lush hills of the Virginia countryside.
Though Monticello has suffered from her father’s absence, Martha finds it essentially unchanged, even as she has been transformed. The sheltered girl that sailed to Europe is now a handsome seventeen-year-old woman with a battle-scarred heart, who sees a world far more complicated than it once seemed.
Blessed with her father’s sharp mind and independent spirit, Martha has long abhorred slavery and yearned for its swift end. Yet she now discovers that the home she adores is burdened by growing debt and cannot survive long without the labor of its slaves. Her bonds with those around her are shifting, too. As the doting father she has idolized since childhood returns to government, he becomes increasingly distracted by tumultuous fights for power and troubling attachments that pull him further away. And as Martha begins to pay closer attention to Sally Hemings—the beautiful light-skinned slave long acknowledged to be her mother’s half-sister—she realizes that the slave’s position in the household has subtly changed. Eager for distraction, Martha welcomes the attentions of Thomas Randolph, her exotic distant cousin, but soon Martha uncovers burdens and desires in him that threaten to compromise her own.
As her life becomes constrained by the demands of marriage, motherhood, politics, scandal, and her family’s increasing impoverishment, Martha yearns to find her way back to her childhood home; to the gentle beauty and quiet happiness of the world she once knew at the top of her father’s “little mountain.”
An irresistible blend of emotional drama, historical detail, and vivid atmosphere, Monticello skillfully brings to life Martha Jefferson Randolph, a strong and compelling woman who influenced — as much as she was influenced by — one of the most intriguing figures in American history.
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SALLY CABOT GUNNING, author of the ‘Satucket Novels’ and Benjamin Franklin’s Bastard, returns with a masterful new work of literary historical fiction. MONTICELLO: A Daughter and her Father (on sale September 9, 2016; ISBN 9780062320438; $25.99) is a timely exploration of the relationship between Martha Jefferson Randolph, one of the most highly educated American women of her day, and her father, the third president of the United States Thomas Jefferson.
In the past year, the musical “Hamilton” has swept Broadway and beyond, giving rise to an increased interest in the lives of the founding fathers and their families. First daughters hold a unique and fascinating position of visibility and influence, and in MONTICELLO, Gunning skillfully reveals the historical legacy of their rarefied status—not without tremendous pressure and responsibility. Imminently poised to leave the White House to grow into their own legacies, the Obama daughters have captivated the nation for two terms. The equally dynamic Chelsea Clinton and Ivanka Trump have each made striking impressions in their parent’s presidential campaigns. Renowned as an attractive and intelligent young woman, Martha Jefferson proved an invaluable asset to her widowed father, who relied upon her to help run the family estate at Monticello and serve as hostess and advisor when he assumed the presidency.
MONTICELLO opens as seventeen-year-old Martha Jefferson returns to the family homestead, after spending five years at a convent school in France. The lush Virginia estate Martha always found enchanting now leaves her with mixed feelings; she abhors slavery, and the doting father she has idolized since childhood is increasingly distracted by affairs of state. But Monticello is in decline and cannot survive economically without a slave force.
As Martha’s life becomes constrained by the demands of a difficult marriage, motherhood, politics, scandal, and her family’s imminent impoverishment, Martha faces something akin to captivity herself, and yearns to find her way back to the gentle beauty and quiet happiness of the world she once knew at the top of her father’s “little mountain.”
Sally Cabot Gunning’s MONTICELLO is a captivating, timely, fictional exploration of the fledgling era of the nation, providing an insightful glimpse into the politics and family life of the Jeffersons—bringing Martha and her father, Thomas, vividly to life.
Praise for Monticello
“Well researched and beautifully written, this captivating novel tells the remarkable story of Thomas Jefferson’s daughter caught up in two families’ secrets. Highly recommended.”
— Paulette Jiles, New York Times bestselling author of News of the World and Enemy Women
Praise for Benjamin Franklin’s Bastard
“Unforgettable.”— Shelf Awareness
“An enticing read for history buffs…genuinely heart-wrenching.” — Publishers Weekly
“Cabot shines in her descriptions of colonial life, in her fictionalized rendition of Ben Franklin’s charismatic personality and wide-ranging intellect, but especially in interpreting Franklin the man through Anne, a fully-realized, memorable character…Intriguing historical fiction; a laudable interpretation of colonial life.” — Kirkus Reviews
About the Author
SALLY CABOT GUNNING lives in Brewster, Massachusetts, with her husband, Tom. A lifelong resident of New England, she is active in the local historical society and creates tours that showcase the three-hundred-year history of her village. She is the author of the ‘Satucket Novels’: The Widow’s War, Bound,The Rebellion of Jane Clarke, and Benjamin Franklin’s Bastard.