My Name Is Not Angelica

In this historical novel set in the Virgin Islands of 1733, Raisha escapes from her Dutch "owners" in time to witness the mass suicide of her fellow slaves, who prefer death to recapture.

• A Fight for Identity: Snatched from her home in Africa and renamed Angelica by her captors, sixteen-year-old Raisha fights to hold on to the person she was born to be.
• Based on a True Story: A meticulously researched novel that brings the harrowing 1733 slave rebellion on the island of St. John to life with unflinching honesty.
• Forbidden Love: Amidst the brutality, Raisha’s heart belongs to Konje, a proud leader from her village who becomes the architect of the island-wide rebellion.
• A Story of Resilience: Faced with an impossible choice between a life in chains and a final, desperate act of freedom, Raisha discovers a powerful reason to survive against all odds.

"O'Dell, like a conjurer, weaves worlds out of words . . . [He] doesn't spare readers any of the grim realities of slavery; the details . . . are at times almost unbearably painful . . . The ending . . . is so powerful, so searing, it will leave readers stunned." Publishers Weekly