About Newfound Freedom
Newfound Freedom is Richard Modlin’s well-crafted, historically-accurate, epic tome that will thrill readers interested in the genre of American colonial and nautical adventure. It’s a coming-of-age, plot-driven novel filled with camaraderie that’s comparable to the works of Patrick O’Brien.
Survival, adaptation, and self-reliance are the dominant themes as two English brothers experience a perilous Atlantic crossing and unexpectedly become embroiled in the beginnings of the American Revolution. Newfound Freedom finds some of its best moments via the ideological turmoil between main characters, Jack and Ian Hollister, yet the treasures to be found in its pages are almost without limits as the author brandishes his skills as a world-class writer and historian. Modlin served as a senior research associate with the Smithsonian Institute’s National Museum of Natural History.
Modlin’s inspiration for the novel found its genesis in the author’s love of history and an extended stay along the east coast in the vicinity of Machias, ME. There he learned of the Battle of Machias, which was the first naval battle of the American Revolution. After visiting the site of the battle and researching the events, people, and culture of late eighteenth century Machias, Newfound Freedom became not only possible, but an actuality as a thrilling work of high adventure.
Indeed, using his superb writing skills, Modlin keeps the reader intimately engaged with the history of the time. In creating the dialogue, the author used only words and expressions that were common lexis in New England, Great Britain, and on the high seas during that epoch in time. The descriptions of the landmarks, events, terrain, and activities are also true to the time. Moreover, the fictional characters in Newfound Freedom interact with actual historical figures such as George Washington, Jeremiah O’Brien, Nathan Hale, Ichabod Jones, and many others.
Kirkus Review of Newfound Freedom
An intricately plotted novel of naval exploits along the Atlantic coast on the eve of the American Revolutionary War. The novel follows two aristocrat brothers, Ian and Jack Hollister, who’ve traveled from England to oversee their father’s business interests in Boston. En route, they’re shipwrecked off the coast of Maine; the brothers and some of the crew make it to shore, where they’re eventually rescued by a group of American pirates led by the irascible Maire Balch. Although the brothers are treated cautiously at first, the pirates soon take to them and introduce them to the revolutionary ideas afoot in the colonies. When Ian and Jack are briefly separated, the Royal Navy kidnaps a number of the pirates, Ian among them, and conscripts them into service—tasking Jack and the others with rescuing them and fighting the British. It’s a rollicking tale, complete with sea battles, budding love affairs, familial infighting and even brief appearances by the patriots George Washington and Nathan Hale. Modlin also does a good job at differentiating Jack’s and Ian’s characters: Ian, the older of the two, remains steadfast in his support of the crown, even after being forced into labor for the navy, while Jack is more passionate, taking to heart the goals of the colonists in declaring their freedom. Too often, though, the novel handicaps its story with serious pacing issues; characters frequently sound like mere mouthpieces for political ideas, and the earlier naval scenes, in particular, contain an excessive number of nautical terms. The novel’s conclusion also isn’t nearly as dramatic as it might have been, given the ideological differences that grow between the brothers over the course of the story. A competent, if occasionally unsteady, historical narrative, likely to please those who love stories of naval battles. Kirkus Review