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The Power to Deny: A Woman of the Revolution Novel
by
Young and brilliant poet Elizabeth Graeme comes of age in colonial Philadelphia bearing an exceptional talent for writing and an unwillingness to be like all the other young women around her.
After a successful trip to England and an audience with the king, the sudden death of her mother and two failed romances leave Elizabeth reeling. Back in Philadelphia, she uses her li ...more
After a successful trip to England and an audience with the king, the sudden death of her mother and two failed romances leave Elizabeth reeling. Back in Philadelphia, she uses her li ...more
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Kindle Edition, 449 pages
Published
November 22nd 2019
by Carmenta Publishing
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Start your review of The Power to Deny: A Woman of the Revolution Novel

The Power to Deny introduces the reader to one of the forgotten figures of the late colonial and revolutionary America. Elizabeth Graeme was a Philadelphia socialite and a poet in her own right who was friends with, and admired by, many in her day, including some of the men who went on to sign the Declaration of Independence.
Raised in the home of an affluent and well-connect physician father, Elizabeth seemingly had a bright future before her. She became engaged to the son of Benjamin Franklin, ...more
Raised in the home of an affluent and well-connect physician father, Elizabeth seemingly had a bright future before her. She became engaged to the son of Benjamin Franklin, ...more

A truly marvelous story of a truly remarkable woman
Graeme Park figures large in my own family's Revolutionary history, so it was with great excitement that I seized upon this novel that promised to fill in some of the blanks.
My interest had been richly rewarded. Elizabeth Graeme springs from the pages of this book, lively and lovely and shimmering with brilliance.
Many novels of the Revolution suffer from the tendency to name drop the most well- known figures of the era; Graeme's place in Phila ...more
Graeme Park figures large in my own family's Revolutionary history, so it was with great excitement that I seized upon this novel that promised to fill in some of the blanks.
My interest had been richly rewarded. Elizabeth Graeme springs from the pages of this book, lively and lovely and shimmering with brilliance.
Many novels of the Revolution suffer from the tendency to name drop the most well- known figures of the era; Graeme's place in Phila ...more

I must confess that I really don't know much about American history. I had definitely never picked up a historical fiction novel set around the time of the American Revolution before, so I didn't really know what to expect. However, I was immediately hooked from the first page and all the context of what was going on with the Revolution was explained in such a way that I was never confused about what was happening or who someone was. I thought the personalities of the characters were fleshed out
...more

I think we’re at a very specific time in the history of women and how we are perceived and understood and treated in the world. And part of any such change process is to look backwards in history at the women who came before and how we might be standing on their shoulders. Wendy Long Stanley, in writing about Elizabeth Graeme Fergusson, has written about a woman that has strengths and weaknesses like us all but lived them in an extraordinary time. This book made me think about my life as a woman
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Immediately pulls you into the room with the heroine through her eyes in her old age. Her grumpy humor and frankness brings to mind Hagar Shipley in The Stone Angel by Margaret Laurence. Hints of who she was and who she loved and what she may have regretted make the pages turn. Then we get the story behind the loves and losses and possible regrets. Elizabeth was a real person - a poet - and author Wendy Long Stanley fills out her life’s story with color, sadness and at times great bawking humor.
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This is an absorbing read, which reflects the author's meticulous research into the 18th century colonial and Revolutionary American historical context and the life of Elizabeth Graeme Fergusson, the main character. Graeme, an 18th century American writer, translator, and salon leader, comes to life in this historical novel.
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Great read.
As a lover of historical fiction I found this book to be one of the best I've read
Well researched and written. ...more
As a lover of historical fiction I found this book to be one of the best I've read
Well researched and written. ...more

A superbly-written, meticulously researched tale of a brilliant woman of the American Revolution!
I received an advance reader copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I often wonder why I haven’t heard of a particular historical character when I happen upon a book about one who is unusual and heroic. Such was the case with this novel, The Power to Deny. The heroine, Elizabeth (Betsy) Graeme, was a brilliant poet, writer, and translator. She was well-educated and came from a well-to-do ...more
I received an advance reader copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I often wonder why I haven’t heard of a particular historical character when I happen upon a book about one who is unusual and heroic. Such was the case with this novel, The Power to Deny. The heroine, Elizabeth (Betsy) Graeme, was a brilliant poet, writer, and translator. She was well-educated and came from a well-to-do ...more

The intense storyline of Elizabeth Graeme's life breeds endless emotion. As I read 'The Power To Deny' I could imagine myself in the height of Graeme Park at a social hour, on the streets of Philadelphia as a bustling new city, or quartering soldiers in my own childhood home. I could hardly put this book down as the story continuously picks up speed and just when you think something is about to go one way, it goes the other. I also want to point out the extremely important task that Stanley took
...more
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