In 1859, eleven-year-old Elijah Freeman, the first free-born child in Buxton, Canada, which is a haven for slaves fleeing the American South, uses his wits and skills to try to bring to justice the lying preacher who has stolen money that was to be used to buy a family's freedom.

The savage, lawless prison world is called Victoria. The arriving exiles, sworn to nonviolence, are called the People of the Peace. Brutalized and dominated by the City criminals, the People would have broken vows and shed blood if not for one bold young woman. Her name is Luz, and she leaves her City father to lead the People on a perilous quest to discover a world of hope within this world of chaos...a place they will call Heron.

Princess Cinnamon's stuffy parents want her to look grand, wearing the finest clothes and jewels, and study deportment but Cinnamon longs to be wild and free. Includes directions for making a kite.