Published works
Prairie Land
A Novel
Barbara and Nate leave the lush forest of Ohio to claim land on the vast prairie of Illinois. Recently married they believe love can conquer anything. but is it strong enough to weather the storms of a nation in turmoil? The Indian Removal Act had broken numerous treaties casting a shadow over the land. Deep seated prejudices and injustices were dividing the country to the point of a pending war. As storms coil around them will their love be strong enough, or will it crumble beneath the weight of the times? And will Barbara and Nate have the courage to reveal their own secrets?
FENCING AMERICA: VIRGIN LAND, 1629
This coming-to-America novel introduces men and women who were among the first to leave England and build new lives in the New World. We accompany them as they pursue their DREAMS, face unimaginable DANGERS, and find ROMANCE. It’s 1629, and widower SIMON HOYT takes his three sons in search of free land and independence. He soon discovers he can’t claim land until he becomes an official member of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Will he take the Freeman Oath and give up his independence? And what of his attraction to the widow Susannah? Their love seems impossible as she’s engaged to someone else.
A year later, in 1630, NICHOLAS and ELINOR KNAPP board the Arbella, flagship of the Winthrop Fleet. Their hastily arranged marriage has qualified them to join the new colony in America. After a difficult two months spent crossing the Atlantic Ocean, they reach Salem Harbor and believe the worst is behind them. But is it? This historical novel highlights the many personal sacrifices required of the first colonists to settle in New England. We see them fight to stay alive through the “starving months.” At times, their lives conflict with the strict rules of the Puritan and Pilgrim governments. And we glimpse struggles endured by the native population. Virgin Land, 1629, is the first of three novels in the Fencing America saga. Throughout the series, Ann Pontrelli weaves her family genealogy into historical events, letting their stories give us a deeper understanding of the people who fenced the land and transformed a continent.