Two years ago, Lincoln Stanley, a Negro, purchased several hundred acres of prime Missouri farmland. Not much was said at the time. Now, two more families are joining him. And that’s too many. In the late-night shadows of a remote barn, the Saxon County Knights are born. Levi Manning is their leader. The Knights are his ticket away from the family farm he has run into the ground. Levi convinces the Knights to move against the Negroes - immediately and forcefully. Harvester Stanley, Lincoln’s son, is privy to the Knights’ plans. Though just fourteen, he uses wits and intelligence to thwart their efforts. If only it could stay that way. The Knights strike again, and within weeks innocent people are dead, and families, black and white, are left to pick up the pieces. Over the next sixty years, no family is impacted more than Levi’s. His son Earl wants only to return to the idyllic Grebey Island of his childhood, while grandson Chan never wants to see the place again. Both are good men, successful in their own rights, but forced time and again to reap the harvest sown years before. The debut novel from Paul E. Wootten, Harvest of Thorns combines gritty reality with faith-based beliefs as it explores racism and segregation against a backdrop of small-town America. The Manning family will draw you in from the start and keep you at the edge of your seat. Get your copy today.