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Naomi Finley

Goodreads Author

Website

http://www.authornaomifinley.com

Genre

Historical Fiction

Member Since

December 2017

URL

https://www.goodreads.com/goodreadscomnaomifinley

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Naomi is an award-winning author living in Northern Alberta. She loves to travel and her suitcase is always on standby awaiting her next adventure. Naomi's affinity for the Deep South and its history was cultivated during her childhood living in a Tennessee plantation house with six sisters. Her fascination with history and the resiliency of the human spirit to overcome obstacles are major inspirations for her writing and she is passionately devoted to creativity. In addition to writing fiction, her interests include interior design, cooking new recipes, and hosting dinner parties. Naomi is married to her high school sweetheart and she has two teenage children and two dogs named Egypt and Persia.

From The Author:

When I decided to write my se Naomi is an award-winning author living in Northern Alberta. She loves to travel and her suitcase is always on standby awaiting her next adventure. Naomi's affinity for the Deep South and its history was cultivated during her childhood living in a Tennessee plantation house with six sisters. Her fascination with history and the resiliency of the human spirit to overcome obstacles are major inspirations for her writing and she is passionately devoted to creativity. In addition to writing fiction, her interests include interior design, cooking new recipes, and hosting dinner parties. Naomi is married to her high school sweetheart and she has two teenage children and two dogs named Egypt and Persia.

From The Author:

When I decided to write my series A Slave of the Shadows, it started from my interest in the antebellum era because many aspects of it were reflected in my childhood.
Though I've studied the antebellum era of US history thoroughly, I certainly don't claim to know every detail and I strive to learn more each day. Over the years, I've visited many plantations and museums across America. I’ve found my visits to be informative and inspirational, but I derive most of the information for my stories from historical books, documents, and maps. Educating yourself by wading through a mass of records can be daunting, especially with so many gray areas and years where documents seem to contradict one another.
Before I started developing characters and plotting A Slave of the Shadows, I visited Charleston, South Carolina. It was at this point I began contemplating if my protagonist Willow would be a plausible main character against a background where the barbaric slave trade was a thriving business in the South. However, it was during this trip I learned of the valiant Grimké Sisters. These two white women were raised in Charleston during the height of the slave trade, and they openly protested cruelties they witnessed against blacks. As a result, they became advocates for abolition and women’s rights. Their bravery in taking a stand against injustice when females didn't have a voice or position of power, ultimately inspired me to pursue my character development of Willow. This courageous account of the Grimké sisters affirmed my dream of painting Willow as I first envisioned her.
My goal in writing this series was to shine a unique light on a period of history where Southerners are generally perceived as abusive slave owners. This simply wasn’t the case because plenty of Southerners were poor, illiterate, and couldn’t even afford slaves. In truth, some owners unleashed unthinkable cruelties, but others worked to keep their slaves content, feeling a better profit would result. In the minority were the Grimke sisters and my own character Willow, disagreeing with the system altogether, despite being raised in a climate supporting its values.
From our vantage point, there is a danger in looking at the negative exploits of the past and generalizing the actions of its participants. It is essential when painting the portrait of an era to shed truth on the dynamic nature of all people involved. My job as a historical fiction writer is to depict a time period with unbiased accuracy and authenticity as much as possible based on documents and records. So, I must find a balance in weaving historical data into a tale while still intriguing and connecting with my readers. I love history, but I don’t want my audience to feel like they're in a history class when they read one of my books or novellas. The beauty of being an author is the freedom to craft stories within a historical context that keeps people turning the pages. These are the stories I gravitate to myself, and I want to share the same experience with my audience.
I also feel it is my duty as a writer to honor and protect the truth of atrocities inflicted on enslaved people during the antebellum era. Many were stripped of their power in dehumanizing way ...more

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Combine Editions
Naomi Finley’s books

Average rating: 4.46 · 4,759 ratings · 250 reviews · 14 distinct works • Similar authors

	A Slave of the Shadows (The Livingston Legacy #1) 4.42 avg rating — 1,462 ratings — published 2018 — 13 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	A Guardian of Slaves (The Livingston Legacy #2) 4.54 avg rating — 772 ratings — 9 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Whispers of War 4.55 avg rating — 540 ratings — 8 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	For Home and Country (The Livingston Legacy, #4) 4.56 avg rating — 519 ratings — 10 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Forsaken Children (The British Home Children, #1) 4.35 avg rating — 361 ratings — published 2021 — 6 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Promise Between Us: Mammy's Story (The Livingston Legacy, #2.3) 4.46 avg rating — 295 ratings — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Black Knight's Tune: Ruby's Story (The Livingston Legacy #2.1) 4.37 avg rating — 247 ratings — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Master of Ships: Charles's Story (The Livingston Legacy, #2.2) 4.41 avg rating — 196 ratings — 6 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Fair Magnolia: Jimmy's Story (The Livingston Legacy, #2.4) 4.55 avg rating — 173 ratings — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	If This Is Love: The Onset Of The Gilded Age (The Darlingtons Book 1) 4.28 avg rating — 132 ratings — 7 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Naomi Finley…

Series by Naomi Finley

The Livingston Legacy (4 books)
by

Naomi Finley (Goodreads Author)

4.48 avg rating — 4,204 ratings

A Slave of the Shadows (2 books)
by

Naomi Finley (Goodreads Author)

4.46 avg rating — 2,234 ratings

The British Home Children (2 books)
by

Naomi Finley (Goodreads Author)

4.34 avg rating — 362 ratings

Quotes by Naomi Finley (?)

“My pulse raced. “I’m sorry, Masa. I”
― Naomi Finley, The Promise Between Us: Mammy's Story

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“asking, where did you drift in from?” “Jamestown. Jamestown,”
― Naomi Finley, A Guardian of Slaves

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“crowd, and as I was led off the block I saw them immersed in conversation. Most men wouldn’t abide a public display of sass from a woman, and I feared the”
― Naomi Finley, The Promise Between Us: Mammy's Story

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