The Time of Noblest Mirth

Imprisoned in the aftermath of an American political coup, an ex-Marine, with the help of a sharpshooter, a healer, and three musicians, devises a risky and audacious plan to break out of a Texas concentration camp.Transported unwillingly by train to Camp 615, a.k.a. the Farm, mezzo-soprano Katie Lamb distracts five-year-old Peter Brightman and his recently widowed mother, Sam, with a fairy tale based on the opera The Magic Flute. When the dragon rears its head, Peter learns, the hero rises to meet it. Targeted at the camp for their beliefs, Christians, Jews, and political dissidents soon discover the Farm's sinister purpose. When ex-Marine Gideon Marsh arrives with two buddies-Jaybird Alexander, a young black sharpshooter steeped in Scripture, and an injured amnesiac dubbed Bigfoot-young Peter is convinced that the newcomers are the fairy-tale characters come to life. Gideon's daring plan of escape requires all their talents and courage-even Peter's. Set on an unpredictable and perilous course, they are sustained by faith that justice will inevitably prevail, whether or not they live to see it.