The American Revolutionary War is being waged, and the fate of slaves in the colonies is on the line. Sarah Redmond, a slave on a South Carolina plantation, watches as her father steals away in the dead of the night to join the British army, enticed by promises of freedom for his whole family. But before her father can return, the war draws ends and the Loyalist slaves are all freed. After months of waiting, the Redmonds are assigned to a ship bound for the first all-black community in North America: Birchtown, Nova Scotia. With their Certificates of Freedom in hand, Lydia and Sarah wait anxiously, hoping their new life will bring acceptance and happiness. But once they reach Birchtown they find that their new home is barren, cold and isolated -- and in a world slow to forget old fears and hate, their Certificates offer them freedom in name only.