It is March 1797 and Federalist John Adams has just been sworn in as President, when the poisoning of a waiter at George Washington's farewell dinner ignites a political firestorm that threatens to destroy him as well as the United States. Soon everyone is asking, was the waiter really the intended victim or was Thomas Jefferson, Adams' chief Republican rival, the one who was supposed to die? Is there a murderous Federalist conspiracy to eliminate their political rivals and stay in power? Adams picks Jacob Martin, a moderate Senator from South Carolina, to investigate, and the stakes are high. The nation is teetering on the brink of civil war and the murderer must be found. Who did it? A religious “true believer” who thinks Jefferson is in league with the devil? A former captive of Barbary pirates with a grudge? A jealous husband or jilted mistress? Or is there really a deadly Federalist conspiracy after all? Does Adams really want the truth to be found? Jacob finds himself in a race against time to find the answers, to save the nation, his own future, and the woman he loves. Patriots and Poisons takes you inside one of the most fascinating periods in US history. As this intriguing murder mystery unfolds, it provides you with a realistic, up close look at the politics, people, and culture of a time when the survival of the nation was still in doubt.

Bridget LeClair was only a housemaid so when she died, no one paid very much attention – not, that is, until Thomas Jefferson was accused of killing her. Jefferson had secrets worth killing for, to be sure – his affair with his slave Sally Hemmings and his role (if the rumors were true) in Senator Blount’s treasonous conspiracy. He wasn’t the only one with dangerous secrets to hide, however. Poor Bridget was a magnet for scandal. Senator Jacob Martin most reluctantly becomes involved, along with the Senate Doorman James Mathers, in trying to discover who really killed her. It is a task that wins him no friends, as he must unearth the scandals of some of the richest and most powerful men in the country. The political cost is bad enough, but the damage to his budding relationship with Elizabeth Powel is disastrous. Secrets Worth Killing For, takes you back to the precarious early years of the United States, a time when powerful enemies without and bitter conflicts within threatened the survival of the fragile young nation. "a terrific historical mystery" - The BookLife Prize in Fiction