Knight of the Purple Ribbon is a character-driven historical novel following the fortunes of Christoph, an unhappy, eldest son of the Swiss Baron von Graffenreid. In his 40s, he has spent his entire life following his domineering father's wishes/commands, putting his own desires and ambitions to one side, yet still never living up to expectations.
When he is disinherited at a family gathering, he decides to become his own man, forgoing his father's generous allowance and setting sail to America to make his own life and fortune. He picks up a new wife on the way, then overcomes a multitude of challenges to establish New Bern in North Carolina.

This is a well-researched and detailed portrait of a tumultuous time in history , and the author has cleverly reflected the writing style of the Eighteenth Century, lending authenticity to a tale that is based on fact. This era and the emigration of a wide variety of people to the New World is something that fascinates me, and I enjoyed looking at it from the Switzer/German Protestant viewpoint; even more so as it is based on the author's ancestral history and she is right to be so proud of him.