Author Description

As the war in Europe escalates in 1939, seventeen-year-old Peg Kuhr, along with her sister, travel from Denmark to the United States to live with family until the war is over. Shortly after arriving, Peg discovers she is pregnant. Peg's aunt is supportive, but they know Peg's biological father would be furious and keep the pregnancy a secret. Peg gives birth to a boy named Richard and harbors the hope that she will one day reunite with the child's father. But as the war intensifies in 1942, Peg's boyfriend in Denmark suggests that they move on with their lives. Devastated, Peg eventually finds love again, but her new fiancé is not ready for children. With Richard still a secret, Peg is faced with a irreconcilable dilemma-and makes the heart-wrenching decision to put her two-and-a-half-year-old son up for adoption. Richard, renamed Peter, grows up with wonderful parents, but an overheard conversation as a boy plants a seed that leaves him uncertain about his true identity. In the vein of The Lost Child of Philomena Lee by Martin Sixsmith, The Knot of King Gordius is a compelling true tale of love, sacrifice, and family.