Readers are about to enter the undercover world of African American spies—enslaved and free—risking everything in the name of freedom. How were the Underground Railroad and slave songs used to pass secret messages? What were "contrabands" and "black dispatches"? What did Harriet have in common with the "secret six" and a maidservant in the home of Confederate President Jefferson Davis? These answers and more are revealed as the action unfolds.

Award-winning author Thomas B. Allen has sifted through military and intelligence archives, diaries, and little-known memoirs from ex-slaves to bring to light new facts about the role Harriet and other black spies played in helping the Union win the war. Combining powerful archival images with woodcuts by Carla Bauer—plus maps, a time line, footnotes, and extensive quote sources—this incredibly detailed account makes an excellent resource for report writing as well as an exciting true-life adventure.