Henry Townsend, a black farmer, bootmaker, and former slave, has a fondness for Paradise Lost and an unusual mentor -- William Robbins, perhaps the most powerful man in antebellum Virginia's Manchester County. Under Robbins's tutelage, Henry becomes proprietor of his own plantation -- as well as of his own slaves. When he dies, his widow, Caldonia, succumbs to profound grief, and things begin to fall apart at their plantation: slaves take to escaping...

"Carrie Cromwell comes of age as the dark clouds of the Civil War swallow the country. Born with a fiery spirit and a strong mind, she finds herself struggling between the common wisdom of the South and the truth she has discovered. The activities of the Underground Railroad and her close friendships with the Cromwell Plantation slaves create difficult choices. But when her decisions put her at odds with her heritage, and challenge her dreams, will...

"It's 1894. Jordan Wallace and Sadie Wagner appear to have little in common. Jordan, a middle-aged black teacher, lives in segregated Chicago. Two thousand miles away, Sadie, the white wife of an ambitious German businessman, lives in more tolerant Oakland, California. But years ago, their families intertwined on a plantation in Virginia. There, Jordan's and Sadie's mothers developed a bond stronger than blood, despite the fact that one was enslaved...

China Bayles returns to her family's Mississippi plantation, where she comes face to face with dangerous family secrets as she discovers that an ancient property deed has suddenly resurfaced.

"Burdened with the responsibility of running an entire plantation, Carrie Cromwell fights to understand the forces tearing her beloved country apart. As battles rage around her, she watches her life as her life slowly unravels and she discovers truths she would never have imagined. Will her actions and decisions push her even farther from those she loves? When the danger she dreads becomes reality, will she find the courage and strength to escape?"--Author's...

A vivid and charming portrait of a large southern family, the Fairchilds, who live on a plantation in the Mississippi delta. The story, set in 1923, is exquisitely woven from the ordinary events of family life, centered around the visit of a young relative, Laura McRaven, and the family's preparations for her cousin Dabney's wedding. --Publisher.

"As her beloved city of Richmond is transformed into a deadly Civil War battlefield, spirited Carrie Cromwell puts her medical skills to work in a Confederate hospital. While she fights to save unknown soldiers, the one she cares about the most is lost to her. Meanwhile in the North, Carrie's dear friends, former slaves Rose and Moses have found freedom at last -- only to be separated by war. Can Moses, now a Union spy, elude those who are searching...

Hoping to sell some of her watercolors, Becca Sims wanders into the seaside Gallery Valentine, never expecting that her life will be transformed by the gallery owner and his best friend, in a novel set in small-town South Carolina.

At that very moment someone was riding toward Rosewood who would change everything in ways that Katie and me couldn't have imagined in a million years. Orphaned by the Civil War, Katie, the daughter of a plantation owner, and Mayme, a former slave, have worked hard to keep Katie's plantation going, all the while hiding the fact that they are alone. Now the girls face new threats to their way of life: mounting floodwaters and mounting danger from thieves....

"In a new series related to his bestselling Shenandoah sisters, Michael Phillips returns to the post-Civil War South in a story of forgiveness, danger and love"--Provided by publisher.