Holly Lambeth has traveled 2,000 miles from her home in Kentucky to escape the humiliation of her broken engagement. Holly has come west to find a new life, but her cousin's chilly reception suggests that she has made a terrible mistake.

Penny Sayres' red hair, freckle-splashed skin, and fierce independence drew the attention of some of the region's most eligible bachelors. One by one, they've been disappointed - because romance and marriage are the last things on Penny's mind! Since her childhood, she has sensed an unknown destiny beckoning from the horizon. When Penny's brother, Brad, invites her to join his family on their wagon train to California, Penny's dream of adventure comes...

Free-spirited journalist Independence McClaren follows her heart to a Colorado silver-town-and a test of her fierce commitment to the truth. Mindy's birth name is Independence McClaren-a fitting match for her tenacity and determination. Leaving behind a secure but colorless future in the east, the fiery young woman heads west to Coarse Gold, Colorado, and the opportunity to carve her mark in a man's world. As reporter for the Roaring River Gazette,...