Mary Cooke-Avenwell is the most powerful woman in Newland, loved-and feared-by many. The formerly-sweet young woman is forced to become a fierce entity, not to be crossed, as she desperately searches for her missing daughters, Ellen and Grace. Struggling to save her family's empire in a masculine-driven world, her life is further complicated by the new relationships she has with her husband and deceased lover. Her son, Oliver, born the 2nd Duke of Rundangh, is an unmanageable young man, as he develops his own relationships with the Spirits of Avenwell Bluffs. Oliver unintentionally follows in Frank Avenwell's playboy footsteps-until he meets the innocent young daughter of the new minister in town. Will Loraine be a positive influence on Oliver? Or will he be the one to change her, bringing about the next generation of the spirits who haunt Avenwell Bluffs?