Hamish MacDougall called his two sons, Gavin and Gideon, to his deathbed. He wanted them to go to the Utah territory to a ranch he owns called the Broken Anchor. Hamish; his wife, Maeve; his two sons; and his sister, Fiona, went to the ranch and began to build the beautiful home called the Heritage. Hamish succumbed to gold fever but, after the death of Maeve, returned to the sea while Fiona cared for the young boys. Feeling like he missed his chance, he wanted his sons to experience the ranch. Gideon; his wife, Isobel; and his sons, Mark, Stephen, and Philip, along with Gavin and his new bride, Moria, set out for the ranch, taking supplies, furniture, horses, and cattle with them. Each person has different attitudes and hopes. Isobel hopes it will stop her philandering husband. Gideon, who cares nothing about the ranch, hopes it will fail and that the money be put into family holdings he controls. Two baby girls are born to them while at the ranch. Mark is the only one in his family who is happy about the move and never wants to leave. Gavin wants Moria to be happy at the ranch. They both love the house, mountains, and ranch. The only sadness is the fact they have no children. Isobel becomes more hateful as time passes, and when she finds Gideon at the opera with his mistress and their son, her hatred knows no bounds toward Gideon. The death of a friend, a son, and a daughter does not sway her hatred for life in general. As Mark grows to become the Broken Anchor manager, a war between the cattlemen and the Basque sheep men break out. When he enters into a partnership to raise prize palomino horses with his father, his mother becomes even more determined to ruin the ranch.