Lizzie Hamilton's life as a pampered belle in the antebellum South is over. Alone and destitute due to the disintegration of her family's fortunes, she makes the mistake of trusting a handsome but unprincipled professional gambler whose silver-tongued promises lead only to disgrace and virtual servitude. Danger and misfortune stalk her as she travels from Charleston, South Carolina to the gambling dens of New Orleans, up the Mississippi River, and across the broad prairies to the gold fields of California. Will her experiences drive her to bitterness and despair? Or will they change her heart-and open it to the love and redemption she craves.