Elizavetta has spent most of her thirteen years living in a Russian orphanage. She's happy there—she has friends, school, and the orphanage is her home. But when Jack and Maggie Cavendish arrive from Montana looking for a daughter, they turn her stable world upside down with the offer of a new life in America. They bring her the hope for a real family.

Once she arrives in Applewood, there are all kinds of things to deal with: new phrases to learn in English; older brothers who aren't convinced that their parents should be adopting a teenage girl; and wild, untamed horses. Elizavetta has had her heart broken before and she's being cautious this time. Will she learn to love Montana and her new family? Can she ever learn to trust again?