A dramatic love story set amid the changing world of early twentieth-century Louisiana from the New York Times–bestselling author.
In 1912, Eleanor Upjohn sits with her father near a work camp, overseeing the construction of a levee on the Mississippi. In a region shattered by war, levees mean stability and prosperity. While Eleanor is a modern woman—practical, impatient, and ready for the future—she cannot help but fall for a man still steeped in the ways of the Old South.

Kester Larne is the heir to Ardeith, a sprawling Louisiana plantation whose glory days are long behind it, and he sweeps Eleanor off her feet. Only after they marry does she learn that Ardeith is mortgaged to the hilt and she will need every ounce of her ingenuity to save it . . . and her marriage.