First published 2000
Julie Harmon works harder than most men. At seventeen, she slaughters hogs and tends to the dying because people depend on her strength. When she marries Hank, they leave the mountains for Gap Creek valley, hoping for an easier life in the final years of the 1800s. Their new home brings unexpected troubles. Fires and floods threaten their survival. Swindlers, drunkards, and meddling neighbors complicate their days. Julie and Hank discover that building a marriage requires more than escaping to a new place. They face the changing century, backbreaking work, and the forces of nature that test their bond. As chaos surrounds them, they must learn whether their love can hold against the madness that threatens to overwhelm their union.
Genres: family-life, american-fiction, historical-fiction, 20th-century, 19th-century
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, found-family
Setting: Gap Creek Valley, Mountains
Period: 1800s
336 pages · Paperback · Touchstone