The venture ahead could leave their friendship behind.

Made a safe-haven after the Civil War, Ironwood Plantation is a refuge of equality for former slaves. But twenty years and a new generation later, they have become an isolated community with little contact with the rest of the world.

Mercy Carpenter is everything the world thinks she shouldn’t be. Educated and adventurous, she longs to make a life for herself beyond the beautiful prison of Ironwood. When she secretly submits an article to the Boston Globe under a man’s name and receives an enthusiastic response and an offer for employment, she’s determined to take advantage of the opportunity. But she isn’t prepared for a startling world that won’t accept her color or her gender, and her ambitions soon land her in grave danger.

The privileged daughter of a plantation owner and an aspiring suffragette, Faith Harper is determined not to marry. Especially not her father’s opportunistic new business partner. She doesn’t want any man telling her what to do, least of all the annoyingly chivalrous Nolan Watson. But when Mercy goes missing, Faith will do anything to find her best friend, even if it means trusting a man she doesn’t understand. In a time where prejudices try to define them, Mercy and Faith must push the boundaries of their beliefs and trust in the God who holds the keys to freedom.

my point of view:

This is a wonderful story full of friendship, intrigue, suspense and most of all forgiveness! Stephenia never fails to give a fantastic historical novel, and this was does not disappoint. Her research skills are outstanding, and her faith in God comes through in every page.

Two women – Faith and Mercy, are raised on the same plantation as the very best of friends, but race and segregation cause them to have vastly different outlooks at the world around them. The girls mothers are the closest of friends and try their best to provide a safe environment where there is no prejudice and everyone has equal rights. But is 1887, not 1987, and life just wasn’t that way in this time period.

Mercy has ‘stars in her eyes’ and has come to believe that all things are possible in the world of the “North”. They fought against slavery, after all, so, surely, they would be accepting of a colored female journalist, right? Sadly, Mercy makes the grave mistake in believing this to be true and embarks on adventure of a life-time – one that puts her in grave danger and leaves her bitterly disappointed in people – and God.

Faith, on the other hand, thinks that women must be treated equally, but has more objectivity and knows her friend is in for a serious awakening when she turns up missing from the plantation. Faith and her father take it upon their shoulders to tract Mercy down and bring her back home to the safety of Ironwood and the love of her family.

This journey becomes an eye-opening look at life for both of these young ladies as they learn to forgive and trust in the One God who will always steer them in the right direction. Along the way they learn just how dangerous the world can be. They also manage to find one another and true love in the end! I am blessed to have been able to read this amazing story!

About Stephenia H McGee

Now, for a HUGE giveaway:

One winner will receive the Blog tour giveaway(US mailing address only): Signed paperback copies of The Whistle Walk and Heir of Hope (Ironwood Plantation Family Saga books one and two), Mississippi made cheese straws, handmade leather Jer. 28:11 bookmark, handcrafted specialty soaps, Southern Sisters mandarin orange pepper spread, and Thomas Jefferson quote “I cannot live without books” spiral earrings.

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PLUS The first TWO stories in this series are on sale for Just 99 cents each! I already purchased mine, you can get yours here:

Enslaved by culture, liberated by courage. 

A Mississippi Plantation: Civil War pits countrymen against one another and tears a nation asunder. Life and death are held in the balance where everyone is a slave to something.

One is born free, yet lives as a soul in bondage…
Lydia Harper never intended to purchase a slave. But when she witnesses a woman being beaten in the street, all her pretenses begin to unravel. A bride to a man she barely knows and bound by her secrets, Lydia will risk everything to save a stranger. Amid the War Between the States, the mistress of Ironwood faces the battles in her own heart and discovers strength in a way she never imagined.

The other is born to serve, yet holds the spirit of freedom… 
Ruth, standing on the threshold of desperation, has lost everything she holds dear. After being pulled from the dirt, she is no longer a field hand but the personal maid to the lady of Ironwood. Ruth soon realizes adversity pays no mind to the color of skin. When propriety slips, she discovers they have more in common than she dreamed possible. In a time when fear brings the South to its knees, two women will forge a friendship in the fires of redemption and thrust Ironwood into a new future – where the battle for freedom has merely begun.

You come to me in my dreams and we talk of things that cannot be explained in this life. How we have been brought together is a great mystery, but I wish to someday see you again….

Emily Burns grew up an orphan, so she never expected to inherit a southern plantation. When she discovers an old diary hidden in the attic, her life becomes strangely entwined with her Civil War ancestor and she soon begins to wonder how a woman long dead can keep showing up in her dreams.

Torn between her strange desire to honor Lydia’s wishes and practicality, Emily cannot decide if she will keep Ironwood. Yet the house calls to her like a melancholy siren, and Emily cannot resist its tune. Resolving to stay only for a little while, and telling herself her decision has nothing at all to do with the handsome handyman helping with restorations, Emily begins to unravel the history of Ironwood – A tale of love and loss, hope and redemption. When the story seeps into her heart, Emily finds that two women separated by centuries can share the unique bonds of family ties, and that both her past and her future reside in the soul of Ironwood.