Verity Philp has just been told by her stepfather, she's to be given in marriage to their neighbor, Mr Hargraves, in exchange for 20 acres of prime land and the occasional use of a mule. Verity isn't about to go along with the plans, and, dressed in her brother's clothes, intends to get to Kaskaskia, on the frontier, where her brother Joe and his friend Edward are. She and Edward are promised to one another. Verity sets out to catch up to a family who passed through the area a short time before, hoping to convince them to let her travel with them, in exchange for helping to care for the children and the ill wife. Verity takes a goat with her, as an incentive to the Dawsons to include her in their trip, but she never counted on meeting someone like Trey Owens.

Trey is a woodsman, and a captain with General George Rogers Clark. His job at the moment is to gather recruits for Clark's army to send the British packing. His efforts have been pretty much unsuccessful to this point, but running into Verity makes his day. When he realizes the boy with the goat is actually a young woman, he has to admire her grit, but he knows Clark won't like having a woman traveling alone. Trey is about to learn what sort of stuff Miss Verity is made of. Gradually, a reluctant bond is formed between them, one which will cause problems with certain other passengers.

Travel with Verity, Trey and the families under Clark's supervision, as they navigate the Ohio River to their new home. Characters are well defined and invite readers to share quiet, and harrowing, moments in the long journey. There's not enough time for anyone to become bored, when pressed with the needs of survival. Join them on the flatboats for a close up look, or become part of the forests with eyes watching the weary travelers. Scenic descriptions provide marvelous backdrop for much of the action and will have you turning pages to see the characters work their way through hardships.

Marilyn Gardiner has done well in capturing the essence of the times, and the courage of people to find a new place to start new lives. As depicted by the title, the plot, suspense and romance flow, not always steadily, but sometimes with a fierceness that dares readers to leave the story. Like A River, the tale's depth will hold you fast until you reach the end of the journey.