Book 1: It was the early 1900s when Obadiah (Oba) and Merriweather's (May's) parents died tragically, leaving them orphans at ten and eleven years old. When none of their nearby relations volunteer to take them in, they are set on a train to Arkansas to go live on their Amish aunt and uncle's cotton farm.But when they became teenagers and Oba received one especially cruel beating, he disappeared, leaving May to shoulder even more responsibility.

When she encounters Clinton, a young black man, on the road one day, she sees kindness in his eyes that she's been thirsting for. In that time and place, there is no chance of starting a friendship. But still, they find themselves meeting discretely, spending more time together than is proper, finding joy and solace in each other's company.

Book 2: At the end of Banished, Clinton has died and May is left to fend for herself in a city where she knows almost no one and has no way of earning a living. Perhaps the relatives who once turned her away had had a change of heart and would be willing to take her in or help her get settled on her own.

After being shuffled from home to home, May finds a welcoming friend in Clara. She doesn't trust men, and it doesn't take her long to realize May had her own painful past. In the midst of great darkness, May discovers a beacon of light.

Book 3: As May settles into family life, she has so much to be grateful for. Yes, there are plenty of challenges as she continues to heal from the demons of her past, but her loving husband and sweet children are the greatest earthly gift she could ask for. And having Oba in their home is almost more precious than she could have imagined . . . at least, if it weren't for his ongoing anger and hardness of heart.