Abandoning their steamy Georgia plantation in 1782, the Westerby family and their slaves – and others like them loyal to the British Crown – pursue their destiny to northern Nova Scotia. There they confront the challenges of settling untamed land in a fiercely unfamilar climate. Joined by dislocated Scots tossed off the land by their lairds during the Highland Clearances, they face starvation, fire and the ravages of bitter winter and surprising new relationships that push to the limits the racial and cultural boundaries of the time. Will the transplants find peace, happiness and prosperity in their new home, or will tragedy follow them to their graves? And will their voices fade into history, or continue to echo through the forest to the present day?