This historical novel is the sequel to Steamboat Seasons and Backwater Battles, following our Captain and his steamboat during the year after the American Civil War. He finds little remains unchanged of his life, his livelihood, and his country. His love, Ann, rejoins him, but conflicts arise. Consignments fade away as the Southern economy is wrecked, and it may be years before its recovery. The newly freed African Americans have not realized any true benefits the end of slavery promised. Labor disputes and competition from the railroads and the dangers on the rivers cause the Captain to reassess his life. A deadly conspiracy stalks his boat up and down the Mississippi and onto the Missouri River-and ends in a final confrontation.