A country ideologically divided: between those in the North who abhor the concept of slavery, and those in the South, for whom slavery is their lifeblood.
Upon the high seas, Lieutenant Rod Bascom is saved by Jerry McGann, and from their encounter grows a friendship. After being dismissed from the navy for losing his ship, Englishman Rod returns with Jerry to his family home in the Northern United States.
Whilst in New York, Rod rescues two beautiful Southern Belles, Claudine and Marguerite Grahame. This chance encounter shapes the course of his life: captivated by the beauty and naiveté of the sisters, Rod marries Claudine whilst all the while harbouring a secret desire for Marguerite, who has married Jerry. As the siren call of the Civil War approaches, the brothers in law find themselves at destiny’s door.
Fighting on opposing sides of the conflict, the two men embark on epoch-making journeys around the globe, defending the rights they claim to believe in. Through the years of the Civil War, from New Orleans to New England, from the Atlantic to the English Channel, Jerry and Rod are compelled to fight to the death for the love of Marguerite, and the right to survive in the world they have created.
In an epic tale of love, betrayal and conflict, Christopher Nicole takes us to the forefront of the American Civil War, in the midst of a relentless and bloody battle for freedom.