Social media influencer Maeve Mooney has one goal in life: to marry a rich politician. Not because she loves him, but because Maeve’s decided that, at twenty-nine, she’s worked long enough. After her plans, along with her reputation, end in disgrace, Maeve decides to hide away at the family ranch—only to tumble down an abandoned mine shaft to awaken in the world’s greatest gold camp.
Although 1901 Cripple Creek glitters with opera houses, fancy hotels, $250 a night brothels and instant millionaires, miners toil underground in dangerous conditions for wages that barely sustain their families. As resentments build, the Western Federation of Miners prepares to fight for recognition, dignity, and the chance for a better life.
Maeve, a talented piano player, begins entertaining wealthy businessmen with songs that won’t be written for decades, though her sympathies increasingly rest with the miners. She is particularly drawn to charismatic labor leader Ronan Doyle.
While Ronan’s heart belongs to the union, Maeve is determined to change that.
When a strike is called in August 1903, Colorado’s governor sends in both the National Guard and the state militia. Soldiers flood the streets. Martial law is declared. Suspension of habeas corpus. Hundreds arrested, including children. As the Colorado Labor Wars ignite into one of the most brutal conflicts in American history, Maeve stands squarely with the workers--even while knowing the outcome. In a matter of months Cripple Creek will be reduced to ruins, the Western Federation of Miners annihilated, and Ronan Doyle will disappear from the history books.
Maeve begs Ronan to return with her to the 21st century where they can build a life together. But can a man who’s devoted his life to a cause, forsake it--even for the woman he loves?