This novel tells of a group of immigrants who were kept at sea for an extended time. The joy they expected when they finally arrived in Boston was overshadowed by the fact that most of them would be unable to travel to their destination until they paid off the amount they owed the ship's Captain. Those who reached their anticipated destination were shocked at the conditions in the mostly unsettled wilderness they would call home. The woman whose expectations did not match the reality of the situation would have to readjust her plans more than once.