The Cost of Dakota

A Novel of Survival, Sacrifice, and the American FrontierIn 1877, Henry Thorne leads his family west from war-torn Virginia with nothing but a wagon full of supplies and a dream of land they can call their own. Joining a wagon train bound for Dakota Territory, the Thorne's believe they're leaving the violence of the Civil War behind-but the American frontier has its own trials waiting.What begins as a journey of hope becomes a test of endurance beyond anything they imagined. The Red River crossing claims lives. Outlaw gangs stalk the prairie. A chance encounter with Cherokee traders saves them from one fate only to lead them toward another. When Comanche warriors strike, the settlers must decide whether to fight or flee-and whether survival is worth the terrible price demanded.Captain Nathaniel Hendricks has led wagon trains before, but he's never seen people pushed this far. Widow Clara Fletcher struggles to protect her children after losing her husband to the unforgiving land. Young cowboy Carter Wayne discovers that courage and love are tested equally on the trail west. And ten-year-old Jacob Thorne learns what it means to become a man far too soon, in ways no child should ever have to.As the miles stretch on and the graves multiply, each survivor must answer the same question: What are you willing to sacrifice for the promised land? And when you finally reach it-if you reach it-will the cost have been too high?The Cost of Dakota is a unflinching portrait of America's frontier expansion, told through the eyes of those who lived it, died for it, and somehow found the strength to keep moving forward when turning back was impossible and giving up meant death.Some journeys change you forever.Some journeys cost everything.This is both."A gripping tale of survival that doesn't shy away from the brutal realities of westward expansion. This is the frontier as it really was-beautiful, terrible, and unforgiving.""Reminds readers why the American West was called the 'promised land'-and what that promise truly cost."

Pages: 202, Paperback, Independently published