Sarabande "Sary" Swinford is handed over to her brother Sebastian, following the death of her husband Jonathan. In 1897, Seb drags her to Big Bear, California to seek their fortune mining gold. He uses Sary like his mule. Delacorte's saloon houses hardened females working as prostitutes and is owned by Julian Delacorte and his grown son Jules. Hannah "Handi" McAdams offers Sary a job at her establishment, warning her of the hardships she will endure on the mountain searching for gold.

Nearly starving while Sary is doing most of the work, Seb strikes a deal to sell her to Julian to ease his own life. Refusing to succumb to the arrangement begins a chain of events giving Sary more abuse than she could imagine. Seb dies in an accident at the bottom of a mineshaft leaving Sary to cope with Julian's son and a henchmen when she is brutally assaulted. The attack resulting in their death, leaves Sary forced to bury all three while keeping Jules death from his father. Finding gold in the mine excites her by continues her horrendous life of drudgery, work and starvation as she hides her treasure. All the while, fighting for her life changes this once innocent woman into being conceived by the townsfolk as somewhat of a legend and witchery. Barely able to exist on her own only results in strengthening this very independent and strong woman.

Prepare to enjoy your trip through the hard and tough days of the past with this brave and tough woman. SARY'S GOLD is full of action, all driven by the clever mind of this unusual and strong woman, learning to deal with the hand she's dealt. Written in the era of that day, Sharon Shipley very colorfully portrays the difficulties needed to survive and exist. The action in this story depicts the excitement of what we have all viewed in the movies of the West during the gold rush years.