Joan Lowery Nixon

In 1860, life in New York City’s slums is hard and dangerous. For a widow with six children, it is impossible. So when Mrs. Kelly learns of the Children’s Aid Society, she sees a way to provide for her children. They will be sent west on an “orphan train” to families eager for help on...

Shy Megan Kelly cannot forget the day a gypsy read her palm announcing to all that she would bring trouble to those around her. Afterward, trouble does follow her, until she takes the necessary steps to free herself from the burdens of fear, loneliness, and superstition...

As the saga of the Kelly children continues, Mike Kelly is adopted by a German immigrant farm family living in Missouri. Although they are kind to him, they are mainly interested in having cheap labor. Eleven-year-old Michael Patrick Kelly from New York City is sent to a foster home, a Missouri...

The first time 16-year-old Sarah walks into her new home, she is overwhelmed by a feeling of dread. Something terrible has happened here. When an icy presence whispers a desperate plea for help, Sarah investigates. Sarah first began sensing spirits after her near death experience. She had hoped...

Thirteen-year-old Stacy is sunbathing in the backyard when she hears a strange noise from inside the house. Turning to look, she sees a man with a gun burst through the door; then everything goes black. She wakes up in a hospital bed to learn that she has spent the last four years in a catatonic...

Christina Lattimore’s family is wealthy and powerful. She attends the best private high school. Yet Christina feels trapped by her family’s expectations. Frustrated and angry at her situation, she pays little attention when a strange car follows her home one night. Its headlights are the...

Holly Campbell's world has suddenly been turned upside down. Her best friend stands accused of murdering his parents. She knows Cody is innocent, but how can she help him prove it? Holly’s father, the detective in charge of the murder investigation, isn't being fair. He's forbidden her to see...

The Civil War has officially ended, and Frances Mary Kelly's true love, Johnny, is back from the war. But to Frances' dismay, Johnny is hesitant to marry her. Attempting to ease her aching heart, Frances accepts an offer to go to New York City and escort a group of orphans out West to new homes...

It's the autumn of 1863, and as the Civil War rages, a stranger named Violet seeks refuge with the Kelly family. Peg Kelly, 11, is thrilled - Violet treats her like an adult, not a child. Violet is fleeing Confederate raiders and has information that may save the Union. But she can't deliver her...

Danny and his younger sister, Peg, are placed in St. Joseph, Missouri, with kind Alfrid and Olga Swenson. Danny is thrilled to have a "real" father again, but when Olga suddenly dies, he is devastated - until he thinks of an ingenious plan to find Alfrid a new wife...

It's 1861, and although Mike Kelly is far younger than the legal age of 16, he and his best friend Todd secretly join up with the Second Kansas Infantry and become army drummer boys. Mike's dreams of glory end when he's wounded at the bloody Battle of Wilson's Creek and must begin a dangerous...