Ship of Dreams

Half a century before Titanic, another famous shipwreck captured the hearts and imagination of the world. In 1857, laden with gold and adventurers fresh from the California Gold Rush, the luxury sidewheel steamer SS Central America went down in a hurricane off the Carolina coast. Many were saved, many were lost, and lives were changed forever. Relive the experiences of her passengers, as told through the eyes of a fictitious couple who find love and danger on the high seas aboard this first “Ship of Dreams.”

On her own in wild, wicked, post-Gold Rush San Francisco, Della Gilliland has become a bit of a con artist, though a harmless one. Falsely accused of murder by a rival snake-oil salesman, she is forced to flee the lawless city’s vigilantes aboard an outbound steamer. Surely her quick wits—and tongue—can convince someone to help her until her pursuers are far behind.

Stuffy New York businessman Kent Bradford is shocked when a lovely redhead he’s never met suddenly introduces herself as his wife to an important business contact. Fearing a scene, he plays along . . . for the moment. But moments turn into weeks and growing attraction becomes something more. Then, only days out from New York, their ship encounters a hurricane that threatens not only their budding love, but their very lives.