With an authentic background in early California statehood, EAST OF THE GREAT VALLEY champions the triumph of good against evil during one of the most brutal times in western history. The 2015 revision of the book includes maps and a guide to the characters indexed by first appearance. The novel is set in the Sierra Mountains during he period of new statehood, 1856-1876. Its story tells of the survivor of a slaughtered Indian band, and the struggles of the pioneering family who adopt her. The novel's realities are harsh. Its characters are true to the time. Good does triumph, but only at a cost. --The book also illustrates California's valiant contribution to the Civil War when men, the California 100, enlisted to go to the east and fight for the Union with the Massachusetts 2nd Cavalry while much of the state were Southern sympathizers. It brings to the foreground how the influence of a strong woman can have a lasting effect.