Into the Prairie: The Pioneers

“[Bittner is] a true artist in blending historical detail, excitement, and drama.” —The Lebanon Reporter

Jonah Wilde has always had an untamed spirit, and he will stop at nothing to achieve his dream of building a farming empire in the wild prairies of Indiana. Back in Ohio, he decides his farm is not big enough for his growing family, his older brother, spouse and children, and their teenage younger sibling. He, his wife Sadie, and their three-year-old son Paul move to Fort Wayne, Indiana Territory planning to start their own spread.

But in 1810, the Shawnee Indians still call these prairies home, and a disastrous and violent encounter with the Shawnee changes everything for the Wilde family. Sadie and Paul are left to fend for themselves at Tippecanoe, and are abducted by the Indians. Even more frighteningly, one warrior, Wingo, believes Sadie is the woman he has envisioned as his squaw for years.

Her dreams in tatters, and thinking Jonah dead, Sadie doesn’t know whether she’ll have the strength to go on. Sadie and Paul’s fates lie in the hands of the Powatomi leader, Windigo, and his Shawnee counterpart, the notorious Tecumseh. Will their lives be spared? And if they live, will they ever return to the life Sadie dreamt of with Jonah?

“Into the Prairie is a fabulous historical romance that does more than just bring to life an era. . . . Sadie’s dilemma . . . makes for a fantastic tale. The support cast consists of warm fully developed protagonists regardless of natural origin, but Rosanne Bittner's deep novel belongs to the stupendous Sadie.” —Harriet Klausner