Born of Gilded Mountains

In 1948, 30-year-old Mercy Windsor, a famous Hollywood actress, has reached the end of her rope. When Mercy stands up against an injustice that almost caused a tragedy, she learns that her career has been terminated, one more loss of home and belonging in a life too familiar with brokenness.

Wanting nothing more than to disappear and fade from the spotlight of the public’s harsh scrutiny, Mercy sets out for a small community called Mercy Peak in Colorado. Though Mercy had only visited the town once for a few hours and then fled in desperation, she is drawn back to it since it is the home of Rusty Bright, the pen pal with whom she exchanged letters as young girls and into their early 20s. But even here, Mercy knows sadness as she is sure that Rusty, whom she considers the sister she never had, has died.

Mercy purchases Wildwood, an abandoned estate that has fallen into dereliction, both physically and in reputation. After all, it had belonged to Randolph Gilman, a cruel and greedy man, who sought his own interests with no thought of others.

As Mercy finds her way in her new community, she encounters ordinary people with fascinating stories who look out for each other no matter what the circumstances. In fact, it’s common knowledge among the townsfolk that in “Mercy Peak ... they don’t give up on you. Not even if it takes a lifetime.”

Mercy learns the truth of those words as she finds answers to numerous personal and communal questions. What happened to Rusty Bright? How could the ill-fated Galloping Goose Railcar No. 8 disappear without a trace? Who could have orchestrated such a larger-than-life crime? What happened to the mailbag—so fervently anticipated by several townsfolk—that was supposed to be delivered the day of the railcar’s disappearance? Where was the rumoured treasure that prospector Martin Shaw had discovered? And what was the meaning of the clues he had left to aid in its unearthing?

As Mercy assimilates into the community’s life, she is changed by others and they are altered through their encounters with her as she inadvertently sets about “resurrecting all kinds of things long dead.”

Born of Gilded Mountains is replete with adventure after adventure, clues upon clues, majestic descriptions of nature, emotionally complex characters, biblical truth, and portrayals of the harshness of life in mining communities and in Hollywood culture. In this gratifying novel for adults, Dykes masterfully combines various formats—pen pal letters, newspaper reports, interviews, a motion picture script, and prose—to tell Mercy’s story. The book includes discussion questions. (Bethany House Publishers)