Haunted by a devastating secret, fourteen-year-old Heidi Schlager is running out of reasons to keep going.

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Idaho, 1925. Trapped in a lonely, brutal home with an abusive, alcoholic father, Heidi seizes her only chance at escape by stowing away on a freight train. There she meets an aging drifter whose unexpected kindness—and shared love of literature—sparks an instant friendship.

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Together, they journey to a small Iowa town to reunite with the hobo’s sometime-lover. But even as Heidi begins to experience warmth, belonging, and the fragile hope of a better future, the wounds she carries threaten to pull her under. Battling trauma, shame, and confusing desires she barely understands, she must decide whether to surrender to despair or fight for a future she never believed possible.

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Can this broken teen learn to trust again before the darkness consumes her?

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That Girl in the Boxcar is the powerful first novel in The Reisen Historical Fiction Series. Perfect for readers who love resilient heroines, emotional journeys, and redemptive relationships, Tim Wickenden’s sweeping coming-of-age story is a moving tale of survival, self-discovery, and hope.

Travel back in time and join Heidi in her adventure of a lifetime. Grab a copy of That Girl in the Boxcar today!