To Whisper Her Name by Tamera Alexander

Synopsis from Goodreads.com:

Set at Nashville's historic Belle Meade Plantation, the most influential thoroughbred stud farm in America's history, To Whisper Her Name weaves the struggles of real people of the post-war South with the journeys of a man and a woman scarred by betrayal.

Olivia Aberdeen, destitute widow of a man shot as a traitor to the South, is shunned by proper society and gratefully accepts an invitation from "Aunt" Elizabeth Harding, mistress of Belle Meade Plantation. Expecting to be the Harding's head housekeeper, Olivia is disillusioned when she learns the real reason Elizabeth's husband, Confederate General William Giles Harding, agreed to her coming. Not finding the safe haven she expects, Olivia is caught off guard by her feelings for Ridley Adam Cooper, a Southern man who seems anything but a Southern gentleman.

Branded a traitor by some, Ridley Cooper, a Southern son who chose to fight for the Union, is a man desperate to end the war still raging inside him. Determined to learn "the gift" that Belle Meade's head horse trainer and former slave, Bob Green, possesses, Ridley harbors secrets that threaten both their lives.

As Ridley seeks to make peace within himself for "betraying" the South he loved, Olivia is determined to never be betrayed again.

Christina's Review: This book takes place after the Civil War. Ridley and Bob Green meet up during the war and then Ridley goes to the Belle Meade Plantation after the war to learn from him. Only Bob knows his secret. . . a southern man who fought for the Union. I was hooked from the beginning. Olivia's husband was killed for being a traitor and she is an outcast. She fights her own inner struggles as she moves in with her mother's friend. Olivia is a brave woman who changes and grows so much throughout the book. As she lives at the plantation she starts to find her feelings towards slavery changing but have they changed enough to not see Ridley as a traitor? What will she do when she learns Ridley's secret? It is a captivating story. One you will start and not want to put down.