Floyd Olson, the youngest son of Norwegian immigrant and western Iowa settler Karoline Olsen, dreams of a life of adventure flying aeroplanes, riding motorcycles, and playing poker. Instead, circumstances shoulder the young man with responsibilities of a husband and father. To support his new family, Floyd first works in the muck and grime of corn fields and cattle on the farm with his brother, Tingvald. Later, with the help of his favorite brother, Alex, he finds more suitable work at the bank in Denison. But "the itch" to gamble never quite leaves him.

Though he promises his new bride he will put his poker playing behind him, Floyd dips a toe back into his old life and soon dives in head-first, pursuing larger games, the stakes growing ever higher. Aching to battle with the monied men, Floyd finds himself in Sioux City at a table owned by the mob, where he meets a dangerous woman who could ultimately yank him from his family simply by giving him exactly what he wants.

The final novel in Ann Hanigan Kotz's Olson series, Wayward Son is the story of a man gone wrong--a tale of selfishness and unfulfilled desire, of choosing pleasure over obligation, and giving in to the kind of temptation that comes at the cost of life and freedom.