January 1987, Small Plains, Kansas. On the night of the decade's worst blizzard, a boy discovers the naked corpse of a beautiful girl. No-one can identify her, so the people of the town bury her with a gravestone marked with the date and 'Peace Be Unto You'. Seventeen years later, the mysterious dead girl - the 'Virgin of Small Plains' - has inspired a local myth. In the two decades since her death, strange miracles have visited those who faithfully tend her grave; some believe her spirit can cure deadly illnesses, while others credit her with the town's economic prosperity. Word of the legend spreads and Small Plains becomes a haven for an onslaught of spiritual seekers and the terminally ill, all hoping the Virgin will answer their prayers. When the mysterious Mitch Newquist reappears and a vengeful tornado devastates Small Plains, the truth begins to emerge. What really happened seventeen years ago? Why did Mitch suddenly disappear the same night the Virgin's body was found - abandoning his first love, Abby Reynolds? And why are some of the town's leading citizens so determined that the truth remain buried?
- ISBN10 0786287942
- ISBN13 9780786287949
- Publish Date 1 August 2006 (first published 1 January 2006)
- Publish Status Out of Print
- Out of Print 17 March 2021
- Publish Country US
- Imprint Thorndike Press
- Edition Large type / large print edition
- Format Hardcover
- Pages 531
- Language English