A town under quarantine during the 1918 flu epidemic must reckon with forces beyond their control in a powerful, sweeping novel of morality in a time of upheaval
 
“An American variation on Albert Camus’ The Plague.”—Chicago Tribune
 
NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY USA TODAY AND CHICAGO TRIBUNE • WINNER OF THE JAMES FENIMORE COOPER...

Small but fast twelve-year-old Will Tyler, an avid football player in the down-and-out town of Forbes, Pennsylvania, takes matters into his own hands to try and finance the city's football team, giving the whole community hope in the process.

Patty Jane's husband skipped town just before she gave birth. Harriet's rich boyfriend was killed in a plane crash before they could marry. Along with perm solution and advice on split ends, the two sisters from Minneapolis dispense warm cookies and genuine concern for the women who come in as customers and leave as friends.

Shocked after Pastor Dave Flemming is accused of stealing jewelry, Emily doesn't know what to believe. She finds an earring in his pocket, and Dave is being so evasive. Could her husband have stolen it--or is he having an affair?

Heidi discovers that helping to clean up can be fun, so she brings her community together to make the neglected "Trash Park" beautiful again.

After the worst snowstorm of the year, a young girl wishes on a snow globe that everyone will come out to play and share a dream of peace.

Winning a junior ice hockey championship might not mean a lot to the average person, but it means everything to the residents of Beartown, a community slowly being eaten alive by unemployment and the surrounding wilderness. A victory like this would draw national attention to the ailing town: it could attract government funding and an influx of talented athletes who would choose Beartown over the big nearby cities. A victory like this would certainly...

"When Miss Lana accidentally buys a haunted inn at the Tupelo Landing town auction, Desperado Detectives--aka Mo LoBeau and her best friend Dale--opens up a paranormal division to solve the ghost's identity before the town's big 250th anniversary bash"--Provided by publisher.