Review Summaries

• Readers appreciate the eerie small-town legend and the slow uncovering of the truth, though some feel the mystery is more atmospheric than tightly plotted.

Reviews

• When, I purchased this book, I wasn't sure if I would like it. I had never read anything else by Nancy Pickard and this didn't sound like the typical thrillers I usually read. However, I was pleasantly surprised by how enjoyable this novel was! Unlike some other reviews, I found that the characters were very well developed. I usually don't like books that jump back and forth between flashbacks and the present, but this one wasn't confusing at all. Right from the beginning, I was intrigued by the mystery at hand and was very pleased with how it all unfolded as the novel went on. BOTTOM LINE: This novel is sure to please fans of mysteries and/or books about small communities and the lives within them. However, this book is NOT of the face-paced thriller/suspense genre. If you have to have nailbiting action in every chapter, this book is not for you. The mystery is unraveled at a much slower pace.

• I had never heard of this book or the authour before but came across the title on somebody's Listmania here on Amazon and thought it sounded like a good read. I wasn't wrong! I read this book in just over a day, staying up into the night as I couldn't tear myself away from it. It's one of those books where you promise yourself that this will be the last chapter, and then you say just one more....and so on! This is the story of a young girl who is found naked and frozen to death in one of the worst blizzards the town on Small Plains has ever known. She can't be identified and so she is buried in an unmarked grave in the towns cemetary. Over the years she becomes known as the Virgin of Small Plains and legend has it that she can cure the sick and so people travel from all over to visit her grave. However, on the night of the blizzard, 18 year old Mitch Newquist vanishes without a word to anyone, leaving a Abby his devastated girlfriend and all his friends. After 17 years Mitch arrives back in Small Plains and it seems that not everyone wants him back. Why do so many people in Small Plains want him gone again and what are they hiding about that night in the snow storm 17 years ago? This is a fantastic page-turner and I highly recommend. I hope you enjoy as much as I did.

• I enjoyed this book very much. The characters are well developed and for the most part interesting. The time switches from 1987 to present day and attention needs to be paid to the chapter headings. The mystery is revealed slowly. Some reviewers have stated that they think the ending is rushed, but from the many mysteries I have read, the wrap up is always fairly quick. My 4 star review comes from the fact that there is a little bit of romance involved and I do not care for that. That part is a little too chick lit for me. The supernatural aspect of one element is a little to convenient and odd for me. Overall, a satisfying mystery & quick read. I think this would make for a good Amazon or similar venue series.

• When the corpse of a young woman found naked in the snow is found by a boy, so begins this intriguing story which I thoroughly enjoyed. Seventeen years later a local myth has built up around this mystery girl, and her grave becomes the haven for the terminally ill and religious followings, all expecting a miracle or two. Behind this facade there is the harsh reality of evil doings and intrigue, of the event that took place all those years ago. I found this absolutely engrossing, so beautifully were the characters painted. Trying to guess who did what and when is time wasting, as several possibilities come and go. So don't bother trying to guess. Just sit back, open the first page, and enjoy the ride.

• I really enjoy reading the mid-western and Canadian authors. Nancy Pickard loves her State of Kansas. There are so many evil characters in murder mysteries. This is the second of her books I have read. "The Virgin of Small Plains" is set in the Kansas Flint Hills. The story begins when Abby Reynolds is driving on a cold wintry day and sees her old high school boy friend's mother walking in the cemetary dressed in night clothes. She loses control of her vehicle on an icy road and can't get to the older woman. Nadine Newquist has Alzheimers and doesn't know night from day, winter from summer. Abby contacts an old friend, a boy she has grown up with. The Reynolds, Dr. Quentin, The Newquists, Judge Tom, The Shellenbergers, Sheriff Nathan are the finest families of this small Flint Hills town. Sheriff Rex Shellenberger comes to her rescue. But elderly Mrs Newquist is frozen to death. The book goes back seventeen years, to a cold winter night. Abby is sixteen and in love with Mitch Newquist. Sheriff Shellenberger and his two sons go out looking for cattle due to calf to bring them in. This small town is surrounded by cattle ranches and many citizens own ranches. Rex, then eighteen, gets out and finds a beautiful young woman, naked in the snow and frozen to death. Who is this girl? Father and son pick her up and drive her to the home of Dr. Reynolds. The dead girl is carried in, the two boys stay outside. Dr. Reynolds smashes her face so noone can recognize her. The two men don't know that a teen age boy looking for drugs is hiding in a cabinet where medical supplies are kept and knows what has happened. The next morning Abby goes to Mitch's house. He has moved out of town to go to a better school says his mother Nadine. She wants her son away from Abby. Mitch is too good for her, a small town girl. He needs more out of life than her and this small town. Citizens of the town have a funeral, place a gravestone on the burial site which becomes famous. Characters come from many places to visit the grave. The grave of the dead unknown girl becomes a shrine. Characters drive to the grave asking for favors, for love problems, health problems, to become wealthy. Characters stop by the grave and talk, telling life stories to the dead girl, Seventeen years have passed. Abby has never left her small town. She owns a lawn and landscape business. Rex becomes the town sheriff. Neither has married. This book has many twists and turns. The end will surprise readers. I like the way Ms Pickard brings the environment and nature into her books.

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