Her three uncles have come to tell Jody Linder that Billy Crosby, the man who murdered her father and probably her mother when she was three years old, has been released from prison. Billy is coming back to Rose, Kansas, the small town where Jody grew up with her grandparents, Annabelle and Hugh Linder.
Annabelle, Hugh (and the uncles) have given Jody as much love and protection as they could after the loss of her parents, at the same time living with their grief and anger over losing their first born son and daughter-in-law.
They can't protect her from Billy's return, but the Linder family is nothing if not protective and loyal to their own.
I felt privileged to read as the story developed, from Jody's first hearing about Billy's return, back to seeing the Linder family as they lived through the death and loss of two family members and then returning to the present to the events that played out after his return.
Pickard is a master at skillfully weaving past and present, telling about the Linder's lives from the events leading up to the violent night when Hugh-Jay died and Laurie disappeared to the present when Billy Crosby reappears on the scene.
I won't say any more about the story, and I urge you to do as my partner does, don't read things that will give anything away, such as reviews or even the back cover. I went to the author's website this morning and read a review that gave info I'm glad I didn't know while I was reading. Sometimes it's better not to know much about a book before reading it.
The ending was a teensy bit too tidy for me, however I thoroughly enjoyed reading about the Linder family, the other residents of Rose (including the Testament Rocks, which almost seemed like a character themselves), and the night that defined their lives.
A good read!
The Scent of Rain and Lightning will be released May 4, 2010.
