Sterling is a small, ordinary New Hampshire town where nothing ever happens - until the day its complacency is shattered by a shocking act of violence. In the aftermath, the town's residents must not only seek justice in order to begin healing but also come to terms with the role they played in the tragedy. For them, the lines between truth and fiction, right and wrong, insider and outsider have been obscured forever. Josie Cormier, the teenage daughter...

With all the narrative power and emotional immediacy that have made her novels acclaimed international bestsellers, Anita Shreve unfolds a richly engaging tale of marriage, money, and troubled times-the story of a pair of young newlyweds who, setting out to build a life together in a derelict beach house on the Atlantic coast, soon discover how threatening the world outside their front door can be.

Soon after an art scholarship gets Liv a place at prestigious Wickham Hall, she becomes the latest victim of a dark conspiracy spanning 150 years, but her ghost, aided by friend Gabe and boyfriend Malcolm, tries to put a stop to the killing.

While living on his grandparents' farm in New Hampshire, Cole hears stories about a mysterious sin-eater; these stories enable Cole to learn forgiveness and to connect with his ancestors.