THE SCENT OF RAIN AND LIGHTNING: A NOVEL
Book ID/图书代码： 01240009B32386
English Summary/英文概要： One beautiful summer afternoon, from her bedroom window on the second floor, Jody Linder is unnerved to see her three uncles parking their pickups in front of her parents’ house—or what she calls her parents’ house, even though Jay and Laurie Jo Linder have been gone almost all of Jody’s life. “What is this fearsome thing I see?” the young high school English teacher whispers, mimicking Shakespeare. Polished boots, pressed jeans, fresh white shirts, Stetsons—her uncles’ suspiciously clean visiting clothes are a disturbing sign.
The three bring shocking news: The man convicted of murdering Jody’s father is being released from prison and returning to the small town of Rose, Kansas. It has been twenty-six years since that stormy night when, as baby Jody lay asleep in her crib, her father was shot and killed and her mother disappeared, presumed dead. Neither the protective embrace of Jody’s uncles nor the safe haven of her grandparents’ ranch could erase the pain caused by Billy Crosby on that catastrophic night.
Now Billy Crosby has been granted a new trial, thanks in large part to the efforts of his son, Collin, a lawyer who has spent most of his life trying to prove his father’s innocence. As Jody lives only a few doors down from the Crosbys, she knows that sooner or later she’ll come face-to-face with the man who she believes destroyed her family.
What she doesn’t expect are the heated exchanges with Collin. Having grown up practically side by side in this very small town, Jody and Collin have had a long history of carefully avoiding each other’s eyes. Now Jody discovers that underneath their antagonism is a shared sense of loss that no one else could possibly understand. As she revisits old wounds, startling revelations compel her to uncover the dangerous truth about her family’s tragic past.
Engrossing, lyrical, and suspenseful, The Scent of Rain and Lightning captures the essence of small-town America—its heartfelt intimacy and its darkest secrets—where through struggle and hardship people still dare to hope for a better future. For Jody Linder, maybe even love.
Chinese Summary/中文概要： 幸福是珍貴、猜疑且非常易碎的綜合體。
Jody Linder在兒時就遭逢失去親人的創痛，在她三歲時父親被人謀殺，母親在此悲劇發生的同時也從此消失無蹤。從此，Jody不知道快樂的定義是什麼? 任何試圖安慰照顧她的人，反而被Jody拒人於千里，幸福對她來說只會使她更感焦慮。然而面對這種孤獨的環境，卻使她比起一般人更顯出成熟敏銳。長大後的Jody，成為教授英語文學的老師，擺脫過去陰霾的她，失去親人的痛楚漸漸平復。
Collin Crosby的父親Billy Crosby就是涉嫌殺害Jody父親的最大嫌犯，從小Collin就被人指責是謀殺犯的小孩。長大後身為律師的他，找出各種證據為父親證明清白，也因此Billy在歷經多年的牢獄之災，終於獲得釋放。
如今Billy的釋放，喚醒了Jody多年前的傷痛。Jody和Collin，原本由小時候就是互相敵對，在Collin的父親獲釋後，兩人竟發現過去秘密與謊言接踵而來。他們兩個家庭的家族歷史，背後竟是隱藏更多待解開的謎團…(Chris)
Awards/获奖情况：◆以流暢筆觸 巧妙融合文學知識、推理，充滿懸疑精彩又感人的作品
◆睽違推理文壇已久 最早將女性主義元素融入傳統解謎故事 美國作家協會最盛讚的女性作者
◆三度榮獲推理界阿嘉莎大獎
◆四次入圍愛倫坡獎決選名單
◆美國最佳犯罪小說安東尼獎、麥克維提獎得主
版權已售:
UK/Commonwealth (Hodder); German (Rowohlt); French(Lafon); Dutch (Sitjoff); Japanese (Hayakawa); Korean(Younglin)
Praise for Nancy Pickard
"Tantalizing . . . Pickard writes with insight and compassion."---The New York Times
"Ambitious, beautifully written, and carefully crafted . . . The writing is graceful and engrossing, scenes and viewpoints interlocking in a rich tapestry . . . Pickard exceeds the genre."---The Boston Globe
"Pickard has evolved into a writer of substantial literary power and gravitas. . . . [She] nails scene after scene while moving her narrative along with clean, well-considered prose."---The Denver Post
"With its perfectly sketched scenes, sharply drawn characters and finely painted plot, The Virgin of Small Plains is a truly suspenseful novel."---The St. Louis Post-Dispatch
About the Author/作者介绍： Nancy Pickard，是最早將女性主義元素融入傳統解謎小說的作家，在她筆下的女性都是學有專精的職業婦女。她曾多次獲得推理小說大獎，包含阿嘉莎獎（Agatha Awards）、安東尼獎(Anthony Award)、麥克維提獎(Macavity Award)，四次入圍愛倫坡獎(Edgar Award)決選名單。
Pickard著有多篇短篇代表作品，之後以首部長篇小說《The Virgin of Small Plains》，奪得2007年度最佳小說而聲名大噪。寫作風格融合文學、感人、推理懸疑等元素，曾為美國神秘作家協會的榮譽會員，也是犯罪寫作姊妹會（Sisters in Crime）的榮譽主席。
Format:TRADE PAPERBACK
Rights Status/版权销售情况：Simplified Chinese/简体中文：AVAILABLE
Complex/Traditional Chinese/繁体中文：AVAILABLE
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