Cora, the youngest of 4, never knew her mother who died just after giving birth to her. She has been raised by her oldest sister Darlene, who stepped into the place of their parents after a tornado rips through town, taking away their father and making the siblings orphans. Just months later, the only boy, Tucker, runs away, leaving the 3 girls to fend for themselves. The most tragic family in Mercy, OK gets hit by yet another horror on the 3rd anniversary of the disastrous "Hand of God" tornado: 9-year-old Cora disappears.

Darlene stays close to the police officer following the case, demanding updates and insisting that the FBI get involved as the summer months pass and except for a couple phone calls from Cora, they make no progress in locating the girl or the suspected kidnapper, their brother Tucker.

The story flawlessly weaves in heartbreak and morality to the fight for the humane treatment of animals, shining a light on what really matters when you're forced to choose between your own life and doing what's right. Geni's writing here absolutely blew me away. Her scenes and descriptions of place/emotion were so visceral that I had to pace myself, and take breaks to just think about the actions of the characters and the force of Geni's words. So good.