SNOW FALLING ON CEDARS

A skilfullv constructed, deeply, affecting story of love and death ...This is a hugely attractive book, written in clipped elegant prose,and all themore enjoyable for its measure of sadness and regret.

EAST OF THE MOUNTAINS

East of the Mountains, like Snow Falling on Cedars, is characterised by a rhapsodic evocation of place, firmly grounded in Guterson's love of his native landscape ... The book is characterised too by its meticulous attention to detail.

From the bestselling author of Snow Falling on Cedars: the story of a teenage girl who sees a vision of the Virgin Mary.

Ann Holmes seems an unlikely candidate for revelation. A sixteen-year-old runaway,she is an itinerant mushroom picker who lives in a tent. Her past has been hardscrabble. Then one November afternoon, in the foggy woods of North Fork, Washington, the Virgin comes to her,clear as day.

It is up to the new priest, Father Collins,to evaluate the veracity of Ann's sightings:delusion, a product of her occasional drug use, or a true calling to God? And Ann is disturbingly alluring to him, both spiritually and physically.

Carolyn Greer, a smart-talking fellow mushroomer, becomes Ann's disciple of sorts as word spreads, and thousands converge upon the already troubled town.For Tom Cross, an embittered logger who's been out of work since his son was paralysed in a terrible accident, the possibility that Ann's visions are real offers a last chance for him and his son.

As Father Collins searches both his own soul and Ann's; as Carolyn struggles with her less than admirable intentions; as Tom alternates between despair and hope, Our Lady of the Forest combines suspense, grit and humour in a story of faith at a contemporary crossroad.