Jess had a little hard-earned farmland, caring friends in this backwoods but close-knit community, and just a little bit of a gambling problem. Will Jessie place his bet on an easy out, and will he and the others survive to regret the ill-advised choices they've made? As he struggles with his alcoholism after the death of his wife, what are Jess and his neighbors going to do about the haunting experiences that are clearly beyond their control? What are the mysterious forces that are encroaching on him, and who is the stranger who materializes out of uncanny darkness at his door? The reader is drawn into the suspense right along with Stromer's compelling characters, as homespun and organic as the land they're trying to hold onto. But there's nothing at all natural about the visitor who comes disguised as offering a lucky fate.