The story is told from the eyes of a 30 year old woman, Nicky, as she recounts her eleventh year of life.  Nicky's father, Robert, recently moved the two of them to New Hampshire from New York after the tragic death of his wife and baby daughter. Robert, drowning in grief, successfully searched for the most remote home in a small town - void of a television, the newspaper, or any glimpse of his previously happy life.

Nicky tries to create a normal existence; making a good friend at school, making her own jewelry, and selling raspberries during the warmer months, while their lives fall into a comfortable pattern. They rarely talk about their grief, but it is always with them. Robert is obviously destroyed, and Nicky does her best to take care of him, even though she is miserable in their new home. Her father's only employment is making furniture in their barn - their contact with the outside world limited to his occasional customer, the people at school and the local stores, and her grandmother's rare visits. 

Then one day, as it sometimes happens, their lives change forever. While walking in the woods, Nicky and her father happen upon an abandoned baby - shivering and helpless in the snow.  Darkness is falling as they rescue the crying infant and bring her to a nearby hospital.

Robert saves her, but instead of being touted a hero by the local police chief, he is met with suspicion. As the days unfold, Robert realizes he is being closely watched by the authorities. Then their lives are completely turned upside down when Charlotte, the baby's mother, comes back to the scene, and ends up stranded in their home during a horrible snow storm. 

Nicky forms a bond with Charlotte while taking care of the fragile young mother, and Charlotte's story of betrayal by the baby's father only warms Nicky to her more. But  when the snows recedes and Robert ultimately sends Charlotte away, the delicate dance that has been the relationship between father and daughter since their shared tragedy comes to an end. Nicky finally stands up to her father and demands that they help Charlotte, and in the process, forces them to move forward with their lives.  

Shreve keeps us in suspense - and succeeds in creating a novel with complex characters that tug at your heart. Along the way we watch as a diminished family takes back their lives and finds a reason to live again.

A good novel should entertain, teach, and leave you with something that touches your soul. I will always remember a passage from the book, when Nicky, wanting to make a nice breakfast for Charlotte and her father one morning, pushes a dining table into the small kitchen of their home in the hopes of being normal again. Nicky and her father, after all,  have been eating meals in the den with trays on their laps since half of their family passed away. That appreciation has remained with me, as I sit down to my own dinner table - what a precious place it is.