Abby Reynolds is your typical teenage girl living in a rural community in the tiny town of Small Plains, Kansas. In love with the judge's son, Mitch Newquist, Abby has hopes of one day getting married and starting her own family using her parent's example of a good marriage full of love and commitment of which to emulate. The daughter of the local doctor, Abby hangs out with Mitch and the sheriff's son, Rex Shellenberger, as the trio finds themselves getting into harmless mischief that teenagers ultimately do when testing their wings and finding their niche in life.

When a blizzard suddenly descends upon the town, the Shellenberger men must try to save their newborn cattle before the herd freezes to death in the storm. When Rex finds an unidentified naked girl frozen in the snow, his father makes the decision to bring the corpse to Abby's father to examine. Unbeknownst to the group, at the very same time, Abby and Mitch have finally decided to consummate their relationship despite the potential risk it may have to their future. As Mitch sneaks downstairs to the doctor's office to get some protection, what he ultimately witnesses will change the lives of these three best friends, as well as the entire town, forever.

What happened on that cold and blustery evening that made Mitch quickly leave town and never come back? Who is the mysterious girl that was found bludgeoned to death that the town has buried and named the Virgin? Why does she have such healing powers that make people from all over come to the grave and pay homage to her?

THE VIRGIN OF SMALL PLAINS is Nancy Pickard's eighteenth and most powerful novel to date. This expertly written tale captivates the reader from the very first page with an engrossing storyline full of plot twists and riveting dialog. Told from the past as well as the present, Pickard truly strikes gold.