In the small Wisconsin town of Blue River, secrets run deep.And for Henry Howland, high school principal and repressive moral beacon of his community, they are about to explode in a shocking series of events that will shatter the smooth surface of his life forever.Because when Howland seduces and abandons fragile single-mother Mrs. Sellers, her hot-tempered but wildly brilliant son Lawrence begins a systematic campaign to repay him in kind, striking out his softest spots, destroying him bit-by-bit.And when a young boy is unjustly accused of setting a rash of mysterious fires, the tragic results burn away at the hypocrisy one man used to hold a community hostage - and ignite the truth that will set a troubled family free.