Unlovable people plague Christine Sterling's world. Most difficult of all is Amanda Colter, a surly Goth teenager accused of murdering prominent Nevada City matron, Bessie Parrish. When Christine answers Amanda's call for help, she is thrust into a frightening and unfamiliar world populated by misfits and outcasts. In her zeal to help Amanda, she must face the ugliness of her own prejudiced heart. That means she must decide whether to run from those who live on the fringes or to give up her judgemental attitude and instead embrace God's command to love the unlovely. As Christine investigates the puzzling events leading to Mrs. Parrish's murder, incriminating evidence piles up, which points squarely to Amanda's guilt. Amanda refuses to defend herself. Can Christine find a way to exonerate Amanda? Should she even try? And how does the mysterious malady contracted by Molly, Christine's beloved border collie, complicate the quest?