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Summary
Summary
Nine-year-old Leah's invisible friend seems harmless enough. . .until she begins to paint the future. Suddenly, the townspeople are divided between those who see her as a prophet and those who fear the danger she represents. Caught in the middle is Leah's agnostic father, who clashes with a powerful town pastor over Leah's prophecies and what to do about them.
Leah is a child from Away, isolated from her peers because of her stutter. After her family moves to Mattingly, she begins painting scenes that are epic in scope, brilliant in detail, and suffused with rich, prophetic imagery. When the event foreshadowed in the first painting dramatically comes true, the town takes notice.
Leah attributes her ability to foretell the future to an invisible friend she calls the Rainbow Man. Some of the townsfolk are enchanted with her. Others fear her. But there is one thing they all agree on--there is no such thing as the Rainbow Man.
The town minister is unraveled by the notion that a mere child with no formal training may be hearing from God more clearly than he does.
While the town bickers over what to do with this strange child, the content of Leah's paintings grows darker. Still, Leah insists that the Rainbow Man's heart is pure.
Then a dramatic and tragic turn of events leaves the town reeling and places everyone's lives in danger. The people of Mattingly face a single choice: will they cling to what they know . . . or embrace the things Leah believes in that cannot be seen
Supernatural standalone novel Includes discussion questions for book clubs Other books by Billy Coffey: Snow Day, Paper Angels, The Devil Walks in Mattingly, and In the Heart of the Dark WoodReviews (2)
Publisher's Weekly Review
Tom and Ellen Norcross move to the fictional town of Mattingly, Va., for a fresh start after a slip of the tongue threatens their marriage and Tom's psychology practice. A stutter ostracizes their only daughter, Leah, until Allie Granderson befriends her, a relationship that tests Allie as much as it grounds Leah. From a grandiose birthday celebration and budding friendships to death and despair, Coffey (Snow Day) stuffs a lot of life into a seven day time span. A range of complex, highly relatable characters is embedded in the story. These people are rooted in community, love their children well, and are satisfied with their views of who God is-and, perhaps more importantly, who God is not. When Leah's imaginary friend, the Rainbow Man, gives her information that seemingly only God could know, it shakes folks up to the point that even Deacon Spicer wants to see the family run out of town. Whether Leah's prophecies are of the devil or the divine is a question asked but not fully answered until the very end. This intriguing read challenges mainstream religious ideas of how God might be revealed to both the devout and the doubtful. Agent: Rachelle Gardner, Books & Such Literary Agency. (June 11) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Library Journal Review
Tom Norcross is having trouble with his marriage and his psychiatry practice so he moves his wife and their daughter, Leah, to Mattingly, VA. Because of her stutter, Leah is a social pariah until a young girl named Allie befriends her. But their friendship and the Norcrosses' new life in Mattingly is challenged when Leah claims her imaginary friend, the Rainbow Man, is instructing her to paint pictures that then come true. The townspeople are devout Christians, and their world is turned upside down by Leah's predictions. Is God speaking through her? Or is it something more sinister? VERDICT Coffey's third novel (after Paper Angels and Snow Day) is an inspirational and atmospheric tale that should appeal to readers of Penelope Stokes. (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.