The inhabitants of Good Hope, Virginia, haven't felt the cooling effects of rain in weeks one brutally hot summer, and only a spark is needed to ignite the rage and hatred that have been so carefully hidden. A baby is born and then dies in the arms of her mother, Nora Carol, who is of mixed race. The child, Nora Carol, is buried quickly and quietly in the church graveyard. The white deacons of Good Hope's Victory Baptist Church have the body exhumed, an act that triggers events leading to a legal case and revealing secrets.