The Fire Gospels

the long version

The Fire Gospels takes place in the McCutcheon River Valley in Wisconsin during a long-standing drought. Through characters like Grady McCann, a hardworking maintenance man at an old folks' home; his wife, Erica, a strangely evangelical Catholic; and Lucky Littlefield, the local weatherman turned preacher who enjoins his viewers to "pray for rain" at the beginning of each broadcast, The Fire Gospels tells in vivid detail the story of the drought and how the townspeople are seduced into believing that Lucky will pull them through their time of struggle. When a rampant fire breaks out in a neighboring town, though, it becomes clear that Lucky is a first-rate phony, and it is every man and woman for themselves as Grady, Erica, Lucky, and the others fight for their lives against a ferocious natural disaster.