Travis Fisher arrives in Haute Montagne, a small industrial American town during the Depression of the 1930's. He has travelled there to live with his uncle and aunt following the death of his mother. His uncle gets him a job at the ice factory he manages.

Shortly after arriving at the town he meets Nancy Wilcox, a waitress in a local café. The two are natural outsiders and they quickly become involved. They share a fascination with Anna Blaise, an unearthly seeming woman who boards at Travis's uncle's house.

Bone is a hobo, travelling along the rails through American with two companions, scrounging for work and food along the way. When one of his companions starts to take what he wants by force the group must travel quickly on always trying to stay ahead of the law. But Bone is no ordinary hobo. For a start he has no memory of a life before being a hobo, and with instinctive extreme violence being a natural response when threatened.

I am a fan of Robert Charles Wilson, and was pleased to have found a copy of this book. Fortunately this anticipation did not prove greater than the merits of the book. This is a tale I enjoyed. It is Mr. Wilson's first novel, and whereas it does not have the polish of some of his later work (especially the recent Chronoliths) but there is much here that hints at what this author went on to produce.