Lori Shepherd can hardly wait for Christmas this year. Now that the lean times are over, the cottage Aunt Dimity willed her is more beautiful than ever, her nine-month-old twins, Will and Rob, are thriving, and she and husband Bill have never been happier. Determined to make this Christmas the best ever, Lori embarks on a round of shopping, holly-cutting, angel-cookie making, and more. The only thing she wishes for that she can't plan in advance is ... snow. So when she looks out the window to discover that fat flakes have started to drift down and cover the flagstone path, Lori feels her holiday wishes are all about to come true. But the next day, beneath the lilac bushes now covered by freshly fallen snow, Lori makes a disturbing discovery: the body of a mysterious stranger - a tramp - barely alive.. Lori puts her plans on hold and teams up with Julian Bright - a devilishly attractive Roman Catholic priest - to search out the stranger's identity.