Plot summary

In a raging blizzard five days before Christmas, two young people meet by chance: Lisa, 19, pregnant and scared; and Brad, a professional snowboarder. Both want to make it over the mountains ahead of the storm; Brad to attend a party announcing his engagement, Lisa because she's desperate to get anywhere away from the mysterious circumstances she's trying to outrun. The blizzard catches up with them and Brad's car slams into a snowbank in the middle of the wilderness. They're forced to seek shelter at the only structure they've passed in the last 10 miles: the Rosemont Lodge. Once a vibrant year-round resort, the Rosemont Lodge has been closed for nearly 20 years. Most of it has been sealed up; only a corner of the main building is inhabited. Josephine, the lodge's owner, used to its heart and soul--her personality and cooking were assets as valuable of the hundreds of acres of pristine mountain wilderness surrounding the lodge. After a devastating family tragedy, Josephine closed the lodge; now a bitter woman in her 60's, she lives as a total recluse behind "no trespassing" signs all over the property. Her only companion is the lodge's sole remaining employee, Abe the caretaker, who maintains the place as best he can while hitting the bottle all day long to insulate himself from Josephine's sharp tongue. Josephine and Abe greet Brad and Lisa with shotguns, but Josephine reluctantly agrees to take them in. Over the next several days, these four people's lives are transformed. They contend with the harrowing birth of Lisa's baby, the embarrassing discovery of Lisa's past, Lisa and Brad's blossoming romance, and Lisa's struggle to keep her baby. Above all looms the growing connection between Josephine and Lisa, which Josephine believes is rooted in the tragedy of her own past. This connection gradually brings Josephine--and Rosemont--back to life and offers a glimmer of hope for the future of Lisa and her baby.—DP