Sacrament

Centered around a group of nurses in San Bernardino during the first year of a pandemic, acclaimed author Susan Straight weaves a love story between the women and their forged community—a community beset by extreme heat and great change, yet one they’ll risk their lives to protect

In August 2020, four women are nurses working in the ICU at a San Bernardino Hospital at the height of a COVID surge: Larette Embers, whose husband Grief is an Animal Control officer, whose son Dante is obsessed with astrology; Cherrise Martinez, whose husband died years ago in a car crash, whose daughter Raquel has been sent to Coachella to live with her great-aunt in the date gardens to avoid the virus; and two traveling nurses, Pam Ott from Indiana, and Marisol Manalang, born in the Philippines but living in Sacramento.

To safeguard their families, the nurses have moved into RVs close to the hospital, living side by side, working, eating, sleeping as close as sisters. They share food and cigarettes while they care for each other, yet often keep their work experiences private. They are a community in crisis at the height of a pandemic, assisting strangers at the edge of death with infinite tenderness and desperation.

From National Book Award finalist Susan Straight, a captivating new novel about a group of nurses fighting through the first year of a pandemic and the beloved California community they will risk their lives to protect

In August 2020, a group of nurses are working in the ICU at a hospital in San Bernardino at the height of a Covid surge: Larette Embers, whose husband Grief is an Animal Control officer; Cherrise Martinez, whose husband died years ago in a car crash, and whose daughter Raquel has been sent to a Coachella date farm to live with her great-aunt to avoid the virus; and Marisol Manalang, born in the Philippines but living in Sacramento. To safeguard their families, the nurses are living in a makeshift RV camp close to the hospital; they share food and cigarettes yet keep their work private. For this is a country in crisis, and they are assisting strangers at the edge of death with infinite tenderness and growing desperation.

As the nurses struggle with the skyrocketing number of sick patients, Cherisse's daughter goes missing. Grief's friend Johnny Frias, a California Highway Patrol Officer, joins the search to find her, and the resulting journey will lead to new love and loss, pushing all of our characters to their breaking points. Brilliantly highlighting both the quiet heroism and extraordinary bravery of first responders, Sacrament once again proves that Susan Straight is the ?essential voice in American writing and in writing of the West? (The New York Times).