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To escape the tumult and conflicts of 1960s Detroit, Arthur Scott moves his wife and children back to the wind-swept plains of his hometown on Bent Road near Hays, Kansas. His wife, Celia, resents the move that will put her close to in-laws she barely knows and a small town society she doesn’t understand. As Celia grapples with loneliness and brutality of life and death on a farm, she watches events unfold– leading to a secret lurking in this small village. A secret that involves the Scott family. Years ago, Arthur’s beautiful old sister died mysteriously. Now, another young girl disappears without a trace. Arthur’s only living sister, severely abused by her alcoholic husband, seeks refuge with Celia’s family.

On Bent Road, a battered red truck cruises ominously along the prairie, a boy hefts his father’s rifle in search of a target, and a mother realizes she no longer knows how to protect her children. This rich and haunting story of a family reminds us that simplicity of landscape does not necessairily mean simplicity of life