Penitence Kristin Koval (2026)

Are you more than the worst thing you have ever done, or are some things too terrible to forgive? When teenager Nora Sheehan fatally shoots her brother Nico in their family home, her parents lives are shattered. Nico had been diagnosed with a terminal illness: was Noras act one of mercy, or something far darker? Alone in a juvenile detention centre awaiting trial, Nora is unable or unwilling to speak. Her parents, Angie and David Sheehan, turn to local lawyer Martine Dumont for help. Martine is also the mother of Angies first love, Julian, now a high-powered New York defence attorney who returns to their rural Colorado hometown to assist with the case. His arrival stirs up secrets buried in his and Angies past, with damaging consequences. As the verdict determining Noras fate approaches, the two families face painful questions about what they will fight to preserve and what they must be prepared to let go. This poignant story explores love, grief, guilt and forgiveness.