Previously (Frank, 2007), Saint Francis was released from his centuries-long emissary duty to marry. In The Shining Man’s Wife, the saint is recalled to “active duty.” Frank and Elaine are sent west on a mission to a national park where a startling chain of events unfolds. A local TV station films Frank and Elaine dramatically rescuing a bison herd, and the clip goes nationwide.
Elaine’s “Ride through Fire” makes her a hot commodity on the talk show circuit. She appears on Larry King and Oprah, and Ms. Winfrey inspires her to start up a foundation to help the underfunded national parks.
Elaine soon attracts the attention of a secretive philanthropic organization called Filiae Mundi (Daughters of the World). The Daughters ask Frank and Elaine to solve an environmental problem at their remote mountain headquarters. In between helping the Park Service and Filiae Mundi, the couple's godson is discovered to possess a strange healing power and they must protect him from unwanted attention.
