Two years ago, Amy Dowell lost her husband to cancer. In the few months that followed, she went on to lose her insurance benefits and home to foreclosure. All she has left is a rusty old camper, her precious five-year-old daughter, Kimmie, and her faith. Homeless and desperate, Amy spends the next 18 months on the road, trying to make ends meet by taking on freelance jobs painting signs for various businesses around the country. She clings to the hope that one day she will be able to make a stable home again for her daughter, but every day it gets harder and harder to believe her life will ever be more than relying on church homeless ministries for meals, spending sleepless nights in the camper, and praying that God will keep her and Kimmie safe.

As the story opens, Amy and Kimmie are currently setting up camp in central Florida, where Amy will interview for a job painting window banners for Denton Chevrolet, a local car dealership. Little does she realize when she and Kimmie stop for breakfast at First Methodist Church that her prayers are about to be answered in ways she never expected.

"THE SIGN PAINTER offers a sense of hope for those recovering from tragic loss and redemption for those who may feel they have fallen too far into a pit to ever climb out."

Lucy Watts heads up First Methodist’s outreach ministry, which not only provides meals for the homeless, but also has converted a run-down motel into a temporary housing facility and daycare center for selected individuals who are serious about getting their lives back on track. When Amy and Kimmie walk into the church, Lucy knows in her spirit that God has brought them there for a reason. She strikes up a conversation and ends up offering the mother and daughter one of the recently vacated apartments.

Lucy is committed to her ministry and has a heart for helping those who are down on their luck. Unfortunately, the neighborhood is being overrun by drug dealers and gangs, who are moving in on the homeless people the church is attempting to help. Many members of the church have given in to fear and think that shutting down the ministry and turning a blind eye to the criminal activity is the only way to reacquire the peaceful community they once had. But Lucy and a handful of others are determined to maintain their efforts and will do whatever it takes to keep the program in place. They enlist the help of the church’s security team, along with police enforcement and an ex-federal agent, who put their heads together to come up with a plan to take care of the problem once and for all.

Amy is ecstatic that she and Kimmie now have a place of their own. When she lands the sign-painting job at Denton Chevrolet, her hopes surge. For the first time in 18 months, she wonders if a normal life is possible after all. But then she witnesses a crime at the dealership, which she quickly learns is directly tied to the gang and drug-related activity that threatens to shut down the ministry that has given her and Kimmie a chance at a new life. Now she has to decide whether to take her daughter and run, or face her fears and do what she can to help bring the criminals to justice.

THE SIGN PAINTER is a character-driven tale, although it certainly has a strong plot as well. Amy is easy to root for, with her tenacity, determination and unwavering faith. Lucy is also a strong character, whose dedication to helping the homeless is both admirable and convicting. Author Davis Bunn definitely knows how to pen an interesting and unique story. The crime angle adds an element of suspense and intrigue --- even more so, considering it’s based on real-life events. Most of all, THE SIGN PAINTER offers a sense of hope for those recovering from tragic loss and redemption for those who may feel they have fallen too far into a pit to ever climb out. Perhaps it will even inspire a few to start up outreach ministries in their own churches and make a real difference in their communities.