From the introduction:
In 1974, in a small town in West Virginia, Hell on Earth was born. Burned nearly to death by fanatics called the Brethren in an obscene ritual meant to cleanse her soul on accusation of being a witch, a young girl named Alessa was left with third-degree burns all over her body. Her life was saved in an act of fate that caused the very fire that burned her to spread into the town, eventually finding its way to an underground coal mine where the fire still burns to this day- releasing toxic fumes and ash into the surrounding area and leaving it uninhabitable. Much of the town was destroyed during the fire, and in the chaos many lives were lost- half of the bodies were never found, and the survivors were forced to relocate. Yet, the members of the cult that started the blaze remained in the town long enough for Alessa to get her revenge.