Central Kansas Library System

Since the Gold Rush, California prospectors have siphoned off the waters of isolated Tufa Lake, exposing the fragile, otherworldly mineral formation of the lake basin. Now a local environmental group seeks to block the latest incursion by developers - a massive mining operation funded by TransPacific, a U.S.-Hong Kong interest that seems to be behind a series of break-ins, disappearances, and shady land deals. Into this stark lunar landscape walks...

"With her beloved younger siblings settled and happy, Erin Foley has empty nest syndrome. At age 35. So she's hitting the pause button on her life and holing up in a secluded cabin near Virgin River. Erin is planning on getting to know herself ... not the shaggy-haired mountain man that she meets. She doesn't realize the stranger is a doctor, recharging for the summer after leaving the Navy. But maybe it's something in the water - unlikely romances...

"Four years ago, Air Force sweethearts Franci Duncan and Sean Riordan reached an impasse. She wanted marriage and a family. He didn't. But a chance meeting proves that the bitter breakup hasn't cooled their sizzling chemistry. Sean has settled down in spite of himself--he's not the cocky young fighter pilot he was when Franci left, and he wants them to try again. After all, they have a history, but that's not all they share. Franci's secret reason...

The body of an woman washes up near Point Deception, California -- a day after she was spotted near her broken-down car on the highway. Deputy Sheriff Rhoda Swift worries the woman's brutal rape and murder will resurrect fears from the unsolved massacre of two families 13 years before. When Rhoda investigates with journalist Guy Newberry, a shocking truth will test how far she is willing to go for justice.

Four high school friends spend a summer in northern California to sort out their love lives. Cassie, unlucky in love, falls for a biker. Julie, who married her high school sweetheart too young, wonders if the spark is gone from her marriage. Marty feels trapped in a loveless marriage and is contemplating an affair. Beth, a successful doctor, struggles with health problems and her attraction to a coworker. This summer, teetering on the threshold of...

Marine corporal Rick Sudder is home early from Iraq--his tour ended abruptly on the battlefield. The carefree boy is gone, replaced by a man who believes his future is bleak. Can the passion and commitment of a young woman who has never given up on him mend his broken body and shattered heart? As the people of Virgin River rally around Rick, another recent arrival tests the town's welcoming spirit. For a favorite son returned and an outsider looking...

"Former marine Tom Cavanaugh's come home to Virgin River, ready to take over his family's apple orchard and settle down. He knows just what the perfect woman will be like: sweet, decent, maybe a little naive. Nothing like Nora Crane. So why can't he keep his eyes off the striking single mother? Nora will do whatever it takes to support her family, including helping with the harvest at the Cavanaugh's orchard. She's always kept a single-minded focus...

"For SWAT sniper Jake Denton, the bullet casings he saves as grim reminders of his 'kills' are beginning to add up. His wife, his department-ordered psychiatrist, and even Jake himself are all beginning to question just how these sanctioned kills are affecting his mental health. Nobody wants him to end up like Lee Staley, his mentor and ex-partner--now out on permanent psych leave, drinking himself to death, and the prime suspect in a series of shootings...

"When two women are brutally murdered in northern California, their deaths are the latest atrocities in a surge of violence targeting Indigenous women in the area. Despite all evidence to the contrary, local officials rule the deaths isolated incidents, and they soon join the ranks of other unsolved homicides, quickly forgotten by law enforcement. Private Investigator Sharon McCone knows better, and so does the organization known as Crimes Against...

"Turtle Alveston is a survivor. At fourteen, she roams the woods along the northern California coast. The creeks, tide pools, and rocky islands are her haunts and her hiding grounds, and she is known to wander for miles. But while her physical world is expansive, her personal one is small and treacherous: Turtle has grown up isolated since the death of her mother, in the thrall of her tortured and charismatic father, Martin. Her social existence is...