Growing up in the small town of Shelter Bay, Oregon, Sax Douchett was considered a bad boy. As a teenager, he was the rebel who mothers warned their daughters about. Even the clean-cut image of his older brother, Cole, and Cole’s best friend, Jared, couldn’t rub off on Sax. Now that Sax has returned to his hometown following distinguished military service, he has become the local hero.

Kara fell in love with her husband in the third grade and never considered any other life than one which included him. Jared survived a stint in Marine Corps and returned home to his wife and son, but the military service left him a changed man. Although Jared was still a loving father and husband, something in him had changed. As a civilian, Jared put his hard-earned skills to work as a policeman, and it was that career that cost him his life. Now widowed with a young son, Kara returns home to Shelter Bay and a safer, less troubled community in which to raise her son. Kara’s father, a career law enforcement officer, has been accidentally killed, and Kara has returned to the home of her childhood to support her mother.

Kara never expected to follow in her father’s footsteps, but an unexpected turn of events finds her serving as the sheriff of Shelter Bay. The discovery of unidentified bones on the beach, unsolved case files and a home-invasion crime leave Kara wondering if she made the right decision to return home. As Kara deals with her own grief and that of her son and mother, she discovers a strength that she hadn’t known she possessed.

JoAnn Ross gives readers a story of family warmth and support mixed with suspense, danger and a happy ending. Fans will be delighted by this new “Shelter Bay” story, and readers new to this author will be hooked.