National Network for Equitable Library Service

On the morning after the 2003 Academy Awards, Max--an Oscar-winning writer/director whose fame has waned--and his lover, Elena, are in bed, still groggy from last night's red-carpet festivities. They are talking about movies, talking about love, talking about the just-begun war in Iraq. But a house full of guests demands attention. They share their stories of Hollywood past and present; they watch films in Max's luxe screening room; they gossip by the swimming pool, and tussle in the many bedrooms.

Doc Ford is hot on the trail of his deceased war buddy's missing wife. Rumor has it that she vanished into the steamy jungles of South America in the company of an unsavory specimen of humanity. From Florida to Colombia and Panama, he traces their path. But a shadowy figure is closing in on Doc -- and the violence left in the wake of this enigmatic individual is terrifying.

A woman finds two people murdered in the apartment her best friend shared with one of the victims. The list of people with duplicate keys is two pages long . . . and includes people no one knows.

While hapless private investigator Bernie continues his struggle to pay the bills, his four-legged partner Chet, a K-9 school dropout--with his sharp nose and even sharper teeth--keeps bringing down the perps.

Introducing two-legged Bernie and his four-legged pal Chet--a canine with a penchant for solving mysteries--their first case is to track down a teenager who's out way past curfew.

In Korea in 1473, eleven-year-old Young-sup overcomes his rivalry with his older brother Kee-sup, who as the first-born son receives special treatment from their father, and combines his kite-flying skill with Kee-sup's kite-making skill in an attempt to win the New Year kite-fighting competition.

When her mother throws her father out, young Lulu is told never to let him in again. But Lulu disobeys, and the consequences are heartbreaking. Lulu's mother ends up killed, and Lulu and her sister Merry are orphaned. Now, as the sisters grow into adulthood, they find the ghosts of their past are difficult to outrun.

Tres Navarre, Ph.D., has taken a summer teaching job at the University of Texas at Austin. He plans to live with his brother Garrett, a computer wizard, while enjoying a laid-back academic term. But when Garrett's partner in a start-up company is murdered, Tres must switch from professor to detective.

Texas Ranger Travis McMurray prefers chasing outlaws to being cooped up in domestic life. But all that changes when he meets Rainey, a stunning beauty who steals not only his heart--but his horse. On the run from an arranged marriage, Rainey wants to start a new life in the West--but will Travis be able to track her down before she disappears for good?

Restauranteur Cass and her fisherman husband Billy have a passionate marriage, filled with steamy sex in semipublic places. But the strain of raising a hearing-impaired daughter is wearing their love thin. When disaster at sea strikes, Cass must lean on her family for the support she needs.