Helen Plum Library

Caleb Franklin and his younger brother, Bobby Gene, spend an extraordinary summer their new, older neighbor, Styx Malone, a foster boy from the city

After a string of foster homes and the death of her heroin-addict mother, Lexi Baill is taken in by a newly discovered great-aunt who lives a spartan life near Seattle. Lexi soon meets Mia and her loving twin brother, Zach. The friendship flourishes, and Mia's mother draws Lexi into the family circle. A slowly growing attraction between Zach and Lexi begins, but then Lexi, Mia, and Zach collectively make a bad decision that results in a tragedy with...

During World War II, Felicity Bathburn is living in Bottlebay, Maine, with her eccentric relatives and their foster child Derek, whom she has grown to love, but when a man claiming to be Derek's true father arrives and starts asking all sorts of strange questions Felicity becomes suspicious of his motives

Between 1854 and 1929, so-called orphan trains ran regularly from the cities of the East Coast to the farmlands of the Midwest, carrying thousands of abandoned children whose fates would be determined by pure luck. Would they be adopted by a kind and loving family, or would they face a childhood and adolescence of hard labor and servitude? As a young Irish immigrant, Vivian Daly was one such child, sent by rail from New York City to an uncertain future...

"Growing up in foster care, Muir has lived in many houses. And if she's learned one thing, it is to Pack. Light. Carry only what fits in a suitcase. Toothbrush? Yes. Socks? Yes. Emotional attachment to friends? foster families? a boyfriend? Nope! There's no room for any additional baggage. Muir has just one year left before she ages out of the system. One year before she's free. One year to avoid anything--or anyone--that could get in her way. Then...

Prince Thabiso is the sole heir to the throne of Thesolo, shouldering the hopes of his parents and his people. At the top of their list? His marriage. Ever dutiful, he tracks down his missing betrothed. When Naledi mistakes the prince for a pauper, Thabiso can't resist the chance to experience life--and love--without the burden of his crown

"Amber Nicholls, Lachlan McCarthy, and Raffaele Wright would normally have absolutely nothing in common. But growing up as foster kids in Teddy's seaside home along the Cornish coast has forged a bond tighter than Gorilla glue. Each of them have their own messes in life to deal with, but Teddy's big news is the cherry on top. Teddy's gone on a vacation cruise around the Mediterranean and met the woman of his dreams. The only problem for his loyal-to-a-fault...

"New to Stoney Ridge, schoolteacher Mollie has come to town for a fresh start. When Luke Schrock, new to his role as deacon, asks the church to take in foster girls from a group home, she's the first to raise her hand. The power of love, she believes, can pick up the dropped stitches in a child's heart and knit them back together. The 11-year-old twins she takes in bring her sleepless nights and police visits... and then the girls accuse Mollie of...

"Out there is chaos, the collapse of society, and so much to be afraid of. All that matters is freedom. That's what Remy Blake has been taught by his survivalist father. Raised off the grid in the middle of nowhere, his own survival skills not yet honed, Remy is days shy of his eighth birthday when his father unexpectedly dies ... He is found--near feral, silent, and terrified--in the small rural town of Blaire. To Anne, a nurturing mother of two...

As the dreary, bitter weather of late fall descends on Minneapolis, Detective Nikki Liska is restless. Most of all she misses her old partner, Sam Kovac. He's distracted from his troubles by an especially brutal double homicide: a middle-aged husband and wife bludgeoned and hacked to death in their home with a ceremonial Japanese samurai sword. Nikki's case, the unsolved murder of a family man, community leader, and decorated sex crimes detective...