families

In 1905, Suzanna is in training to be a well-mannered hostess at a Loch Harbor, New Brunswick, hotel, but her dream of being a detective gets a boost when a seven-year-old guest goes missing and Suzanna's uncle, a famous detective, comes to solve the case.

In early nineteenth-century England, a spirited young woman copes with the courtship of a snobbish gentleman as well as the romantic entanglements of her four sisters; and includes a short essay comparing Austen's Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy to Stephenie Meyer's Bella and Edward, a quiz, additional facts about Jane Austen, and more.

Neil, though eager to play an original song with friends in a talent show, resents being in his family's Celtic band--which has a big gig the same night as the showcase.

Maya Rogers, having returned home after spending the summer with her grandmother, is happy to be with her friends and boyfriend again, but her life becomes unpredictable with the arrival of her rebellious cousin, Viviana.

Sixteen-year-old Miles, thirteen-year-old Sarah, and their parents find themselves changing in many ways as they struggle to survive winter in a remote cabin, while keeping anyone in the nearby town from learning they are living there illegally after the devastation of volcanic eruptions drove them from their Minneapolis home.

Abel, a sixteen-year-old junior at Cesar Chavez High School, happily accepts a job at a local donut shop to make some money and distance himself from his parents, who continuously put him down, but when money goes missing from the register, Abel hopes that Claudia, the cute girl who works at the shop with him, is not responsible.

Trevor feels he is caught between his girlfriend, Vanessa Allen, and his mother and brother, who think Vanessa is not a good influence on Trevor, and realizes he is old enough to make decisions for himself, but is not sure what the right one is.

Sixteen-year-old Ernesto feels conflicted when his friend Carmen announces that her father is going to run for city council against incumbent Monte Esposito, a relative of the girl who Ernesto is in love with, and decides to keep quiet about the election, even though he feels that Esposito is not serving the community as well as Carmen's father would.

Naomi speaks out against her father's bullying and abuse toward her mother and Ernesto, who has cared for Naomi for a long time, hopes he can win her heart, but Ernesto is afraid that Clay, Naomi's old abusive boyfriend, will always come between them.

In 1917, Aaluk leaves for Siberia while her sister Nutaaq remains in their Alaskan village and becomes one of the few survivors of an influenza epidemic, then in 1986, Nunaaq's great-granddaughter leaves her mother due to a different kind of sickness and returns to the village where they were born.