Life could be better for smalltown reporter Emily O'Brien. Her love life is lousy, her bills are piling up and she barely survived the holidays with her dignity intact.

When her alma mater contacts her to temporarily take a teaching gig, she decides it's a chance to boost her finances if nothing else. She doesn't expect to get involved with an old flame as she tries to find research that went missing after a professor commits suicide, following a series of clues left behind.

Their journey challenges everything that Emily believes — about her faith, about human nature, about finding love again. But as determined as Emily is to find the research, someone else is just as committed to making sure the truth stays buried.