To Die in Kanab: The everett ruess affair

Book excerpt: Death. It haunts the red-rock canyons of Southern Utah, claiming the daring who forget what stalks them. Over seventy years ago, it claimed its most famous victim, the young Everett Ruess, poet, artist, and adventurer. Ever after, the curious have been seeking answers to the mystery of his fate. As the Sheriff of Kane County, it's Jared Buck's job to keep tourists alive and safe as they wander the rugged desert. When a group of Californians shows up claiming they are going to make a blockbuster movie out of the affair - and solve the mystery at the same time - Sheriff Buck warns them that they are in over their heads. Determined to go through with their plans, they immediately anger the locals with their prying questions and arrogant assumptions. Then, when someone takes several shots at the group, Jared finds himself in an investigation that explodes into a full-blown crime scene when one member of the group ends up dead in the motel parking lot. Soon, it's Jared who's in over his head as he takes on the murder investigation, continues as Sheriff to deal with the rising problems in his district, and manage legal and political problems of his own. In the midst of all this, he finds himself being sucked into the mystery of the Everett Ruess affair as he uncovers answers that were hidden long ago. From the San Francisco Bay area to the wild tangle of cliffs and sky of southern Utah, Jared seeks the elusive facts of both deaths as well as answers to questions of his own. Will the land yield her secrets? Or are some things better left buried...? One thing is for certain: Jared never could have known where his search would lead him, or the choices he would have to make before the end.