It's 1977, and Connie Fortune has an easy, freewheeling life as a wildlife photographer and illustrator. A new contract brings her to the Little Dip valley in Oregon to track down a rare bird, but a clash with Sylvie Garoul, the valley's owner and matriarch of the mysterious Garoul family, and her daughter, the haughty, frustrating, but somehow bewitching Marie Garoul, ruins the deal. The following year Connie tries again, but this time, things have changed. The residents of nearby Lost Creek are up in arms about strange goings-on in the valley, with blame swirling around the Garouls. Connie is unsure whose side she is on, even as she's drawn deeper into Little Dip.