How do you start a new chapter when you haven't closed
the book on the last one?
Eighteen months ago, Autumn Divac's husband went missing.
Her desperate search has yielded no answers—she still has no idea where he went
or why. After being happily married for twenty years, she can't imagine moving
forward without him, but for the sake of their two teenage children, she has to
try.
Autumn takes her kids home for the summer to the charming
beachside town where she was raised. She seeks comfort by working alongside her
mother and aunt at their quaint bookshop, only to learn that her daughter is
facing a life change neither of them saw coming and her mother has been hiding
a terrible secret for years. And when she runs into Quinn Vanderbilt—the boy
who stole her heart in high school—old feelings start to bubble up again. Is
she free to love him, or should she hold out hope for her husband's return? She
can only trust her heart…and hope it won't lead her astray.
This was an emotional roller-coaster of a book, a story
of three generations of women at crossroads in their lives. Each woman faces a
life-changing decision that will impact her and those around her. Though the
combination of events stretched likelihood, I felt that each one was handled
realistically.
Autumn, the mom, needs a break. Her husband Nick
disappeared a year and a half earlier while on a business trip to Ukraine. She
spent the time since then using every means at her disposal to find him but
with no success. Nick's disappearance has been hard on their son Caden and
daughter Taylor also. Autumn feels they need to get away from the memories at
home and takes them to her hometown for the summer. Time at the beach and with
their grandmother will be good for all of them. She never expected to run into
her high school crush and feel the stirrings of old feelings.
Autumn's mom, Mary, loves having her family there for the
summer, but this summer, she is on edge. A secret that haunted her for many
years could hurt her family if exposed. She doesn't know whether to come clean
about it or try to bury it even deeper.
Meanwhile, Autumn's daughter Taylor doesn't know what to
do. She loves her father, and his disappearance left her feeling emotionally
adrift. In an attempt to feel some emotion, Taylor did something she regrets but
can't be undone. A chance to enjoy her summer appeals, but the consequences of
her actions make that enjoyment problematical. A new friend both helps and
complicates the turmoil Taylor feels.
The last central character is Quinn. After his divorce
and his wife's imprisonment for attempting to kill him over imagined
infidelities, he returned to his hometown. Quinn helps his parents with their
restaurant as his mother battles cancer. Autumn's arrival brings some light to
a dark time in his life.
I loved the interweaving of the storylines as the summer
progressed. Each character and their problems were vividly portrayed with
realistic thoughts and actions. I liked following each one as they slowly
worked through their problems, knowing that their family would be there when
needed. Mary broke my heart as she dealt with her past. The horror she survived
and overcame was devastating and amazed me with what she accomplished. Her
overprotectiveness with Autumn and the children made sense. I could feel her
fear when she learned about the private investigator and her reluctance to do
anything about it. There were some unexpected twists as she faced the past, but
in the end, she was stronger than she knew.
Taylor's situation wasn't uncommon for a teenager but had
some added complications. Depression over her father's disappearance led to
drinking too much at a party and contributed to the mistake of sleeping with
her brother's ex-best friend. Now she faces the consequences of that mistake
and the potential of hurting her brother in the process. Never one to make
friends easily, Taylor is surprised by how quickly she connects with a local
girl, Sierra. Sierra is a bit of an outcast, rough around the edges but
amazingly sensitive and supportive. It was easy to see where their friendship
was headed, and I thought it was beautifully handled. Sierra's support also
helped Taylor deal with the boy in question (a first-class jerk) and face her
family. I loved how it worked out, though there were a few bumps along the way.
The most significant part of the story belonged to Autumn
and Quinn. They saw each other for the first time since high school on Autumn's
first day in town. Her memories of that high school encounter still embarrass
her, but Quinn tries to put her at ease. She intrigues and attracts him, but
her wariness forces him to be patient. Autumn is exhausted, mentally and
physically, from long months of uncertainty. She doesn't know if she's still
married or a widow, whether she should keep searching or let go and move on. The
more time Autumn spends with Quinn, the more she realizes the differences in
her feelings for him and her feelings for Nick. Quinn is a nice guy, patient,
and kind, but also determined to show Autumn how much she means to him. Autumn's
internal battle with herself was hard-fought, but she couldn't deny how he made
her feel. I liked watching her slowly let go of her fears and open herself to
the possibilities. Not everything was sunshine and roses, as various family
issues added to Autumn's stress. Quinn has some great scenes with the kids, a
couple of which have the potential for disaster. There was a bit of a hiccup
when Quinn confessed a secret, but that was handled quickly. I loved seeing
Autumn take hold of the future with optimism while wondering if fate was done
with her. The intensity of the ending had me glued to the pages until it was all
over. I wish there had been an epilogue as I would like to have seen them a
couple of years down the road.
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