But (surprise!) Wyn is there too, and he and Harriet have to share a (very romantic) room and a bed. She’s ready for a vacation at her happy place-the Maine cottage she and her friends visit every summer. So they keep it a secret from their friends and families-in fact, Harriet barely even admits it to herself, focusing instead on her grueling hours as a surgical resident. They’ve been part of the same boisterous friend group since college, and they know that their breakup will devastate the others and make things more than a little awkward.

Wyn Connor and Harriet Kilpatrick were the perfect couple-until Wyn dumped Harriet for reasons she still doesn’t fully understand. With captivating dialogue, angst-y characters, and a couple of steamy sex scenes, Hoover has done it again.Įxes pretend they’re still together for the sake of their friends on their annual summer vacation. In addition to grief, the novel also deftly explores complex issues such as guilt, self-doubt, redemption, and forgiveness. As usual, however, the author has created compelling characters who are magnetic and sympathetic enough to pull readers in. Built on a foundation of death and grief, this story has an undercurrent of sadness.

Told alternatively from Kenna’s and Ledger’s perspectives, the story explores the myriad ways in which snap judgments based on partial information can derail people’s lives.

As Kenna and Ledger continue to mourn for Scotty, they also grieve the future they cannot have with each other. Even so, Ledger is afraid that if he surrenders to his feelings, Scotty’s parents will kick him out of Diem’s life. As Ledger gets to know Kenna and acknowledges his attraction to her, he begins to wonder if maybe he and Scotty’s parents have judged her unfairly. Kenna feels the pull, too, and seems to be seeking Ledger out despite his judgmental behavior. Even so, there’s something about her that haunts him. He’s helping her grandparents raise her, and he too blames Kenna for Scotty’s death. Handsome, self-assured Ledger, who was Scotty’s best friend, is another key adult in Diem’s life. Instead, they file a restraining order preventing Kenna from so much as introducing herself to Diem. Now that she’s been released, Kenna is intent on getting to know her daughter, but Scotty’s parents won’t give her a chance to tell them what really happened the night their son died. When her baby girl, Diem, was born, she was forced to give custody to Scotty’s parents. Kenna didn’t even know she was pregnant until after she was sent to prison for murdering her boyfriend, Scotty. After being released from prison, a young woman tries to reconnect with her 5-year-old daughter despite having killed the girl’s father.

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