by Tayari Jones
First published 2018
Celestial and Roy have built what looks like a perfect marriage in Atlanta. He climbs the corporate ladder while she develops her art career. Then police arrest Roy and a judge sentences him to twelve years in prison. Celestial knows her husband is innocent, but the conviction stands. As months turn to years, Celestial struggles with loneliness and uncertainty. She grows closer to Andre, who was Roy's best man and her childhood friend. The distance between the married couple widens with each prison visit until Celestial can no longer sustain their bond. Five years into his sentence, Roy's conviction gets overturned. He walks free and returns to Atlanta expecting to rebuild his marriage. But Celestial has changed, and so has her relationship with Andre. The three must navigate the wreckage of what was lost and decide what can be salvaged. This is a story about love tested by injustice and time.
Genres: fiction, domestic-fiction, american-fiction, african-american, contemporary, 21st-century, contemporary-romance, family-drama
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, second-chance
Setting: Atlanta
Period: 21st-century
308 pages · Hardcover · Algonquin Books
Content warnings: racism