by Rachel Joyce
First published 2015
Queenie Hennessy receives shocking news. Harold Fry is walking across England to reach her at the hospice where she lies dying. She had written to tell him about her condition, expecting nothing more than closure. Now he travels hundreds of miles on foot because of her letter. A hospice volunteer suggests Queenie write Harold again. This time she will tell him everything she kept hidden for twenty years. She will explain why she disappeared without saying goodbye. She will reveal how Harold changed her life and how she secretly changed his. As Harold walks toward her, Queenie faces the truth she has carried in silence. Her second letter becomes a confession of secrets, regrets, and the love that shaped both their lives. Time runs short as Harold draws closer and Queenie grows weaker.
Genres: drama, literary-fiction, contemporary, contemporary-romance
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: second-chance, unreliable-narrator
Setting: England
Period: 20th-century
320 pages · Paperback · Cargo
Content warnings: terminal-illness