by Monica Wood
First published 2024
Violet Powell walks into a Portland bookstore on a mission. At twenty-two, she has just finished serving twenty-two months in prison for a drunk-driving crash that killed kindergarten teacher Lorraine Daigle. She wants to buy the novel she was reading in prison book club before her release. That same morning, retired English teacher Harriet Larson browses the shelves, looking for the next title for the women still behind bars. Frank Daigle works quietly as the store handyman, trying to make sense of his marriage to the woman Violet killed. When these three lives collide in the aisles, their chance encounter sets off a chain of connections that will change them all. Violet carries the weight of what she has done. Frank struggles with grief and guilt. Harriet faces an uncertain future. Together, they discover that books can bridge the gap between strangers and that forgiveness sometimes comes from the most unexpected places.
Genres: fiction, literary-fiction, mystery, contemporary
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, second-chance
Setting: Portland
Period: 21st-century
288 pages · Paperback · Mariner Books