First published 2014
Lila, a drifter rescued as a toddler, finds shelter in a small-town church and becomes the wife of the minister, John Ames. As she tries to build a new life, Lila grapples with the hardships of her makeshift childhood and the gentle Christian worldview of her husband that seems at odds with the life she once knew. Their tender romance blossoms even as Lila fights to harmonize her past with her present.
Genres: literary-fiction, christian-fiction, american-fiction, 20th-century, contemporary, 21st-century
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, found-family
Setting: Iowa
Period: 20th-century, 21st-century
272 pages · Paperback · Virago Press Ltd