First published 2014
Maggie breaks up with her boyfriend and travels to her grandmother Alice's summer house by the ocean, carrying her unborn child. Her mother Kathleen learns about the pregnancy and decides to join them at the cottage, despite her troubled relationship with Alice. Ann Marie, who married into the Kelleher family, also arrives to work on her dollhouse project and escape her own problems. The four women find themselves stuck together in the seaside retreat. Alice harbors a deep secret and displays a difficult temperament that puts everyone on edge. Each woman in the Kelleher family possesses strength but also peculiar traits that create friction. Living in close quarters, they must tolerate each other while navigating their individual struggles. The story reveals that nothing appears as it seems from the outside, forcing each character to question their assumptions about right and wrong.
Genres: fiction, literary-fiction, contemporary, family-drama
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, secrets
Setting: Ocean, Summer House
512 pages · Paperback · Pegasus