by Nancy Thayer
First published 2019
Keely Green has built the writing career she always wanted. She lives in New York City, attends literary parties, and enjoys bestseller status. But her latest novel gets rejected, and her relationship with a pediatric surgeon feels hollow when he pushes for commitment. When her mother sinks into depression back on Nantucket, Keely must return to the island she left behind. Going home means confronting Isabelle, her former best friend who stole her high school boyfriend Tommy. Keely will see the family Tommy and Isabelle created together, the life that could have been hers. She also encounters Sebastian, Isabelle's older brother and her longtime crush, which stirs up more complicated feelings. Over one transformative summer, Keely wrestles with old wounds and betrayals. She must decide whether to cling to past hurts or find a way to forgive and move forward in the place she still considers home.
Genres: fiction, contemporary-romance, family-drama
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, second-chance
Setting: Nantucket, New York City
Period: one transformative summer
304 pages · Hardcover · Ballantine Books