First published 2019
Three young delinquents duck into an empty general store after pulling off their latest heist. They expect to wait out the night in safety, but a letter suddenly appears through the mail slot. Someone is asking for advice, mistaking the closed shop for the counsel service its former owner once ran. The elderly shopkeeper used to spend his final years helping strangers through written correspondence. Now these three criminals must decide whether to ignore the plea or step into his shoes. As more letters arrive throughout the night, they find themselves dispensing guidance to people from different time periods. Each response draws them deeper into the lives of their correspondents. The trio discovers that helping others begins to change something fundamental within themselves. By dawn, their encounter with the store's mysterious postal service will transform all three in ways they never expected.
Genres: fiction, mystery, contemporary, magical-realism
Vibes: atmospheric, emotional, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, redemption-arc
Period: 20th-century, 21st-century
320 pages · Hardcover · Yen On