First published 2026
Dr Ruth Morgan teaches storytelling by day and writes fiction by night. She dreams of matching the success of Shelby Rayburn, the celebrated author who speaks for Ruth's generation of women. At a faculty party, Ruth meets Shelby and her husband Oscar. The three connect immediately, sharing an electric chemistry charged with unspoken attraction. Shelby then offers Ruth a secret deal to get her unpublished stories noticed. The arrangement must stay hidden from Oscar. As Ruth and Shelby work together, their partnership deepens into something more intense. Ruth finds herself caught between her literary ambitions and the dangerous intimacy growing between them. Their hidden collaboration threatens to destroy marriages and careers alike. The question becomes whether their egos and competing desires will tear apart everything they've built together.
Genres: drama, romance, literary-fiction, contemporary, adult-fiction
Vibes: emotionally-complex, intimate, literary, tension-filled, thought-provoking
Tropes: ambition-vs-love, forbidden-romance, love-triangle, secret-relationship
Period: contemporary
256 pages · Paperback · House of Anansi Press
Content warnings: emotional-abuse, toxic-relationship