First published 2012
Joelle D'Angelo watches her best friend Mara suffer devastating brain damage during childbirth. An aneurysm leaves Mara unable to care for her newborn son or recognize the people who love her. Joelle steps in to help, spending long hours with Mara's husband Liam as they navigate this tragedy together. Their shared grief creates an unexpected bond that grows into something neither of them planned. Joelle knows her feelings for Liam are wrong, but she cannot stop them. Desperate to restore her friend and end her own guilt, Joelle searches for Carlynn Kling Shire, a healer who might succeed where doctors have failed. Her quest takes her to a grand mansion in Monterey, where she encounters a woman hiding her own painful secrets. As Joelle follows Carlynn's guidance, she must confront difficult truths about love, loyalty, and the choices that define us.
Genres: fiction, literary-fiction, contemporary, family-drama
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, grief, unexpected-bond
Setting: Monterey
Period: Contemporary
382 pages · Kindle Edition · Harlequin MIRA
Content warnings: medical-trauma