A Quiet Life: A Novel

Chuck is a new widower struggling to accept the shape of his life without his beloved wife, Cat. Their annual trip to Hilton Head has long been booked, but he can’t imagine being there without her. His grief is complicated by intense, years-long regret over his reaction to Cat’s relationship with a young woman in need. Approaching his porch each morning is Ella, a newspaper carrier facing an entirely different kind of grief: her ex-husband kidnapped their daughter, and Ella hasn’t seen her for months. Elsewhere in town, twenty-something Kirsten works each day at an animal rescue, not looking too closely at the dreams she once had of being a veterinarian. Her father’s violent death has derailed her entire life, and she can’t see a way forward. In fact, none of these bereft characters can, not until their paths cross, offering an unexpected opportunity for not only healing but happiness.

The title of this novel explains its power. The moments rendered here are indeed quiet, and a lack of motion is part of what these characters struggle against. Joella’s gift is a kind of relentless interiority that allows readers to know these characters deeply. Being inside such lives isn’t easy, and readers will encounter crushing, soul-leveling tales.