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In their modest farmhouse in rural New England, Owen and Linda McFarland feel that they’ve found a little slice of heaven. Both previously divorced, they now have a second chance at a happy home with his son, Bruce, and her daughter, Emily. While the transition wasn’t easy, Linda and Owen hope the newly blended family has put their troubles behind them.
But they are mistaken. Bruce, seventeen, and Emily, fifteen, are enrolled together in an elite Massachusetts boarding school when bright, extroverted Emily attempts suicide, shocking the entire family. In recovery at the hospital, she makes a horrifying accusation that threatens to destroy the idyllic life Linda and Owen have worked so hard to build. With illusions laid bare, loyalties are tested and a family must learn to start anew.
Includes a captivating excerpt of Nancy Thayer’s novel Nantucket Sisters!
Praise for the novels of Nancy Thayer
“The queen of beach books.”—The Star-Ledger
“Thayer has a deep and masterly understanding of love and friendship, of where the two complement and where they collide.”—Elin Hilderbrand
“Thayer’s gift for reaching the emotional core of her characters [is] captivating.”—Houston Chronicle
“One of my favorite writers.”—Susan Wiggs
“Thayer portrays beautifully the small moments, inside stories and shared histories that build families.”—The Miami Herald
“Thayer’s sense of place is powerful, and her words are hung together the way my grandmother used to tat lace.”—Dorothea Benton Frank
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
May 27, 2014 -
Formats
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Kindle Book
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OverDrive Read
- ISBN: 9780553391046
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EPUB ebook
- ISBN: 9780553391046
- File size: 2390 KB
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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September 1, 1997
Owen and Linda McFarland, both novelists, have been married for seven years and reside on a Massachusetts farm with Bruce and Emily, the children from each of their respective first marriages. Their uneventful existence is disrupted, however, when Emily, now a teenager attending the same boarding school as Bruce, attempts suicide. After voluntarily staying on at the psychiatric hospital, Emily, whose recent behavioral changes include sudden weight gain and newfound religious devotion, reveals in therapy that the reason behind her despair is that her stepbrother raped her, a charge that Bruce vehemently denies. Will it be worse for the McFarlands if Emily is telling the truth, or if she's lying? And will their relationship survive the ultimate test of the hypothetical notion that one's stepchildren are as important as one's own? Thayer renders this potentially soapy situation in everyday terms, creating a moving chronicle of one family's pain. An unconventional ending may give readers pause but will undoubtedly prompt some rethinking of their definitions of crime and punishment. As she continues to address modern domestic issues, Thayer (Belonging) shows a firm grasp of her craft. Major ad/promo; Literary Guild alternate; TV rights to ABC-TV.
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