Publication Date: May 2026
Blurb:
When April and Leo’s house burns in the middle of the night, they escape with their two young children and the quiet knowledge that the fire is not the only thing threatening their family. They retreat to April’s childhood home in Dallas, where her spirited parents and siblings provide both comfort and complication.
As the family reckons with the aftermath—grief, guilt, logistics, and memories scorched and intact—the fire exposes the cracks already forming in April and Leo’s marriage. The novel unfolds in alternating perspectives: from April, who feels the crushing weight of motherhood, marriage, and self-blame; from Leo, a high school history teacher shaped by a lonely, fractured childhood; from Deb, April’s generous and no-nonsense mother who has to contend with her husband’s recent Alzheimer’s diagnosis; and from flashbacks that trace April and Leo’s relationship from its earliest days of connection to the devastating decisions that led them here.
What To Expect:
Readers can expect a beautifully written family drama for adult readers with themes of infidelity, marriage, degenerative disease, and forgiveness.
Content Warnings:
Language: Mild – Infrequent uses of sh-, one f- word.
Sexual Content: A few cracked/slightly open door scenes within the context of marriage. Scenes are brief and non-descriptive.
Violence: None
Substance Use: Alcohol use
Prejudices: None
Religious Themes: None
Other Topics: Divorce, infidelity, Alzheimer’s disease, child abandonment
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