But (surprise!) Wyn is there too, and he and Harriet have to share a (very romantic) room and a bed. She’s ready for a vacation at her happy place-the Maine cottage she and her friends visit every summer. So they keep it a secret from their friends and families-in fact, Harriet barely even admits it to herself, focusing instead on her grueling hours as a surgical resident. They’ve been part of the same boisterous friend group since college, and they know that their breakup will devastate the others and make things more than a little awkward. Wyn Connor and Harriet Kilpatrick were the perfect couple-until Wyn dumped Harriet for reasons she still doesn’t fully understand. The structure of the novel is complex but ultimately rewarding and provides a portrait of a richly layered world.Ī hugely satisfying romance that is electrifying and alive.Įxes pretend they’re still together for the sake of their friends on their annual summer vacation. Williams’ novel is a tour de force, capturing Eva’s experience as part of the Black literati in Brooklyn, her urge to hide generational trauma from her daughter while still celebrating their ancestors, and the ways in which fate brings people together. Their reunion feels like coming home but also reveals that they might not have the skills to sustain a successful adult relationship. With chapters from the past interspersed throughout the novel, Williams juxtaposes Shane and Eva as reined-in adults with their terrifyingly out-of-control teen selves.
Now Shane has been clean for two years and Eva’s finally found a doctor who properly medicates her chronic, debilitating migraines. As seniors in high school, Shane and Eva shared one week of passionate connection they revealed to each other their raw pain and the extreme coping mechanisms (addiction, cutting) they used to survive. At a Brooklyn literary panel, she has a surprising public reunion with Shane Hall, the reclusive, award-winning author of four books of literary fiction. She can’t afford to give up the series, which keeps her and her 12-year-old daughter, Audre, financially afloat, so her dream of researching and writing the stories of the Louisiana Creole women who are her ancestors is permanently on hold. Two writers reunite 15 years after an intense, weeklong affair changed both of their lives.Įva Mercy is the successful author of a long-running erotica series with a devoted fan base, but as the deadline for the 15th book approaches, she has to admit she’s run out of ideas.
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