Cannot believe this was TJR’s first published book. This does not read at all like a debut novel. This work is more mature than some of her later work that I’ve read, so I really was surprised to find that this was her traditional publication debut. It is a brilliant and beautifully crafted study of the relationship between not only a husband and wife separated too soon, but between a motherless child and a childless mother and how they both needed each other to heal and relearn how to be after enduring such tragedy and loss. A haunting romance, a sweet story of the enduring love of a good friend, and the healing love between two women who seemingly have nothing in common but actually share everything that matters.