Books.org participates in affiliate programs including Bookshop.org and the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program. We may earn a commission from qualifying purchases made through links on this page, at no additional cost to you.
Synopsis
In this beautifully crafted and uplifting novel, the author of the acclaimed Spinning Forward welcomes readers back to the lush Florida island of Cedar Key, where the vibrant shades of hibiscus and azaleas are the perfect backdrop to a colorful, quirky community...
In the four years since Monica Brooks moved to Cedar Key, she's found a home, a husband, and now a business to love. Taking over her mother's bustling knitting shop is a welcome challenge, but Monica's exciting plans are waylaid by unexpected news. Her husband's ex-wife has been deemed an unfit mother, and custody of their eight-year-old daughter, Clarissa, is to be transferred to Adam.
Going straight from honeymoon to motherhood—especially when she's unsure she wants children—leaves the normally even-keeled Monica doubting herself at every turn. Yet in a place like Cedar Key, nobody goes it alone. With help from friends and relatives, Monica, Clarissa, and Adam begin to forge a close-knit family of their own—one that will need to be strong enough to withstand all the surprises set to unravel...
Publishers Weekly
In this syrupy return to Spinning Forward, the Cedar Key, Fla., knitting business that gave her previous novel its name, DuLong explores a young woman's awakening to stepmotherhood. Since buying her mother, Sydney Webster's, yarn shop, and adjusting to married life with Adam Brooks, Monica is feeling peaceful, if a little overwhelmed. But that peace is challenged when Adam is awarded custody of his eight-year-old daughter, Clarissa Jo, after his alcoholic ex has a drunk-driving accident while Clarissa Jo is left unsupervised at home. When Clarissa Jo arrives acting much younger than she is (she totes a Raggedy Ann doll), Monica begins an uneasy relationship with her that slowly blooms into a sweet bond. Also spun into DuLong's yarn-centric tale is a subplot about Monica's best friend dating an untrustworthy developer who'd rather have her coffee shop property than her heart. And with the appearance of the ghost of Monica's grandmother, a benevolent spirit who helps Clarissa adjust to her new life, DuLong adds a bit of paranormal magic to this otherwise paint-by-numbers endeavor. (Nov.)