Amazing, fantastic, wonderful! These are just a few words I'd use to describe this book! The story is unique and original. The setting of Port Townsend is picturesque and filled with memories.

The characters are relatable and easy to like! Ingrid is so complex. Her childhood is filled with hardships that she keeps hidden from even her closest friends. Joel is a protector. He's strong, even tempered, and someone who can be relied on. Cecelia is brilliant!

There are some difficult subjects brought up. Alcoholism, abandonment, illness, and death. But, there is also hope. "But just as life doesn't end after a final breath, neither does a story end with the turning of a final page." This is true. I will be pondering this book for a while. It touched my heart. ( )

A solid four star romance. Thanks to LibraryThing for the review copy. I’m glad I gave this one a chance. ( )

What an amazing, heartfelt story about love and loss and learning to deal with grief. Once I started this novel I couldn't put it down and finished it in a day. I was greatly touched by the characters and their journeys of friendship and love. ( )

Thanks to LibraryThing and Bethany House Publishers for an advance reader's copy. All comments and opinions are my own.

Friendship, grief, and forgiveness are the hope-filled themes of this absorbing 5-star novel that can be summarized as “Three friends. Two broken promises. One missing manuscript.”

The novel begins with Ingrid trying to redeem her professional reputation as senior acquisitions editor at a San Francisco publishing house by locating a missing manuscript written by Cece, her recently deceased best friend and award-winning novelist. The present day story alternates with the past (written by Cece) as she explains what has happened via a history she wrote and left for Ingrid and Joel to read together.

The characters are all believable, the story is captivating, the villain is thoroughly devious. Author Nicole Deese skillfully describes the beautiful Pacific Northwest landscape as well as the emotions and struggles of the three main characters. Perhaps this story is especially authentic because it’s based on the author’s own grief experience – she lost her little sister at the age of 26, the same age as her character Cece.

Ingrid describes her relationship with Cece and Joel as the novel begins, “The three of us had been something wonderful once upon a time, sharing a bond in friendship that was almost too good to be true, but it hadn’t been that way for many years now. It was death that had divided our original trio into a duo, and death, once again, that had divided our duo into two broken individuals who’d lived as little more than strangers up until a week ago.”

This un-putdownable novel is a romance, a mystery, and a story of love, loyalty and the power of friendship. I highly recommend it. ( )

I can finally write a review of this book after waiting a day for the tears to dry. What an emotional and heartbreaking read. You can tell that every word was poured into this book directly from the author's own tears and grief. It shows in every line and scene. I don't think I've ever read an author who has every nuance of every dialogue between characters so exactly right. My heart broke right along with Ingrid and Joel, Cece and Wendy. I even spared some tears for Captain Hal. This was a magnificent tour de force. And even though it was emotionally wrenching, I know I'll find myself wanting to return to this place again, to check in on these characters once again. And I can't say that about too many books. Excellent! ( )