Hairpin Curves

June 29, 2020
RITA award winner Winters (Three-Way Split) crafts an insightful second-chance romance that works all the better for the wish fulfilment of its premise. Scarlett Andrews ghosted her best friend Megan Harris after high school graduation seven years ago and the two haven’t spoken since. But when an old high school friend invites them both to her wedding, Megan lets herself be coaxed into a Florida-to-Quebec road trip with Scarlett as her copilot. Their leisurely journey offers a gentle fantasy (with seemingly no financial constraints) as the pair hash out what went wrong in their friendship and rebuild their relationship into a romance. Impulsive detours create the space for shared joy—like when Scarlett takes Megan to see snow for the first time—and allow trust to grow. Winters is not always pitch-perfect with the details (it beggars belief that two 20-somethings would exclusively listen to FM radio chestnuts like Led Zeppelin and Pat Benatar, for example), but these slips don’t mar the pleasure of watching two believable women untangle their feelings on a genuine but low-stakes adventure. This is a trip worth taking. Agent: Saritza Hernandez, Corvisiero Literary Agency.

July 1, 2020
Scarlett Andrews certainly has her nerve! Years after ditching Megan Harris and their plan to be roommates in college, Scarlett unexpectedly shows up at the Starlite Diner, where Megan works, with some outlandish idea that the two former besties should attend the upcoming Quebec wedding of their mutual friend, Juliet Letourneaux. Since Megan might just have a qualm or two about flying, and Scarlett is short of funds, driving there seems like a possible alternative. But can Megan really commit to a weeklong road trip from Florida to Canada with the one woman who both annoys her and to whom she is attracted in equal measure? RITA Award-winning Winters has a lot of fun playing with popular genre tropes, including friends-to-lovers and road-trip romance, and readers will be equally delighted by the endearingly relatable characters and the electric sexual chemistry she serves up in this deftly written contemporary romance.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)

August 1, 2020

Megan and Scarlett were best friends in high school until a misunderstanding turned their relationship sour. Now 25, both are stuck in dead-end jobs and struggling to figure out adulthood. When a mutual friend invites them to her wedding in Quebec, they agree to put aside their differences and carpool from Florida to save on airfare. Portrayed as polar opposites, with Megan set in her ways and Scarlett a free spirit, the two entertain childish bickering on the road that wears thin after a while. But as the miles disappear, their personalities begin to shine as they open up to each other. Scarlett, who is bi, has secretly harbored a crush on Megan for years, and is shocked to learn that Megan is attracted to women, fueling the longstanding sexual tension between them. VERDICT RITA award-winning author Winters (Playing Naughty) puts the focus on female friendships--and female love--in this feel-good, F/F road-trip romance that's not too heavy and just the right amount of fun to recommend for a fun holiday or beach read.--Kathryn Howe, Saint John Free P.L., NB, Canada

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