Feels Like Falling

February 17, 2020
Harvey (The Southern Side of Paradise) serves up a tale of disaster-turned serendipity in the fictional Cape Carolina, N.C. Successful businesswoman Gray Howard begrudgingly promotes her husband to CFO of her marketing company, ClickMarket, only for him to leave her for the assistant she hired for him. Reeling from a painful, cash-draining divorce, she inadvertently causes Diana, a photo developer at a pharmacy, to lose her job by complaining about her work. After learning this, Gray hires Diana to work as a housekeeper. Over time, the women vent about their lives and forge a friendship that heals them both. The story alternates between Gray’s voice and Diana’s, delving into Diana’s past heartaches and lost hope for having a child. In pitch-perfect tones, Harvey creates two Southern women doing their best to deal with everything life throws at them, and her able plotting will keep readers turning the pages. Secondary characters—Gray’s witty assistant, Trey; her new, younger boyfriend, Andrew; and Diana’s fiercely loyal friend group—add charm. Harvey’s optimistic tale just might convince readers that bouncing back can actually land a person in a better place than where they started. Agent: Elisabeth Weed, the Book Group.

December 1, 2019
Gray Howard and Diana Harrington don't have much in common. Gray, founder of a successful business, has it all: a son she adores, a summer home on Cape Carolina, and a young hottie tennis pro asking her out. Diana has nothing but a string of no-good boyfriends and the clothes on her back. She had a job at the local drug store, but Gray unwittingly plays a role in her being fired. Dismayed, Gray invites Diana to work as her housekeeper. They form a quick bond as they learn that all is not as it appears, and they each begin to help the other heal from past hurts and look forward to a possible bright future. As with her Peachtree Bluff trilogy (Slightly South of Simple, 2017), Harvey pulls up the shades to reveal the beauty and strength behind women's friendships. Harvey creates genuine, capable, flawed protagonists and fun secondary characters, and readers will appreciate the thoughtful depiction of women supporting one another in an easy, breezy story. Fans of Mary Kay Andrews and Mary Alice Monroe should add this to their beach read lists.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)