Things to Do When It's Raining

January 1, 2018
Stapley’s memorable novel (following Mating for Life) is about the strength of enduring relationships. Mae Summers leaves her life in New York City behind when she discovers that her fiancé and business partner is missing, their company doesn’t exist, and the money invested in it is gone, too. Upon returning to the home of her youth in Alexandria Bay, N.Y., where she lived with her grandparents, Mae discovers her grandfather is living away from her grandmother in a nearby hotel. Mae is even more stunned when Gabe Broadbent, her childhood best friend, returns to town. Gabe broke Mae’s heart after their friendship became a teenage romance. As they come to terms with the misunderstandings of their past and the possibility of a future together, Mae and Gabe must decide if they are willing to take a chance to rediscover the love they once felt. The intensity of the lasting love and friendship between Gabe and Mae is emotionally powerful and finely wrought, and Stapley complements this story about the difficult choices family members make for those they love with an evocative setting.

February 1, 2018
Mae and Gabe were childhood friends, then first loves. They planned to spend their lives together, but a cruel lie separates them. Seventeen years later, Mae has built a life in the city, away from the tiny fishing community she and Gabe had grown up in. But her shiny new life comes crashing down when it is revealed that her fiance is a con man who has embezzled thousands and disappeared. With nowhere else to turn, Mae escapes to the home she loves and the grandparents who raised her. When Gabe unexpectedly shows up soon after she arrives, Mae is stunned to learn that the person who drove Gabe away was her own beloved grandmother Lilly. Mae knows that she has a chance to make it right. But just as she and Gabe begin to finally reconnect, tragedy and circumstance may lead to an even greater rift. A charming tale with an enchanting setting, Stapley's latest (after Mating for Life, 2014) is an engaging read about keeping secrets, starting over, and loving the family you choose.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)

September 15, 2017

National Magazine Award-nominated journalist Stapley follows up her well-received debut novel, Mating for Life, with the story of love lost and maybe found again. Together with Gabe Broadbent, who's fled an alcoholic father, orphaned Mae Summers was raised by her grandparents at Summers' Inn along the St. Lawrence River. Their childhood closeness led to first love, shattered when Gabe left, but now they are both back in town. With a 60,000-copy first printing.

Copyright 2017 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.