Safe Harbor: A Novel - Softcover

Rice, Luanne

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0553593528 ISBN 13: 9780553593525

Publisher: Bantam, 2009

Synopsis

Readers across the country have embraced the moving, magical novels of Luanne Rice, among them her acclaimed bestsellers Firefly Beach, Follow the Stars Home, and Cloud Nine.

The New York Times Book Review has called Rice's work "exciting, emotional, terrific," and praises her "rare combination of realism and romance." Now from this gifted writer comes a new novel -- the story of two generations of sisters and the indelible bonds among them, set on the timeless New England coastline she has made her own.

Dana Underhill's artistic gift has led her all over the world in search of new oceanscapes. Her breathtaking underwater canvases evoke all the beauty and romance of the seas she and her beloved sister, Lily, have sailed since childhood. But when a shattering event takes Lily from her forever, Dana must leave her nomadic artist's life for the salt marshes and tidal creeks of her childhood home at Hubbard's Point, Connecticut, to become a mother to Lily's two young daughters, Quinn and Allie.

Twelve-year-old Quinn may be Dana's toughest challenge. With a mass of wiry braids as uncontrollable as she is, Quinn hides her secret diary in a remote cove and clings fiercely to private mementos of her parents. Already an expert sailor herself, Quinn is convinced their deaths at sea were no accident. Dana, too, is troubled by the puzzle of what could have gone so terribly wrong on that clear, moonlit night. Support comes to Dana with the unexpected reappearance of an old friend, marine biologist Sam Trevor, whom readers will remember from Firefly Beach. When Sam was eight years old, Dana taught him to sail and unlocked his dreams of the undersea world. Now he's a tall, laughing-eyed pro, researching dolphins. And he's been in love with Dana for all the years that have passed between them.

Dana cannot begin to contemplate opening her heart again, especially now, especially to a man she can only allow herself to see as a young student. But together, she and Sam begin to discover that Hubbard's Point is the center of endless mysteries, and that many of the answers lie in the blue-purple depths that surge through Dana's paintings and into all of their lives, revealing the transcendence of love even in the face of grief and death. Haunting and powerful, Safe Harbor is an unforgettable story of family bonds, love lost and found, and of a painter's unfolding vision of herself, as an artist -- and as a woman.
From the Hardcover edition.

About this title

From the Inside Flap

After every storm there is a place to return to--if you have the courage to follow your heart...
"New York Times bestselling author Luanne Rice has touched the hearts and lives of readers everywhere with powerful tales of love and loss...and love regained. In an unforgettable novel set on her beloved Connecticut seaside, she weaves a timeless story...
Safe Harbor
Artist Dana Underhill has always been a free spirit, traveling the world, filling her canvases with the mysterious colors of the seas she and her sister have sailed since childhood. Then on a calm, moonlit night an inexplicable "accident" occurs and Dana is called home to Hubbard's Point to become a mother to her two young nieces, a challenge unlike any she's ever known.
As Dana and the girls struggle to begin a new life--and to find the truth about what happened to Dana's sister and brother-in-law--help comes in the person of an old childhood friend. Sam Trevor is now a tall, striking marine biologist, and he's been in love with Dana for years. Although she can't begin to contemplate opening her heart again, together Dana and Sam will discover that Hubbard's Point is the center of endless mysteries--and endless possibilities. And as Dana rediscovers her passion as an artist and a woman, she will find more than a lifetime's share of answers, magic, and love in the only safe harbor there is.

From the Back Cover

"The sacred bond of sisterhood is explored ... buoyed by Rice's evocative prose and her ability to craft intelligent, three-dimensional characters."
-- Publishers Weekly

“A beautiful blend of love and humor, with a little bit of magic thrown in.”
--The Denver Post

About this edition

• Publisher: Bantam
• Publication date: 2009
• ISBN 10: 0553593528
• ISBN 13: 9780553593525
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• Number of pages: 416