Back to Seagull Street: Senior Week in Ocean City, Maryland (Ocean City Seagull Series)

In the summer of 1989, Juni Rydell met Jack Michaels during senior week in Ocean City, Maryland. One unforgettable week stretched into an entire summer—and a first love neither of them would ever forget.

Juni was headed to college and a promising future. Convinced he would only hold her back, Jack ignored her letters and calls and disappeared from her life. He told himself he was doing the right thing. Juni knew only that the boy she loved had abandoned her when she needed him most.

Thirty-six years later, they meet again in Ocean City. Juni is fiercely independent, with a life she built entirely on her own. Jack is successful, guarded, and still haunted by his past. Neither is prepared for the feelings that return, or for the weight of everything left unsaid between them.

As the summer of 2025 draws Juni and Jack closer, they must decide whether the truth about the past will finally set them free … or prove that their second chance has come too late.

Back to Seagull Street is the second book in the Ocean City Seagull Series. The first book is Welcome to Seagull Street: That Summer in Ocean City, Maryland (2025).

Cover artwork by Marc Emond of Stinky Beach Studio.

Alissa Arford is a Maryland native, lifelong writer, and marketing communications leader with a passion for storytelling. A proud third-generation Terp, she earned her journalism degree and later an executive MBA from the University of Maryland-continuing a family tradition that now includes her two children as fourth-generation Terps. With a career spanning journalism, digital marketing, and branding, Alissa has held senior leadership roles in professional tech consulting firms, SaaS finance apps, nonprofits, and higher education. Throughout her career, she has combined her love of writing, technology, and strategy to create compelling brand narratives and data-driven marketing solutions. No place holds a more special place in Alissa's heart than Ocean City, Maryland. Her earliest and fondest memories are of summers spent on its sandy shores: building sandcastles, jumping waves, and enjoying classic boardwalk treats like Dumser's ice cream, Fisher's caramel popcorn, and Thrasher's fries. Her Ocean City Seagull Series novels celebrate the wonder, nostalgia, and enduring magic of the seaside town she has cherished all her life.