It's spring, and Allison Connelly has it all – pretty, popular and smart. With a summer job teaching tennis and starting Harvard Law School in the fall, Allison plans on a successful law career, marriage and kids – and dreams of becoming a Supreme Court Justice. When relentless headaches drive her to her doctor, Allison receives a terrifying diagnosis that destroys her plans and imperils her life. Devastated, Allison struggles to accept her shattered dreams and uncertain future. One night, she happens into a small-town pub and, on a whim, takes a job singing, finding solace and a measure of peace in her music. She settles in the town, and from that small beginning finds love, a new life and a new reason for living.

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I know I cannot write a review worthy of this book. That's how good it is. It is full of both sadness and happiness. It's an enjoyable read about people trying to live with the loss of loved ones or maybe even worse, the knowledge that they will soon lose a person they love. The waiting and knowing must be so hard to manage. Sounds crazy to call this an enjoyable read but while no subject about death can ever be enjoyable, it was handled better here than I ever thought such a subject could be. This story has a little bit of everything...family relationships, a love story, music, tennis, sailing, laughter, and the vast differences in so many of our lives. There are people with money in this story and people without. Sadly, there are people who must face the end of their lives almost completely alone and yet there are those who make the best friends of their entire lives. I've talked a lot about what I loved reading about in this book but I should also discuss the reason it is so enjoyable to read. The characters become so real; so much so that you laugh with them and cry with them. The scenery is described well enough that you are sitting there, whether it's the bench looking out over the ocean at Second Journey or in the little coastal town of Mackenzie Cove. I have never seen a subject that most people do everything they can to avoid, written as a story this well. A story you will want to read and one that might even make you discuss some of those tough issues a little.

Wilson has another book titled “The Librarian” which I intend to read right away. I suggest you do the same after you read this wonderful book.