Cathy Kelly

Tess used to be happy with her lot: she lives in the Irish coastal village, Avalon, with her teenage son, Zach & 9-year-old Kitty, and works in the local antiques shop. Her only regret in life is that everything went so wrong with her first love.

Eleanor Levine left Ireland 70 years ago with little more than a suitcase and her mother's handwritten recipe book. Now, a lifetime later, she's returning from New York with hard-won wisdom and memories of her own.

It all started with Paris. At the top of the Eiffel Tower, a young man proposes to his girlfriend, cheered on by delighted tourists. In that second, everything changes, not just for the happy couple, but for the family and friends awaiting their return in Bridgeport, Ireland. With her warmth and insight, Cathy Kelly weaves a tale spinning out from a once-in-a-lifetime moment.

Cassie has spent her married life doing everything right - making sure her children have the perfect life, being a devoted wife to her husband and a dutiful daughter-in-law to his mother, even when her patience has been tested. Although it has left her so exhausted that 'wine o'clock' comes a little earlier each afternoon. But she wouldn't change a