FICTION

The Ones Who Matter Most

by Rachael Herron
NAL: Penguin. Apr. 2016. 432p. ISBN 9780451476760. pap. $15; ebk. ISBN 9780698406582. F
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Abby has always wanted to have children with her husband, Scott. After she learns that Scott has decided he doesn't want to be a father (and has surreptitiously taken steps to make sure he never will be), Abby makes up her mind to ask for a divorce. The stress of her request results in Scott's untimely death. While still recovering from the blow of losing him, Abby finds evidence of something equally shocking—her deceased husband already had a child. When Abby makes contact with Scott's former wife, Fern, and the 11-year-old son he abandoned, she hopes to be included in their family. Unfortunately for Abby, Fern doesn't share Abby's enthusiasm. Can Abby charm her way into their hearts and show them that, even though Scott deserted them, they are the ones who matter most to her?
VERDICT Herron (Splinters of Light) cleverly creates in Abby and Fern two characters with emotional depth, weaving a vivid and moving story of unlikely connections. For fans of character-driven women's fiction such as books by Kristin Hannah (The Nightingale). [See "Editors' Spring Picks," LJ 2/15/16, p. 30.]
Reviewed by Karen Core, Detroit P.L. , Mar 01, 2016
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