December 23, 2019
Cancer patient Kat Jamison, the heroine of Hodge’s assured debut, a suspense novel, has rented a cabin in Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains in order to contemplate her future—whether to face another round of chemotherapy or let the advanced-stage disease take its course. Kat’s grown daughter, Sara, who works at an animal shelter, drops off Juni, a golden Labrador, to keep her company. Exuberant Juni, pulling an unwilling Kat along, quickly makes friends with the children in the two neighboring cabins, Lily and Nirav, each of whom is vacationing with their single fathers: one a divorced computer programmer, the other a security consultant. When a forest fire cuts off Kat’s cabin from everything while the children are staying over, Kat must find a way to get Lily, Nirav, Juni, and a rescued puppy to safety. The novel starts slowly, allowing readers to get to know the protagonists. Once the players are in place, the thrilling action begins. Those looking for an inspirational story about one woman coming to terms with life and death will be rewarded. Agent: Nalini Akolekar, Spencerhill Assoc.
January 1, 2020
Faced with the decision to restart or forgo chemotherapy when her cancer returns, Kat Jamison escapes to the North Carolina mountains hoping for peace, quiet, and a lack of responsibility. Nothing goes as planned, from her daughter leaving her with a foster dog to the two children down the road preferring to spend their time with Kat. A wildfire moving quickly up the mountain forces her to flee to higher ground in search of a way out, with two kids and dogs in tow. Cut off from help and surrounded by fire, Kat's unsure she has the will to save them all. Hodge's debut builds from the story of a woman in search of respite and escape to that of a woman who is the only hope of survival for others. Tension increases as points of view move between Kay and the children's fathers, desperate to rescue their kids. Alongside the taut suspense, Hodge has created a likeable, sympathetic character in Kay, and fans of Cheryl Strayed's Wild or Kristin Hannah's The Great Alone won't want to put down this nail-biter.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)