The Dream Daughter

Chamberlain’s exciting and heartfelt novel (after The Stolen Marriage) follows one woman who risks everything to travel through time and save the life of her unborn child. In 1970, after the death of her husband in the Vietnam War, pregnant Carly Sears moves in with her sister, Patti, and brother-in-law, Hunter, at their beach home in Nags Head, N.C. There, Carly finds that tragedy has followed her: she discovers that her unborn child has a fatal heart defect. It’s at this point that Hunter reveals to Carly that he is a time traveler from the future and offers Carly a solution: she can time travel to 2001, where her child can receive life-saving fetal surgery. Carly finally believes Hunter’s claims about time travel when his predictions about the tragic events at Kent State come true days later. After time traveling to 2001, Carly and her unborn child undergo an experimental surgery, remaining in New York City near the hospital prior to and after her daughter Joanna’s birth. But Carly’s plan to return to 1970 with Joanna is derailed when her daughter becomes ill and must remain hospitalized. Chamberlain expertly blends the time-travel elements with the wonderful story of a mother’s love and the depths of sacrifice she makes for her child. This is a page-turning crowd-pleaser. 150,000-copy announced first printing. Agent: Susan Ginsburg, Writers House. (Oct.)