Sanctuary Cove

Alers (Butterfly), the Forever line’s first African-American author, launches a new series set off the South Carolina coast with a gentle romance focused on second chances. Widow Deborah Robinson moves herself, her two teens, and her bookstore to her grandmother’s island hometown, where Dr. Asa Monroe waits to begin a new chapter of his life overseas following the recent death of his wife and son. Despite their immense grief, Asa and Deborah can’t keep their eyes off each other when they meet. Their attraction inevitably builds to friendship and love. With a straightforward plot and Deborah’s uncommonly quick discarding of her mourning, the only tension is how the couple will be reunited after they part. Soaked in an old-fashioned feel, Alers’s hyper-realistic style highlights the mundane details and conversations of daily life and will appeal to readers looking for gentle, inexplicit romance. Agent: Nancy Coffey Literary & Media Representation. (Jan.)