Wake the Dawn

Snelling (One Perfect Day) continues to draw fans with her stellar storytelling skills. This time she offers a look at smalltown medical care in a tale that blends healing, love, and a town’s recovery. Physician assistant Esther Hanson is the closest thing to a doctor in tiny Pineville, Minn., along the U.S.-Canada border. She’s keeping her demons under control, but Ben James, town hero and border-control agent, recognizes the signs of PTSD. He’s got his own sizable demons to keep at bay—his wife’s death, his drinking—but when an infant is discovered near the border and a hurricane-force storm slashes through Pineville, the pair must work together to save lives. They slowly bond as both come to grips with their pasts to perhaps move together into the present. Snelling’s description of events at the small clinic during the storm is not to be missed. Agent: Wendy Lawton, Books & Such Literary Agency. (Aug. 20)