The Gravity of Us

Cherry delivers a soapy take on the grumpy/sunshine trope in her twisty fourth Elements contemporary (after The Silent Waters). Free spirit Lucy owns and runs a floral shop with her sister, Mari. Uptight Graham Russell has followed in his famous father’s footsteps as an author, but despises the man for the abuse he heaped on Graham’s stepmother. Their worlds collide when Graham’s father dies and Lucy delivers floral arrangements to the funeral—where she’s shocked to see that her estranged sister, Lyric, who now goes by Jane, is married to Graham, and heavily pregnant. After the baby, Talon, is born prematurely, Jane abandons both Graham and her daughter. Lucy swoops in to help Graham with her niece, and despite themselves, prickly Graham and emotional Lucy develop a friendship that turns into a forbidden romance. Throughout, Cherry keeps the surprises coming, including a bombshell revelation that calls relationships past, present, and future into question. It’s markedly less angsty than previous installments but still delivers plenty of emotional upheaval. Readers will be hooked. (Dec.)