Good harbor - Anita Diamant

When Kathleen meets Joyce, each woman has come to a turning point in her life.

Kathleen, whose sister died of breast cancer fifteen years earlier, has just been diagnosed herself and finds her world abruptly thrown into terrifying turmoil. While Joyce, increasingly distant from her awkward, adolescent daughter, is taking stock of her marriage and family, and struggling to get to grips with a burgeoning career as a novelist. Neither realizes that their chance meeting will result in a life-altering friendship.

A mutual appreciation of books initially brings the women together and they rapidly fall into friendship, taking long walks along Good Harbor beach and talking about their lives. Piece by piece, they begin to share their personal histories and acknowledge how much they can learn from each other. But long-hidden secrets are often difficult to reveal and only after some painful soul-searching do they each come to terms with the fact that sharing those startling secrets can help them confront their emotional scars.

Good Harbor is a rich and moving novel about the tragedy of loss, the insidious nature of family secrets and, ultimately, the redemptive power of friendship.