1956, Malibu, California: Something is not right on Paradise Circle.

With her name on the Hollywood blacklist and her life on hold, starlet Melanie Cole has little choice in company. There is her next-door neighbor, Elwood, but the screenwriter’s agoraphobia allows for just short chats through open windows. He’s her sole confidante, though, as she and her housekeeper, Eva, an immigrant from war-torn Europe, rarely make conversation. Then one early morning Melanie and Eva spot Elwood’s sister-in-law and caretaker, June, digging in his beloved rose garden. After that they don’t see Elwood at all anymore. Where could a man who never leaves the house possibly have gone?

As they try to find out if something has happened to him, unexpected secrets are revealed among all three women, leading to an alliance that seems the only way for any of them to hold on to what they can still call their own. But it’s a fragile pact and one little spark could send it all up in smoke…

Susan’s bio: Susan Meissner is a USA Todaybestselling novelist with more than a million books in readers’ hands and in eighteen languages. Her critically acclaimed and award-winning works of historical fiction have been named to numerous lists including Publishers Weekly’s annual roster of 100 best books, Library Reads Top Picks, Real Simple annual tally of best books, Booklist’s Top Ten, Book of the Month, and Amazon Editors’ Pick. Her newest title is A Map to Paradise, a novel about belonging, friendship, and finding one’s way home, is set in California during the early and scary years of the Cold War. Susan lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband and yellow Lab, Winston.

Kristina’s bio: Kristina McMorris is a New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today bestselling author of two novellas and eight historical novels, including the million-copy bestseller Sold on a Monday. The recipient of more than twenty national literary awards, she previously hosted weekly TV shows for Warner Bros. and an ABC affiliate, beginning at age nine with an Emmy Award-winning program. She lives in Oregon, where she’s the proud mom of two collegiate boys who still keep her on the run and make her laugh daily.

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