Sarah Jane Riordan

“There are good things and bad about being part of a big Italian family in a small American town. Good things and bad, and mostly you couldn’t get a cigarette paper in the gap between them. That’s because they’re the same things.”

When Robbie Giraldi drags himself reluctantly back to the dilapidated town where he was raised, it’s definitely just for a visit, and the only bright spot he foresees is an opportunity to connect with his brother Cris again. He doesn’t expect to promise anybody he’ll come home for good, and he doesn’t know how he’ll deliver on the pledge he’s made…

Cris, on the other hand, knows he’s back for keeps. His marriage and career are both emphatically over, his plans for the future in ruins. Always the steady, reliable one, he’s increasingly shouldering the burdens of older relatives, while staying characteristically silent about his grief, his loneliness, and his growing resentment of Robbie’s apparently charmed life… 

A story about family, betrayal and forgiveness – and about truly coming home.

I love words. Big ones, small ones, obscure and everyday ones. I love the sounds they make, the shapes they take, the silliness, the sentiment and the scenery they communicate, the endless variety of worlds they’ll transport us to, if we’re along for the ride.

I’m also fascinated by people, as both solitary and social creatures, which makes me a sucker for a story with complex characters, juggling the many versions of themselves they’ve created, and I’ll always root for them as they try to discover and hold onto what matters, what’s real.

The wonder of words, and the multi-faceted beauty of people – these are the things that underpin my writing.