When Hearts Heal sweeps us back into Milford-Haven, a small coastal town brimming with secrets, passions, and the quiet hope of second chances. At its center is Miranda Jones, now married to her astronomer husband Cornelius, as the two begin their new life together. Their story intertwines with those of her sister Meredith, her friends Sally and Samantha, and the wider cast of townsfolk who grapple with family tensions, lingering grief, and the possibility of forgiveness. Underneath it all runs the unsettling mystery of a missing journalist, a thread that lends the story a sense of urgency amid the slower rhythms of daily life on California’s Central Coast.

I enjoyed how lived-in this world feels. The writing carries a warmth that makes Milford-Haven less like a backdrop and more like a character itself. I found myself pulled into the streets and cafés, listening in on conversations, feeling the salt air press in from the Pacific. Purl’s prose is unhurried yet never flat. It’s like being invited into someone’s home where the pace of life is measured not by deadlines but by the shifting of tides and the turn of seasons. At times, some of the details were drawn out, but then I’d be caught off guard by a tender moment or a surprising twist that reminded me why I cared about these people in the first place.

What I loved most, though, were the relationships. They’re messy, often painful, yet also full of grace. Miranda and Cornelius radiate a quiet kind of joy that feels earned, while Meredith’s struggles hit a rawer note. Sally’s story, balancing motherhood and her own wounds, moved me deeply. And then there’s Samantha, whose journals cut to the heart of the novel’s themes: healing, forgiveness, and the uneasy dance between past and present. There is a tangled web of characters and that’s exactly what gives the book its richness. Life isn’t tidy, and neither are these lives.

When Hearts Heal left me with the sense of having visited old friends and walked away with a little more compassion for how complicated and beautiful people can be. I’d recommend this book to readers who enjoy stories steeped in community, where character and setting matter as much as plot. It’s for anyone who wants to sink into a small-town saga that doesn’t shy away from heartache but ultimately points toward hope.

Pages: 390 | ASIN : B0FFZZVQ3H