Picture This: A Novel

by Jacqueline Sheehan

Overview

Jacqueline Sheehan made serious waves with her much beloved runaway bestseller, Lost and Found. Now she treats readers to a sequel, Picture This—a story of rebirth and personal redemption that is as moving, funny, and heart-soaring as its predecessor.

Peaks Island, Maine vibrates with its own special magic, a unique flow to life that knits together the small community that calls it home. The people, the animals, and even the houses have a charm and personality all their own. Just ask Rocky Pelligrino. Devastated by her husband Bob’s sudden death, she found hope thanks to a relentlessly loyal black Lab named Cooper. Warm friends and a new job—as the island’s Animal Control Warden—have helped Rocky chart a course toward a promising future. She’s even ready to try at love again with Hill, the gentle and patient archery instructor. And there is an old house haunted by lost love and forgotten secrets that speaks to her soul.

But a phone call from a troubled young woman looking for her biological father shakes Rocky’s newfound joy. Could this young girl hold a tendril of the man who was the love of her life? Or could the girl’s appearance throw Rocky’s world into chaos . . . and shatter her heart again?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062008121
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	05/22/2012
Series:	Peaks Island , #2
Edition description:	Original
Pages:	400
Sales rank:	426,461
Product dimensions:	5.30(w) x 7.90(h) x 1.20(d)

About the Author

Jacqueline Sheehan, Ph.D., is a fiction writer and essayist, the bestselling author of the novels Lost & Found and Now & Then. Currently on the faculty of Writers in Progress and Grub Street in Massachusetts, she also offers international workshops on the combination of yoga and writing. She writes travel articles about lesser-known destinations and lives in Massachusetts.

Editorial Reviews

Jacqueline Sheehan eloquently and expertly channels both human and canine voices in this bittersweet island-set tale of wounded lives renewed.

Suzanne Strempek Shea

Surrounded by her Peaks Island friends, widow Rocky Pelligrino's emotional journey continues in Sheehan's sequel to Lost & Found (2007). Rocky, a psychotherapist, has settled comfortably into a rental house on Peaks Island, off Portland, Maine, with her beloved black lab, Cooper. Her husband Bob's sudden death just 15 months earlier shook her entire world, but her stay on the island has given Rocky some much-needed time to adjust to and reflect on the changes that have occurred. Although she is working as a game warden and enjoys her new job, Rocky must face a difficult decision: Should she stay on the island or return to her counseling job at a university on the mainland? Rocky has forged close friendships with several of the locals in this special close-knit community, including Tess, an elderly physical therapist and rental property manager; her boss, Isaiah; and Melissa, a teenager who struggles with anorexia and is completely devoted to Cooper and Rocky. Still in the throes of trying to redefine her life, Rocky even has begun to take the first steps toward falling in love again with Hill, her archery instructor. Then two events occur that help Rocky decide. She buys an old house that she feels a strong connection to and makes plans to renovate, and she receives a phone call from Natalie, an 18-year-old girl who is searching for her biological father. In Natalie, Rocky discovers a troubled and secretive person, the product of an abusive foster care system. Rocky's empathetic nature and background as a therapist compel her to help Natalie, and she invites her to stay with her on the island while Natalie searches for a job. As her guest settles into the daily life on Peaks Island, Rocky is determined to heal Natalie's wounds as well as her own and to uncover the truth about her young visitor's origins. Sheehan uses her skills as both a psychologist and a writer to create a solid, insightful story that will leave fans eagerly awaiting another visit from the strong heroine, her dog and her friends.

Kirkus Reviews

Sheehan uses her skills as both a psychologist and a writer to create a solid, insightful story that will leave fans eagerly awaiting another visit from the strong heroine, her dog and her friends.” — Kirkus Reviews

“The best book I’ve read in a long time. I enjoyed every word.” — Susan Elizabeth Phillips, New York Times Bestselling author

“Dog lovers will adore Sheehan’s portrayal of Cooper.” — Publishers Weekly

“Jacqueline Sheehan eloquently and expertly channels both human and canine voices in this bittersweet island-set tale of wounded lives renewed.” — Suzanne Strempek Shea, author of Becoming Finola

From the Publisher

The best book I’ve read in a long time. I enjoyed every word.

Susan Elizabeth Phillips