A Summer 2023 Oprah Daily and People Magazine Pick
“This novel about the challenges of parenting a troubled teen while trying to pursue a career will wrap you in captivating, high-stakes drama.”
–People Magazine
Garden historian Maud Bentley packs up her daughters to spend a summer at a Hudson Valley estate, leaving her husband behind in California. An idyllic return to days in the sun restoring a 19th century garden takes an unexpected turn when Maud becomes entangled with her archeologist neighbor. Just as Maud’s life seems set on a new, exciting course, her eldest daughter reveals an explosive secret that drives the family back to Marin. The lies and passions of that summer continue to haunt Maud years later, as she restores the garden of one of San Francisco’s founders. Another unexpected encounter and a growing friendship—this time with the reclusive artist funding Maud’s project—resurrects old questions and patterns, bringing the past back to the surface and forever changing Maud’s life.
Praise:
“A great portion of [Hedge’s] magic lies in how it turns a radical corner, gaining speed and burning urgency―then slowly becoming something else: deeper, denser, wiser. Readers will (and should) trust it to take us where we need to go―even if not where we expected.”
―The Washington Post
“With language as lush as the setting, Delury pulls readers into a thicket of lust, responsibility, and betrayal that they won’t want to escape.”
―Oprah Daily
“This novel about the challenges of parenting a troubled teen while trying to pursue a career will wrap you in captivating, high-stakes drama.”
–People Magazine
“Dodging romantic predictability while also acknowledging the heart’s true priorities, [Hedge] delivers an engaging new journey from ignorance to knowledge via a garden.”
—Kirkus
“A roller coaster of a novel about family, creation, love, and shifting priorities, lush with detail and delicately rendered. Readers will be thinking of Delury’s protagonist long after these pages close.”
—Shelf Awareness
“The book is brimming with high-stakes tension…and readers will find themselves unable to put the book down until they find out what happens next.”
―BookTrib
“Delury’s second novel speaks to the complexity of managing a troubled marriage, a career, and motherhood all at once. Shocking twists folded into a tale of shifting priorities, passion, and responsibility, make for an excellently crafted page turner.”
―Chronogram
“Millions of women will relate.”
―Johns Hopkins Magazine
“A beautiful exploration of the inherent tension between motherhood and desire. Transfixing and utterly rewarding.”
—Fiona Davis, New York Times bestselling author of The Spectacular
“The magnificent Delury explores the complexities of marriage, parenthood, and art in Hedge. Maud is an every woman, relatable and strong, who loves her work and her daughters but finds herself at a crossroads when a secret is revealed that will upend their lives. As Maud restores gardens to their historic beauty, she must do the same for the family she loves. Passion and persistence bring a garden to full bloom, and so it goes for Maud, an unforgettable character in a story of arresting beauty and truth.”
―Adriana Trigiani, New York Times bestselling author of The Good Left Undone
“Jane Delury has done the impossible: written a seemingly quiet novel about a woman trapped in a bad marriage that builds and builds and builds until suddenly you realize you’re reading a page turner. I could not stop turning the pages. Hedge is a wonderful book.”
—Marcy Dermansky, author of Hurricane Girl
“It’s impossible to turn away from Jane Delury’s newest novel, Hedge. I fell deeply and intensely into this story of love, loss, marriage and parenthood. These are characters, this is a book, you will never forget.”
—Jessica Anya Blau, author of Mary Jane
“Hedge insightfully explores the complexities of marriage and motherhood, and the danger of family secrets that fester. Delury builds up her characters while breaking down their reserves, and the result is an honest, beautiful, and riveting read.” -Karen Winn, author of Our Little World
“Hedge begins as a contemporary love story, but grows into a complex and suspenseful narrative about family. All the big themes—love, life, loss—bind together in this page-turner, with writing that is clear and riveting throughout. A gem of a book from start to finish.”
—Catie Marron, author of Becoming a Gardener: What Reading and Digging Taught Me About Living
“How do we protect those we love when there might be a terrible cost to ourselves? Which version of a story do we really believe about ourselves and others—and why? Delury’s immersive novel is about family and lovers, passion and responsibility, and it’s filled with such gorgeous writing, compassion and stunning surprises, that I couldn’t bear to tear myself from the page.”
—Caroline Leavitt, New York Times bestselling author of With or Without You
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