The Nest — Mary Flinn

Empty-nester, Cherie Johnson, a fifty-something menopausal high school English teacher with a grown-up family and a hankering to retire from the North Carolina public school system, thinks she has it made, until a triple whammy hits her on Valentine's Day. Hope, Cherie's older and just-jilted daughter, moves home, Dave, her traveling salesman husband, loses his job, and younger daughter, Wesley, becomes engaged, all on the same fateful day, leaving Cherie fresh out of plans, looming expenses, and a nest full of overgrown chicks. Throw in an overly narcissistic mother-in-law, a rebellious husband, her daughter's Rasputin-like ex-lover, and all of their friends, and there is more to deal with than just getting these people jobs! As all of the characters in the story fight for control in an uncertain world, Cherie is torn between living vicariously through her daughters' lives, and getting everyone back on track-that is if she even has any shred of influence over her family members. Told alternately from Cherie and Hope's perspectives, The Nest represents an all-too-familiar tale of what modern American family life has become in the economically woeful days since the housing market crash and recession of 2008. Grab a cup of coffee, or a glass of wine, pull up a comfy chair, and prepare to laugh and cry with two women who are doing their best to suck it up and move on.