Letters for Scarlet

Kind-hearted Corie and fiery Scarlet were best friends. Inseparable. Sisters of the heart. Until that one life-changing night they both wish they could take back...

With "characters that stayed with me long after I finished reading" (USA Today best-selling author Robin Bielman), this story of hope and forgiveness "explores the ties of love and friendship at the breaking point." (The Fictional 100)

What would you do if you received a letter from your past self?

Twenty-eight-year old Corie Harper embarks on an emotional journey after receiving a graduation letter she forgot she wrote. Although she spent a decade trying to hide her secrets, each page reminds her of the friendship she lost with her best friend, Scarlet, when her now-husband, Tucker, got between them.

Scarlet, who hasn't seen Corie since, blazed her own path and left the past far behind. Or so she thinks. Pregnant with a baby she's scared to have, Scarlet must decide if she wants to continue alone or find the courage to mend her broken friendship.

A poignant and uplifting story about the strength of the human heart and the power of forgiveness.

Book club discussion guide included.

Interview with the Author

When I was teaching high school English, my seniors wrote letters to themselves, which I saved and sent to them five years after graduation. I imagined the impact of a tragedy happening in that time span and increased the period to ten years so the characters could be older and more established in their lives.

There are lots of great women's fiction books to choose from these days! What makes Letters for Scarlet fresh?

I switch between two narrators, one in first-person-present and the other in third-person-past, to show their lives from different points of view-both their strengths and flaws. Personally, I don't like characters who are all hero or all villain.

The story focuses on friendship, or rather, a loss of friendship between two former high school friends. What can you say about their relationship?

As teenagers, Scarlet and Corie were incredibly close and thought they would be best friends forever. "Sisters of the heart" if you will. But with that closeness came underlying jealousy and competition that carried into their adult lives. Tragedy and betrayal exacerbated these messy emotions and left holes they're both still trying to fill.

Do you have any more books planned?

Yes! Although there is a sense of closure at the end of Letters for Scarlet, I left the door open to explore the characters' futures, together or separately. I also wrote Guest List, a prequel novella that takes readers on a journey of events leading up to Corie and Scarlet's high school reunion.

What do you enjoy reading?

Primarily, I love women's fiction, literary fiction, and memoir. But any time spent reading is a good time!