Anita Shreve's brilliant new novel - for fans of Anne Tyler and Maggie O'Farrell.

'Shreve is a literary talent for all . . . flaming good' The Times

1947. Fires are racing along the coast of Maine after a summer-long drought, ravaging thousands of acres, causing unprecedented confusion and fear.

Five months pregnant, Grace Holland is left alone to protect her two toddlers when her moody and unpredictable husband Gene joins the volunteers fighting to bring the fire under control. Along with her best friend, Rosie, and Rosie's two young children, the women watch in horror as their houses go up in flames, then walk into the ocean as a last resort. They spend the night frantically trying to save their children. When dawn comes, they have miraculously survived, but their lives are forever changed and Grace's bravery is tested as never before.

'A narrative literally lit from within' New York Times

A compulsive read, this novel pulled me into an ordinary woman's life and made me care too much about her to put it down