The snowbirds A novel

For Kim's season-long sabbatical from her nonprofit job, Palm Springs, California, seems like the perfect antidote to snowy Madison, Wisconsin. Grant, her partner of 30 years, recently lost his job in academia, so the couple sets off to relax, rekindle their relationship, and consider what lies ahead. While Kim reconnects with her creative side by photographing the beauty of Palm Springs, Grant undertakes a series of increasingly intense hikes in the surrounding desert and ends up missing. As Kim uncovers recent photos and recounts critical details to the search party, she realizes just how many unspoken issues--issues spreading like fault lines underneath a seemingly firm foundation--she and Grant had failed to discuss. Clancy (Shoulder Season, 2021) skillfully blends flashbacks with the events of the present to reveal new perspectives on shared history. Readers who enjoyed Elizabeth Strout's Olive, Again (2019) and Anne Tyler's Redhead by the Side of the Road (2020) will appreciate Clancy's emphasis on the impact of unexpected choices and the realization that it's never too late to find a new path.

In the sparkling latest from Clancy (Shoulder Season), a 50-something Wisconsin couple reevaluate their lives during a winter in Palm Springs, Calif. Kim, on sabbatical from a nonprofit, and Grant, a former philosophy professor who lost his job when his college shut down, have been together for 30 years. When Kim's gay ex-husband, Basil, invites them to spend the winter in his Palm Springs condo, Grant is initially hesitant, but he eventually agrees, and presses Kim to finally marry him. In the desert, they meet a motley group of new friends, including aging playboy Hobie, who gets Grant hooked on hiking. But after Grant sets out on a solo hike and doesn't come back, Kim sn't sure whether he's left her or is in trouble. Eventually, a search is mounted, and Kim realizes how much Grant means to her. Clancy's colorful supporting characters (especially Basil's eccentric mother and Kim and Grant's twin daughters) add ballast to the skillful plotting. It's an enjoyable tale of love in middle age. Agent: Marcy Posner, Folio Literary. (Feb.)