As a skilled bookbinder and the owner of a used bookstore, Ashlyn has lovingly touched, shelved, or sold books of all types and genres, in every kind of condition. She feels a kinship with old books, preternaturally aware of their histories. When Ethan Hillard donates a pair of books bound in a similar fashion, but lacking any author information or publisher's data, Ashlyn can't shake her curiosity. Ethan is skeptical, but the two ultimately uncover a love story for the ages, complete with a tragically unresolved ending. But the end of the book doesn't always mean the end of the story. Davis (The Keeper of Happy Endings, 2021) unspools a decades-long romance, as two young lovers are pushed and pulled apart by political agendas, social status, and undeniable attraction. Davis alternates Ashlyn and Ethan's storyline with chapters from the two mysterious books, set more than 40 years in the past. These dueling timelines, packed with twists and turns, should appeal to fans of Kate Atkinson's Life After Life (2014) and Taylor Jenkins Reid's The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo (2018).