"Noah Hearst is leaving a life he's spent twelve years building. Professionally, a losing battle for his job after a hostile takeover. Personally, signing away his marriage in a split that was a long time coming. Now, the difficult part: deciding who he is, what he wants, and where to go next. Maybe it's time to realize a dream that's carried him through hard times: owning a boat. Traveling the ocean, exploring new ports, embracing the endless horizon....

There are no wars to fight. But Gunnery Sgt. Tom Highway, a dog-faced relic of past wars, still has a lot of fight in him. He is a Marine Corps lifer who started his last tour of duty before retirement, and sees the bumpy road his life has taken become more complicated, due to feisty recruits, by-the-book officers, and a salty ex-wife to whom he's still attracted.

"Strout's iconic heroine Lucy Barton recounts her complex, tender relationship with William, her first husband -- and longtime, on-again-off-again friend and confidante."-- Lucy Barton is a writer, but her ex-husband, William, remains a hard man to read. William, she confesses, has always been a mystery to me. Another mystery is why the two have remained connected after all these years. They just are. So Lucy is both surprised and not surprised when...