by Charlotte Vale-Allen

The moving story of three remarkable women--one physically abused, one depressed by age and infirmity, and one temporarily derailed from her life's purpose--who meet and are profoundly changed.

When Bobby Salton runs away from her violently abusive husband, Joe, taking her six-year-old daughter Penny with her, she knows she is fleeing for her life but has no idea where she is going. Her wish to see the ocean leads her to the Connecticut shore, and a help-wanted ad takes her to the home of Eva Rule and her aunt, Alma Ogilvie.

Bobby bears both the mental and physical scars of her beatings and Eva, independent and self-possessed, is both fascinated and repelled by the victim she sees before her. Ultimately, it is the ebullient, precocious Penny who gains them a place in the household by winning the heart of Alma, a stern but loving retired teacher who has been incapacitated by a stroke.

The unexpected--and sometimes unwanted--emotions aroused by Bobby's entrance into the household haunts the women's dreams and private thoughts. But whereas Eva and Alma are stalked by the past, Bobby is pursued by fears of Joe, an unseen but ever-present danger. Penny, finally, is the catalyst who breaks down the barriers each of the three has built around herself.