It is 1973, and the Vietnam war has enraged and divided the country. Two childhood friends, one a widow and the other a divorcee, meet at midlife in their small hometown on the Florida coast and try to resolve the questions of how to handle life and love when separation and death have taken their toll. Will resolution bring peace, or will it mean pain to one or the other? Complicating their lives is the arrival of a former neighbor who returns to the site of her next-door home to continue the investigation of a possible family murder. She decides to rebuild her former home, and in so doing hires a drifter who appears to be a homeless person from some other town. The result is a climax in which old loves and old crimes bring unforeseen consequences.

You will not want to put this book down, even when you've finished it. Chambers is a remarkably skilled, evocative writer with deep Southern roots. We feel the heat of this tiny coastal town as we join her characters at a summer reunion of old friends. At first, everyone feels comfortable and secure. But then things start to change. Slowly, Chambers unearths deep emotions and secrets long buried under the hot Florida sun. We learn at a gut level that things are rarely what they seem to be. —CAROL COSTELLO, author of Chasing Grace: A Novel of Odd Redemption

Crafted with purpose, this seductive saga is smart, witty and thoughtful. With a rich cast of characters including Anna Lee Owens from a previous novel, the plot is filled with intrigue. Gripping your imagination with notable etiquette, you will not put this book down until the final outcome is reached. Will Anna Lee survive it all? —H.R. MALY, author of The 70,000 Adventures of Minnesota Dan series

Chambers captures the beauty and bewilderment of mid-life, as two women, childhood friends, consider the choices that could cast their futures. This haunting, insightful picture of life, full of magic and disappointment, will have you packing a bag for Bay Harbor. The Receding Tide is for anyone who ever yearned for the embrace of home. —BELINDA HULIN, author of Roux Memories: A Cajun-Creole Love Story with Recipes