LETRAS

A sweeping novel about a single house in the woods of New England, told through the lives of those who inhabit it across the centuries—a daring, moving tale of memory and fate from the Pulitzer Prize finalist and author of The Piano Tuner and The Winter Soldier. When a pair of young lovers abscond from a Puritan colony, little do they know that their humble cabin in the woods will become home to an extraordinary succession of inhabitants . An English soldier, destined for glory, abandons the battlefields of the New World to devote himself to apples. A pair of spinster twins survive war and famine, only to succumb to envy and desire. A crime reporter unearths a mass grave, but finds the ancient trees refuse to give up their secrets. A lovelorn painter, a conman, a stalking panther, a lusty as each one confronts the mysteries of the north woods, they come to realize that the dark, raucous, beautiful past is very much alive.

The Luminous Self shares teachings and practices that can help us connect with our true Self and reclaim our inherent power and wisdom—essential for living with purpose and grace in our turbulent world. In this book, Tracee Stanley shares teachings and practices in each chapter—including meditation, yoga nidra, breath work, dreaming rituals, community care practices, journaling, and more—that can help us remember and honor our deepest Self. The book is a journey of inner exploration for anyone who desires to know themselves more deeply. Chapters introduce different paths to personal discernment—including facing obstacles to liberation, forgiveness, the power of memory, transitions as portals to wisdom and devotion, and nature as a teacher—and include stories from Stanley’s life, teachings, and practice.

Jane is unhappy. A struggling midlist writer whose novels barely command four figures, she feels trapped in an underwhelming marriage, just scraping by to pay a crippling Bay Area mortgage for a house—a life—she's never really wanted. There's only ever been one person she cared about, one person who truly understood her: Thalia. Jane's best and only friend nearly a decade ago during their Creative Writing days at Oxford. It was the only good year of Jane’s life—cobblestones and books and damp English air, heady wine and sweet cider and Thalia, endless Thalia. But then one night ruined everything. The blood-soaked night that should have bound Thalia to Jane forever but instead made her lose her completely. Thalia disappeared without a trace, and Jane has been unable to find her since.