Sleeping in Eden A Novel

The lives of a middle-aged doctor and a love-struck young woman intersect across time in Sleeping in Eden, Nicole Baart's haunting, lyrical novel of redemption and forgiveness. On a chilly morning in the Northwest Iowa town of Blackhawk, Dr. Lucas Hudson is filling in for the town's vacationing coroner on a seemingly open and shut suicide case when he unearths the body of a woman. He's certain that the remains belong to a local girl, Angela Sparks, a young runaway Lucas and his wife Jenna had taken under their wing. Jenna has never recovered from Angela's disappearance, and Lucas resolves to uncover Angela's killer with the hope of granting Jenna some closure. But, years before Lucas ever set foot in Blackhawk, Meg Painter meets Dylan Reid. It is the summer before high school and the two quickly become inseparable. Although Jess, Meg's older neighbor, is the safe choice for Meg, stable and loving, Meg can't let go of Dylan and the history they share no matter how hard she tries. Caught in a web of jealousy and deceit she can't control, Meg's choices in the past collide with Lucas's investigation, weaving together an unforgettable rich and complex story of love and the complicated longings of the human heart.

Nicole Baart is the mother of five children from four different countries. The cofounder of a nonprofit organization, One Body One Hope, she lives in a small town in Iowa. She is the author of nine previous novels, including You Were Always Mine, Little Broken Things, and The Beautiful Daughters. Learn more at NicoleBaart.com.