Willa's family used to be rich a couple generations ago. They had a lumber company in the North Carolina town of Walls of Water. When the business went south, her grandmother, Georgie, went from living in a huge mansion to being a maid for another family. Willa's only family member now is Georgie, who has dementia and lives in a nursing facility. Willa makes her living running a niche sporting goods shop/coffee house.
Paxton, thirty years old, is somehow stuck living in the pool house at her parents' home, the farthest she could get away without her mother throwing a fit. Paxton is involved in a flurry of civic activities for her rich, philanthropic family, including the renovation of the mansion that Willa's grandmother used to live in until her family went broke. Paxton is also in love with Sebastian, a high school classmate who has recently returned to set up a dental practice in Walls of Water. She believes that their relationship cannot go further, which makes her sad.
Colin is Paxton's twin brother, a landscaper based in New York City. He is back to help finish the plantings at the renovated estate. Although not interested in him, Willa has attracted his attention.
Paxton and Colin's grandmother is the cantankerous Agatha, who is now mostly blind.
A skeleton is unearthed at the estate, along with the contents of a suitcase which includes a newspaper from 1936, back from when Georgie and Agatha were young women. Who was this dead person, and could the grandmothers know anything about his death?
This novel stirs the younger people, tweaks the older folks, and adds mystery, confusion, and a touch of magic. The result is a fast-reading book that I found really satisfying.
