The Wednesday Daughters

In the tradition of Kristin Hannah and Karen Joy Folwer, Meg Waite Clayton, bestselling author of The Wednesday Sisters, returns with an enthralling new novel of mothers, daughters, and the secrets and dreams passed down through generations.

It is early evening when Hope Tantry arrives at the small cottage in England’s pastoral Lake District where her mother, Ally, spent the last years of her life. Ally—one of a close-knit group of women who called themselves the Wednesday Sisters—had used the cottage as a writer’s retreat while she worked on her unpublished biography of Beatrix Potter, yet Hope knows nearly nothing about her mother’s time there. Traveling with Hope are friends Anna Page and Julie, two other daughters of the Wednesday Sisters, who have offered to help Hope sort through her mother’s personal effects. Yet what Hope finds will reveal a tangled family history—one steeped in Lake District lore.

Tucked away in a hidden drawer, Hope finds a stack of Ally’s old notebooks, all written in a mysterious code. As she, Julie, and Anna Page try to decipher Ally’s writings—the reason for their encryption, their possible connection to the Potter manuscript—they are forced to confront their own personal struggles: Hope’s doubts about her marriage, Julie’s grief over losing her twin sister, Anna Page’s fear of commitment in relationships. And as the real reason for Ally’s stay in England comes to light, Hope, Julie, and Anna Page reach a new understanding about the enduring bonds of family, the unwavering strength of love, and the inescapable pull of the past.

Praise for Meg Waite Clayton’s The Wednesday Sisters

“This generous and inventive book is a delight to read, an evocation of the power of friendship to sustain, encourage, and embolden us. Join the sisterhood!”—Karen Joy Fowler, author of The Jane Austen Book Club

“Readers will be swept up by this moving novel about female friendship and enthralled by the recounting of a pivotal year in American history.”—Booklist

“Clayton’s characters are the kind of women you can imagine joining on the park bench—for a good laugh, a good cry, or a spirited conversation about literature and life.”—Michelle Richmond, author of The Year of Fog

“I read The Wednesday Sisters in one delicious gulp.”—Lalita Tademy, author of Red River

“Move over, Ya-Ya sisters!”—Amanda Eyre Ward, author of Close Your Eyes