When We Meet Again

By: Kristin Harmel

Narrated by: Justine Eyre

Emily thinks she's lost everything...until a mysterious painting leads her to what she wants most in the world.

The new novel from the author of international best sellers The Sweetness of Forgetting and The Life Intended shows why her books are hailed as "engaging" (People), "absorbing" (Kirkus Reviews) and "enthralling" (Fresh Fiction).

Emily Emerson is used to being alone; her dad ran out on the family when she was just a kid, her mom died when she was 17, and her beloved grandmother has just passed away as well. But when she's laid off from her reporting job, she finds herself completely at sea...until the day she receives a beautiful, haunting painting of a young woman standing at the edge of a sugarcane field under a violet sky. That woman is recognizable as her grandmother - and the painting arrived with no identification other than a handwritten note saying, "He always loved her."

Emily is hungry for roots and family, so she begins to dig. And as she does, she uncovers a fascinating era in American history. Her trail leads her to the POW internment camps of Florida, where German prisoners worked for American farmers...and sometimes fell in love with American women. But how does this all connect to the painting? The answer to that question will take Emily on a road that leads from the sweltering Everglades to Munich, Germany, and back to the Atlanta art scene before she's done.

Along the way, she finds herself tempted to tear down her carefully tended walls at last; she's seeing another side of her father, and a new angle on her painful family history. But she still has secrets, ones she's been keeping locked inside for years. Will this journey bring her the strength to confront them at last?

©2016 Kristin Harmel (P)2018 Tantor

Critic reviews

"When We Meet Again is perhaps one of the most moving and powerful stories of all time, and potentially one of her best entries in the field thus far." (RT Book Reviews)

Very Good Story

I enjoyed the story and Ms. Harmel did a great job as usual. This wasn't my favorite by her but still definitely worth a read! I didn't care for the narrative in the audiobook version though. Her voice was shaky and not easy to listen to. She often sounded like she was ending sentences with questions when they weren't meant to be.

Heartbreakingly beautiful story…

The story tells of so much heartbreaking missed opportunities to be with loved ones, repeated in a miserable cycle over four generations. It’s a very human story of pain caused by just a handful of ugly individuals. Although the endings were replete with hope and healing in their relationships, it’s still very sad to see how humans can destroy and inflict pain on each other.

Great read!

Got me in the feels for sure! Great book! Left me a little teary in the end.

Interesting web of relationship and events

Wow! Very interesting storyline including WW2 history that I was not familiar with. Overall the story moves forward at an interesting pace. It includes some good life lessons for everyone about regrets and forgiveness. It’s a good reminder that not everything works out how we want but we can choose to look forward to a future if we don’t let the past devastate us.

A wonderful Book!

I wasn't sure at first of I would like the book. I thought the intro was a little slow at first , but I'm so glad I hung in there.
It was such an awesome story. Great mystery as well.
I was definitely crying at the end. I enjoyed it very much.