"Well then, what do you have to lose?" When Jessie Holland's editor at Savvy magazine asks her this question over lunch, the whispers of lost chances and forgotten possibilities begin to course through her mind. A journalist in New York City, she writes articles for magazines like Savvy. Lately however, Jessie has had serious doubts about where her life is going, especially in the romance department. She's got a guy, a real catch, but Jonathan is only recently divorced and the wounds and uncertainty are too fresh in his mind for any type of real commitment. Plus, neither his parents nor his children approve of her. Thoughts of going home and retiring from the "rat race" surface in her conversation with Kate, the savvy editor, who thinks it's a brilliant article for a six- month series in her magazine. As long-time best friend Erin's perfect world has recently begin to crumble, it's an idea that could work. Could work that is, if Jessie dares to take the chance to go back home.

Erin Delahanty thought everything was continuing to bloom back at home central. Running and owning a successful, popular bed and breakfast with her husband, Skip, she didn't think life could get any better. Then one day she goes upstairs and finds Skip packing. Not for a trip, but because he is leaving her after she torpedoes his idea of extending their financial resources to buy into his own business that has always been his dream. Their daughter, Kayla, has entered the mysterious teenage years and seems to have more in common with godmother Jessie than her own mother. When Jessie puts the offer to Erin to switch lives and gives her a chance at a "bite of the big apple," the longing for what she might have become is too insistent to wave away.

Goudge has created the ultimate "what if" story. Heartwarming, enchanting and poignant, it dares one to wonder what life might be like given a second go of things. These best friends, and the people who surround them, are like the real people one knows and greets every day. Everyone and no one is at fault for the things that happen in life, which is a fresh and realistic view of what goes on in life. It's a beautiful story that touches the very soul of the reader, and you'll find yourself cheering and groaning as these two stumble around in shoes of a very different sort from the ones they are used to wearing. Don't be surprised if you find your own mind wondering "what if."