Safe Harbour

On a windswept summer day as the fog rolls across the San
Francisco coastline a solitary figure walks down the beach
a dog at her side. At eleven Pip Mackenzie’s young life
has already been touched by tragedy; nine months before a
terrible accident plunged her mother into inconsolable
grief. But on this chilly July afternoon Pip meets someone
who fills her sad gray world with color and light. And in
her innocence and in his kindness a spark will be kindled
lives will be changed and a journey of hope will begin.
From the moment the curly-haired girl walks up to his
easel on the sand Matt Bowles senses something magical
about her. Pip reminds him of his own daughter at that age
before a bitter divorce tore his family apart and swept
his children halfway across the world. With her own mother
Oph?lie retreating deeper into her grief Pip spends her
summer at the shore the way lonely children do: watching
the glittering waters and rushing clouds daydreaming and
remembering how things used to be. That is until she meets
artist Matt Bowles who offers to teach the girl to
draw–and can’t help but notice her beautiful lonely
mother. At first Oph?lie is thrown off balance by her
daughter’s new companion–until she realizes how much joy
he is bringing into their lives despite the sadness she
sees in his eyes. As their newfound friend works his
subtle magic mother and daughter slowly begin to heal to
laugh again to rediscover what they have lost. When summer
ends and Oph?lie and Pip must leave the beach for the city
the season of healing continues. Gathering her newfound
strength Oph?lie begins a volunteer job at a city outreach
program where she works with the homeless and can no
longer ignore the blessings in her own life. But as
soul-sharing phone calls and autumn beach getaways deepen
Oph?lie and Matt’s friendship fate strikes another blow.
Out of the blue Matt must confront unfinished business
from his past. Days later Oph?lie is struck by a stunning
betrayal by someone she trusts. And as these events
reverberate in two already wounded hearts something
extraordinary happens. Out of the darkness that has
shadowed them both comes an unexpected gift of hope. With
grace and compassion Danielle Steel explores the fragile
bonds between mothers and daughters husbands and wives
family members and lifelong friends. Her haunting
impassioned novel takes us across the complex landscape of
loss–to the blessings that arise from even the darkest
tragedies. At once a story of triumph and a moving elegy
to those who suffer and survive Safe Harbour is perhaps
her most powerful and life-affirming novel to date.