filling in the blank

Georgie Mulcahy is back home. She had been living the high life in Hollywood, and now she’s back home. Okay, so maybe she hadn’t been so much living the high life as working as an assistant to those who were, but she was there. She made the phone calls, walked the dogs, picked up the dry cleaning, and did a million other things so others could live the high life.

And then her boss quit. Nadia had been a big deal, a writer/director much in demand. But then she decided she needed a break, and retired to her ranch. She had told Georgie it would be good for her too, that she should take some time for herself instead of just taking care of others all the time. Georgie doesn’t have a problem with self-care. She just isn’t quite sure what it is that needs, or what she wants even. When she looks inside, she just feels blank.

So when her best friend from childhood Bel talked about how she wanted to move back to the small town they grew up in, with her husband and the baby they’re expecting, she hinted that Georgie could come back too, to help Bel get the new house set up and get everything ready for the baby, she agreed. Georgie’s parents wouldn’t be home—they were traveling in their RV. But she could stay there and water the plants. Her parents have a lot of plants.

But when Georgie rolls into town, her stuff from L.A. thrown into suitcases and a couple of garbage bags, after days on the road, she sees her plans fall apart before her eyes. She stops at the local charming little backwoods store to find it’s been completely redone. Fortunately, Ernie is still there making the strawberry shakes she grew up on, but she can’t get over the kale smoothies, her imperious music teacher from high school, and the rude guy in line behind her.

Georgie makes it out of the store with a couple of milkshakes and some of her dignity still intact, and heads over to Bel’s. But what she finds there is Bel in her beautiful now house, all moved in after only a couple of weeks, and the place looking like the pages of a magazine, which just makes Georgie feel even more diminished. She thought she was there to help Bel, but Bel clearly used that as a ruse to try to help Georgie.

But Bel is grateful for the milkshake and thrilled to see her old friend, and she even opens up to Georgie about her secret shame—a room filled with totes of old college and high school memorabilia. Goergie immediately starts opening boxes to find a host of memories—Bel’s Homecoming court sash, the turtle sweatshirts from high school, and the notebook that they (mostly Goergie) filled with her fanfic. Just glancing at her old writing brings all of it back, how she poured herself into those stories, all her hopes, all her dreams, and all her smooshy high school crush feelings for Evan Fanning. She grabs that to take with her.

After her visit to Bel’s Georgie is ready to head to her parents’ house, to take a long shower and relax. She grabs some of her stuff to take in and settles onto the sofa to read some silly stories from teenaged Georgie. But not long after, there is a rattle in the door as a key unlocks it and a man enters the house. And then Georgie realizes that it’s not just any man, but the rude man from the store. And he’s not just any rude man. He is Levi, the brother to her high school crush Evan.

Levi is having work done to his house, and Georgie’s father had offered him and his dog Hank the use of the house while they were away. Levi offers to leave, though the look on his face makes it obvious that he has nowhere else to go. Georgie decides it’s best for them to share the house, but it’s still awkward.

Being at home doesn’t help Georgie feel any less blank inside, but reading that old fiction helps her feel more alive. But she realizes that she never did those things when she was a teenager. Going shopping in the more upscale tow next door, getting frunk on cider and watching horror movies, jumping off the dock. So she decides to start there. Maybe chasing down her high school dreams will help her figure out what she wants now. Or maybe it will just help her fill in the blankness she’s been feeling.

Georgie, All Along is the story of a woman finding herself after spending years taking care of everyone else. It’s a love story, but it’s so much more than that. It’s an unfolding of a mystery, of the question of what happened to Georgie to shut her down and how to bring her back to life. This gentle, sweet story is filled with warmth, pathos, and humor, and a really great dog. Author Kate Clayborn once again brings to life characters to cheer for, to empathize with, to laugh with, and to fall in love with in Georgie, All Along.

I am someone who has had to move back home for a bit, who has spent time as a caretaker, who understands that life is not always linear, I felt seen in this book and wanted to hug Clayborn for telling this story with sensitivity and hopefulness. Both Georgie and Levi are trying to find their way in challenging life circumstances, and they both need a gentle touch to keep the characters from becoming something to be pitied. Clayborn does that masterfully, and their stories are beautiful, inspiring, and healing. This is a genuinely beautiful story of love and healing, and I hope those who are struggling in their own lives will find it a balm to the soul, like I did.

An early copy of Georgie, All Along was provided by Kensington Books, with many thanks.