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The Road to Tender Hearts
A darkly funny, hopeful and uplifting novel about second chances
Brief Description
A moving, unforgettable story about the power we have to change our lives. Alison Espach, New York Times bestselling author of The Wedding People I loved every page of this wild, weird, big-hearted book. Shelby Van Pelt, New York Times bestselling author of Remarkably Bright Creatures...
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Format: Paperback / softback
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The Road to Tender Hearts
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Elsewhere:
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See moreFor fans of The Wedding People, Margo's Got Money Troubles and Fredrik Backman, a darkly funny and life-affirming road-trip novel about second chances, found family, and a cat called Pancakes, who can predict when someone is going to die.
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Description
A moving, unforgettable story about the power we have to change our lives. Alison Espach, New York Times bestselling author of The Wedding People
I loved every page of this wild, weird, big-hearted book. Shelby Van Pelt, New York Times bestselling author of Remarkably Bright Creatures
Will live on in your heart long after the book is over. Rufi Thorpe, author of Margo's Got Money Troubles
US National Indie and USA Today Bestseller
New England Book Award Winner || May Indie Next Pick
Featured on Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon
People Magazine Top Books of 2025
New York Times Best American Road Trip Novels
An NPR and Lit Hub Best Book of the Year
At sixty-three years old, million-dollar lottery winner PJ Halliday should be the happiest man in town - but everything in Pondville is another reminder of the child he lost, and the way his marriage fell apart.
So, when PJ hears that his high-school sweetheart, Michelle, is unexpectedly back on the market, there's nothing stopping him driving straight to the Tender Hearts Retirement Community in Arizona to win her back.
But before he can hit the road, a spanner in the works: a tragic incident has suddenly left PJ as the only guardian of his estranged brother's grandchildren.
Anyone else might be deterred, but it seems like the newly orphaned kids might enjoy the trip out of town. And PJ's adult daughter, Sophie, has been roped in to help babysit.
There's one final surprise passenger - Pancakes, a former therapy cat with a knack for predicting death, who recently turned up outside PJ's home...
BUCKLE IN FOR THE ROAD TRIP OF A LIFETIME
Absurdly over-the-top in plot, yet warms like a heated seat. The New York Times
Miraculous. John Irving
An ABSOLUTE MUST READ!! . . . Brilliant and heartwarming.
Laughed out loud and also sobbed uncontrollably.
A rare and special novel . . . an extraordinary reading experience from beginning to end!
Some stories find a way to dig down deep into your heart, burrow there, and then stay for good. I think this will be one of those for me.
There is really no way to put my love for this book into words.
Book Details
INFORMATION
ISBN: 9781035447046
Publisher: Headline Publishing Group
Format: Paperback / softback
Date Published: 21 May 2026
Country: United Kingdom
Imprint: Mountain Leopard Press
Audience: General / adult
DIMENSIONS
Width: 129.0mm
Height: 198.0mm
Weight: 250g
Pages: 400
About the Author
Annie Hartnett is the author of Unlikely Animals, which won the Julia Ward Howe Prize for fiction and was longlisted for the Joyce Carol Oates Prize. She is also the author of Rabbit Cake, a finalist for the New England Book Award and a Kirkus Reviews best book of the year. Hartnett has been awarded fellowships and residencies from the MacDowell Colony, the Sewanee Writers' Conference, and the Associates of the Boston Public Library. Along with writer Tessa Fontaine, she co-runs the Accountability Workshops for writers, helping them commit to routines and embrace the long, slow, joyful, terrible process of doing the work. She lives in Massachusetts with her husband, daughter, and dog.
Also by Annie Hartnett
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The Road to Tender Hearts
NATIONAL BESTSELLER • A darkly comic and warm-hearted novel about an old man on a cross-country mission to reunite with his high school crush—bringing together his adult daughter, two orphaned kids, and a cat who can predict death—by the beloved author of Rabbit Cake and Unlikely Animals “A miraculous novel—an actual and spiritual road trip you won’t forget.”—John Irving AN...Hardback$6900Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 2-3 weeks -
Unlikely Animals
“This tragicomic novel is heartfelt, touching, and delightfully quirky. You’ll fall in love with the offbeat cast of characters (both living and dead) and find yourself rooting for them right through the last page.”—Good Housekeeping (Book Club pick) A lost young woman returns to small-town New Hampshire under the strangest of circumstances in this one-of-a-kind novel of life, death, and...Paperback$5300Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 2-3 weeks
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