A witty, aching retelling of “Sense and Sensibility” set in Jazz Age Cape Code.
Three women. One cottage. And a Cape Cod summer that changes everything.
New York, 1922. The Whitmores have everything—a grand estate on Long Island, a prosperous shipping empire, and a life shaped by love and happiness. But when Mr. Whitmore dies, everything changes.
When Eleanor and Marian Whitmore discover that their inheritance has been gambled away by their half-brother, the three Whitmore women are forced to abandon their New York life for a modest cottage on Cape Cod. Eleanor throws herself into work, Marian into grief, and Anne into the quiet business of survival. None of them expect to find anything in Westhaven beyond endurance.
But the salty sea air on the Cape has a way of loosening the rules that New York kept firmly in place. Among the sand dunes and relentless Atlantic winds, Eleanor finds unexpected purpose—and an attraction she cannot afford. Marian finds a charm she cannot resist. And both sisters must learn, at considerable cost, the difference between a man who was shaped by the war and a man who was hollowed out by it.
Inspired by Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility and set against the backdrop of Jazz Age America, Rules Weaken Near Salt Water is a witty, emotionally rich novel about grief, rebuilding, and the stubborn persistence of love.
Perfect for readers who love Austen retellings, 1920s historical fiction, and stories about women who rebuild their lives on their own terms.
