Let Francesca Catlow transport you to the Greek island of Nisyros, where sea, sun and romance offer a chance at a new beginning—perfect for fans of Karen Swan, Kate Frost and Paige Toon.

When burnt-out human rights barrister Alisha Harding is forced to take a sabbatical, she heads for the one place she’s dreamt of since childhood: a small, sun-drenched island in Greece.

In her new home by the sea, the volcanic landscape, the warmth of island life and the unhurried pace slowly begin to do what London couldn’t. She’s here to heal—not to be distracted by her brooding next-door neighbour, Helios, who seems determined to keep the world at arm’s length.

But night after night, sharing wine on their adjoining balconies, the intimacy between them grows. And Helios, it seems, is hiding his own painful past.

When duty calls Alisha back to London, the fragile peace she’s found on the island is abruptly shattered. Pulled between the life she’s always known and the one she’s only just begun to imagine, she must decide what truly matters. Can love bridge the gaps between language, loss and two very different worlds, or is the distance between them too great to overcome?