Published by Schribner on June 30, 2026
Age/Genres: Adult, Fiction
Rating:
Goodreads
A heartbreaking, life-affirming new novel by Ethan Joella—author of the Read with Jenna Bonus Pick A Little Hope—about a young woman searching for answers about her brother’s last days.
June 1975. Maggie Bishop has just graduated high school, the future hers to embrace—but she’s still reeling from the death of her older brother, Chip. A devastating diagnosis the summer before prompted Chip to leave home for a few months, never revealing where he went. Maggie’s search for clues leads her to The Red Maple Inn, a mountaintop resort in the Poconos.
At the Red Maple, Maggie is welcomed into a tight-knit community. As she unravels secrets about her brother’s final days, she begins to connect with the people he loved, and whose lives he touched. Through the warmth of strangers, Maggie begins to heal and is able to help others cope with loss.
Set in a nostalgic resort town over two transformative summers, this dual-narrative novel explores sibling relationships, coming of age, and the quiet power of human connection. Perfect for fans of emotional storytelling and small-town summer books, The Top of the World is a timeless story about memory, grief, second chances, and hope.
The summer of '74 was going to be his last, and Chip was determined to make it a summer to remember. After his death, his sister Maggie returns to the resort where Chip spent his last few months of his life in an effort to uncover more about him and to work through her grief.
I am a solid fan of Joella's. All his books manage to touch my heart, and The Top of the World was no exception. My heart ached for Chip as it's difficult thinking of a recent high school graduate preparing to die, but I sure admired his spirit. He was determined to live those last few months to the fullest. He connected with so many people during his time at the resort and embedded himself in these people's memories and hearts. He did some small things and made some big moves too that filled my heart with joy because I wanted him to experience as much as he could in his short life. This resort was like Chip's alternate universe where he could pretend his wasn't dying, and it was beautiful the way these people embraced and in turn, welcomed his sister into their fold just as they had him.
In the author's note, Joella talks about how he wanted to feature the Poconos in all its glory. I spent quite a bit of time up there as a tri-state area resident, and who can forget the days of the heart and champagne glass shaped tubs. But Red Maple wasn't that, it was a classic resort with a lot of heart mostly due to the incredible people who ran it. Each had some of their own pain, but they formed a family that took care of each other, and their family was made even better by Maggie and Chip.
Overall: A beautiful tale of living life to the fullest and the importance of connection which really tugged at my heartstrings.
Published by Ballantine Books on June 16, 2026
Age/Genres: Adult, Fiction
Rating:
Goodreads
From the New York Times bestselling author of The Jetsetters comes a witty and wonderful new novel about one unforgettable family and the journeys we take—across oceans and through heartbreak—to find our way back to love.
The Perkins family has problems. They’re scattered across the globe. Lee, a glamorous reality-TV star, is struggling with her mental health in the spotlight. Reagan, her younger sister, has fallen for a romance scammer and vanished overseas. Cord, their charming brother, is one drink away from losing it all. And their mother, Charlotte, still longs for the love she let slip away a decade ago, a lover who sailed off with her heart to a remote island in Greece.
When Reagan disappears, Lee flies first-class to Athens to save her family—again. There, against the glittering Mediterranean and the shadow of the Acropolis, Lee contends with emotional nieces, relentless paparazzi, and her own fragile heart. Lee is desperately searching—for her sister, and for the hope and joy she thought was gone forever.
Across continents and crises, each member of the Perkins family must face the same is it ever too late to choose love?
Featuring characters from Ward’s bestselling novel The Jetsetters, Arrivals and Departures is brimming with humor, honesty, and hope. It’s the story of a family finding the courage to say the only words that can save us—I love you.
Though they all have problems of their own, when Reagan disappears, the Perkins family rally to find her.
Arrivals and Departures is not the first book I have read by Ward, but I had not read The Jetsetters. After learning this book is a follow up on the family at the center of The Jetsetters, you can bet I will be reading it soon.
The Perkins family were a messy bunch, but there was something about them that made me care. There was Reagan who was missing after falling for a romance scam, Lee who was lying low after a public struggle with her bipolar disorder, Cord who was battling for his sobriety, Charlotte who was overwhelmed with loneliness, and Reagan's daughters were also victims of the same generational trauma.
Though the family was kind of a mess, and they kept way too many secrets, in the end, they loved each other. When things really mattered, they showed up. Reagan, Lee, and Cord were all products of their abusive alcoholic father. Though he was dead, the scars were still there. Each one of them dealt with that pain in a different way, and here, it seemed they were finally confronting it and looking to each other for support.
The story was quite fast paced, flipping from character to character with me wholly absorbed in their drama. I definitely shook my head many times as these characters made some questionable decisions, but Ward came through in the end. The epilogue was everything for me leaving me with lots of hope for everyone.
*ARCS PROVIDED BY THE PUBLISHER
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