Rose Ainsworth, the affable protagonist in Jane Doucet's debut novel, The Pregnant Pause, is back in this candid, compelling look at midlife love, loss, and new beginnings. Rose and Jim, her husband of almost twenty years, have been living happily in Halifax, Nova Scotia, since moving from Toronto more than a decade earlier. With a satisfying career, two sweet rescue mutts, and her family nearby, Rose's life is golden-until one day, her world unexpectedly implodes.  Widowed suddenly soon after her fiftieth birthday, Rose is addled by grief. Could that be why three months later, she decides to buy her friend Wendy Hebb's sex shop in the tiny coastal community of Lunenburg? As she rushes to rent her house and store her belongings, her older sister, Daisy, worries that Rose is running away-from the home that she and Jim lived in together, and its constant reminders of what she's lost. When Rose lands in Lunenburg in a furnished condo with a year's lease, a colourful cast of local characters keeps her from drowning in grief: a long-lost quirky cousin with a mysterious health condition; a busybody septuagenarian widow who pushes Rose to join a bereavement group; and a handsome restaurant owner who stirs feelings in Rose she isn't ready to face. As the condo's lease creeps closer to its expiration date, Rose must make a choice-continue carving out her new life in Lunenburg, or move back to her Halifax home? Jane Doucet's trademark heart and humour, along with the return of beloved characters from The Pregnant Pause and Fishnets & Fantasies, make Lost & Found in Lunenburg feel like a long-overdue catch-up with old friends.

Just before her thirty-seventh birthday, Rose Ainsworth has her first attack of baby fever. She adores children, especially her sister's kids, but she's facing a dilemma. Not only is her husband refusing to commit to becoming a parent, but her friends are drowning in all the joys of mothering. She feels cut off and, worst of all, she's worried that maybe she isn't motherhood material. Described as "a thoughtful, honest and poignant exploration of how motherhood continues to define us as women, and it invites us to recognize that we are our sisters' keepers" (Charlotte Empey) and an "entertaining and insightful look at baby fever" (Laura Earl), The Pregnant Pause follows Rose on the roller-coaster ride as she journeys through the potential pitfalls and prospects of parenting-a journey that will be familiar to many women as they listen to their biological clock ticking away.

Wendy Hebb has been a fisherman's wife for forty years. She has also been a mother, a yoga instructor, and part-time soap maker. She loves her life in picturesque Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, but it's just not enough anymore. With a burning entrepreneurial desire, she decides that when her husband, Paul, retires, it will finally be her turn to live out her dream. The catch: her dream is to open a sex shop. While Paul begrudgingly goes along with Wendy's "half-cocked" idea, it's out of a sense of guilt; a recently spilled secret has their marriage on the rocks. As soon as the townspeople get wind of Wendy's plans, it opens up a whole other can of worms - and Paul finds himself bait for the local rumour mill. Her silent, "invisible" partner in the project, he secretly hopes her plan for the shop will fail. Orbiting around Paul and Wendy's story is a motley crew of characters, including the Hebbs' daughter, Ellen, a feminist academic who catches the eye of a lady-killer coworker while home for the summer; Wendy's best friend, Betty, a chain-smoking seamstress with secrets of her own; the local minister and her husband, who secretly indulge in role play; and the wealthy Sonya and Booth, who will stop at nothing to make sure the shop never opens its doors - as long as they can avoid discussing their failing marriage. An irreverent novel full of heart and humour, Fishnets & Fantasies is a story of love and lust at any age, of old grudges and older secrets, and of the relationships that make all the awkward fumbling worthwhile.