The Stylist - by Cai Emmons (Paperback)

About the Book

The critically acclaimed author of "His Mothers Son" returns with an eloquentand heartbreaking tale about two dynamic young women struggling with identityand forgiveness.

From the Back Cover

As children, Hayden and her sisters ran carefree through the wilds of rural Connecticut when their father was away writing novels. But when he eventually returned, the spontaneous nature of their female household gave way to his oppressive regulation.

Years later, Hayden has moved south to Hoboken, New Jersey, where she works as a hair stylist in a salon filled with the easy laughter and unfettered joy that colored the best days of her childhood. But into this paradisiacal community arrives a stranger, much like Hayden, who is also haunted by a dark secret and a troubled past. Together these two misfits will form a tentative bond that will help them overcome personal crises and pain, as they struggle to discover who they truly are and to find the strength to move on.

Review Quotes

"Lovely writing . . . Emmons' emphasis is on her characters, and she draws them well." - Seattle Times, Praise for His Mother's Son
"Emmons . . . has an eye for the grating intimacy of small-town life and a fine ear for suggestive metaphors." - The Economist