The Leaf Queen
2021 TAZ Fiction Award Winner
Travel from struggle to strength in this work of contemporary fiction
“The prose is crisp, realistic, and beautiful when it needs to be…Arguably—and for this Roberts also deserves credit—the most interesting character is the one considered the antagonist. The male character who is afraid of commitment might be an old cliché, but Roberts nails it and is not afraid to explore the logic of selfishness and entitlement. The Leaf Queen will satisfy any reader who enjoys very human-centric stories of struggle and growth and any reader who likes well-written thought. Life is a generally difficult experience to capture, but Roberts does it beautifully, and the book is definitely worth a read.” Hallie Koontz, Windy City Reviews (The Chicago Writers Association)
Are some wounds impossible to recover from?
While studying abroad in Ireland, American graduate student Dina makes the heart-wrenching choice to give up her daughter for adoption. The grief and trauma of her desperate loss follow her back to America where, as she works to put her life back together with the help of her sister, she ultimately seeks love and comfort in all the wrong places creating even more turmoil for herself. When Dina is diagnosed with cancer, she must decide if courage and hope will prevail or if she will succumb to the overwhelming grief that haunts her life. This work of contemporary fiction takes the reader along a path of pain and struggle to strength and redemption through the power of love.
Will Dina finally break under the strain of loss or can she find a way to forgive herself and find love before it’s too late?
