Briefly, Forever - by Sara Gray (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

Full of joy and wisdom, a heart-stopping, emotional debut showing that a life isn't measured in how long it stretches, but in how much love it can hold.

"Fans of A Man Called Ove will devour this, as I did. Like a perfect piece of music, there is not an off note in this entire book. I loved it." --Annabel Monaghan, New York Times bestselling author of Dolly All the Time

Alexander Kirk writes perfect love stories--but he doesn't believe in them.

When his favorite café is taken over by Wendy, a quirky single mother with two kids and strawberry earrings, their relationship unfolds exactly like the romances Alexander pens: enemies to lovers, laughter, longing, and a happiness that feels almost scripted. Except this isn't one of Alexander's stories.

Briefly, Forever begins where most love stories end--with loss. Told through three timelines, the novel traces the tender beginnings of Alexander and Wendy's relationship while following Alexander as he learns how to parent--and love--her children without her. It is a story about grief and joy, about the power and limits of art, and about loving fully even when happily ever after isn't guaranteed.

Briefly, Forever reminds us that the most important part of a love story is not how it ends, but how we embrace the strangeness and beauty of being alive, loving and living.

Review Quotes

"Like a perfect piece of music, there is not an off note in this entire book. I loved it. Elegant and wise, Briefly, Forever is brilliant. It's a story about all the ways we're called to love even when we're unlovable, about how love changes you and--even in its absence--has the power to heal everything it touches. Fans of A Man Called Ove and great writing will devour this book as I did." --Annabel Monaghan, New York Times bestselling author of Dolly All the Time

"[A] touching debut... Gray avoids sentimentality while cannily exploring the relationship between art and life and the difficulty in surrendering to fate. This will move readers." --Publishers Weekly

"In Briefly, Forever, debut novelist Sara Gray deftly navigates a backwards romance story--starting with grief and ending with hard-fought happiness. Tender and bittersweet, this is a story about love and loss and ultimately, the joy of forgiveness and found family. Sara Gray is an author to watch!" --Mary Kay Andrews, New York Times bestselling author of Summers at the Saint

"Briefly, Forever has everything I love in a novel: an utterly endearing cast of characters, humour, heartbreak and hope. This poignant, warm and tenderly written story explores what happens when happily ever after is cut short - and the messy, complicated and beautiful love that endures beyond it. I absolutely adored it and cannot wait to see what Sara Gray has in store next!" --Anna Johnston, internationally bestselling author of The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife

"A tender and beautiful debut, Briefly, Forever is a refreshingly nuanced take on romance tropes. Enemies-to-lovers but wrapped in honesty, unravelling a love story complete with very human scars and all." --Maurene Goo, author of Read With Jenna Today Show Book Club pick One & Only

"An absorbing, tender exploration of love and how life's worst curve-balls can often result in unexpected outcomes. Full of tenderness and heart." --Josie Lloyd, author of You & Me and You & Me and You & Me

About the Author

Sara Gray lives in Vancouver with her wife and daughter, and has had short fiction published in the Tishman Review and York Literary Review. Briefly, Forever is her debut novel.