When Ferdinand's son and grandchildren move out of his French farmhouse to live in town, the widower finds himself teetering on the brink of depression. So when he learns that his neighbor's cottage was damaged in a storm, he invites her to board with him until repairs can be made. Soon after, his friend Guy suffers a terrible loss, and Ferdinand decides he needs looking after, too. As the weeks pass and Ferdinand's home continues to fill, friends both old and new come together in unexpected ways to form a makeshift family, enriching one another's lives in ways they never imagined possible...and creating a wonderfully heartwarming novel you'll not soon forget! (KG)