From the author of the New York Times #1 bestseller, THE RAPTURE OF CANAAN, and steeped in the rich tradition of Southern writers like Carson McCullers and Sue Monk Kidd, THE TENDER GRAVE is a gripping story of two estranged sisters who find their unlikely way toward forgiveness—and each other—through a gruesome and disturbing set of circumstances.

At age 17, Dori participates in a hate crime against a gay boy from her school and runs away to escape prosecution—and her own harrowing childhood. In her pocket, she carries the address of an older, half-sister she’s never met. She has no idea that her sister, Teresa, is married to another woman, or that Teresa and Jen have tried and failed repeatedly to start their own family though unsuccessful insemination attempts. When Dori and Teresa finally meet, they’re forced to confront that, while they don’t like or understand one another, they are inextricably bound in ways that transcend their differences. Together, the sisters discover that shifting currents of family and connection can sometimes run deeper than the prevailing tides of abandonment and estrangement.

In THE TENDER GRAVE, Sheri Reynolds weaves complex themes of parenting, forgiveness, guilt, and accountability into a lyrical and lushly-woven tapestry that chronicles our enduring search for home, heart, and healing.