Help Yourself

In a small Southern town, a young woman is about to get some life-changing news . . . Lured away from her small mountain town by the promise of an inheritance from a biological father she never knew, Merry Stand heads to a remote barrier island off of North Carolina called Topsail. This sudden and unexpected windfall could save her family from financial ruin. But there's a catch. Before she can get the money, she needs to complete a regimen of self-improvement tasks. Surrounded by her late father's lawyer, Fritz (who just wants to go home to London); an uncle who's hoping to steal her newfound legacy; and a widower staying in the beach house next door, Merry has her work cut out for her and plenty of obstacles in her way. And complicating matters are a crazy radio therapist, a suicidal software engineer, a matchmaking dog, and possibly a ghost . . . Set during the island's offseason, this lively tale, both poignant and packed with...