“Moore traces the contours of shadow without ever letting us forget the transformative power of light.” —Kaethe Schwehn, author of The Rending and the Nest

In this unique and honest coming-of-age story, young artist Molly Fisher predicts another boring summer at her family cabin on Cloud Lake in the Adirondack Mountains of upstate New York, until, weeks before her sixteenth birthday, a boating accident almost causes her little brother's death. Sam is in a coma, and Molly's family, unraveled by tragedy, blames her. Overcome with grief and guilt, Molly befriends a newcomer to the lake, Zoe Novato, a waterskiing champion whose frank interest both unsettles and delights Molly. From best friends, the unthinkable happens: Molly falls in love with Zoe. In the midst of escalating family tragedy, Molly's journey of discovery unexpectedly becomes a path of redemption for both her parents, bringing their family from lost to found. The transcendent ending shows the power of young love to heal old wounds and allow a deeper forgiveness. Qualities of Light explores the budding of unexpected romance in the face of family tragedy, the forging of a new relationship between a daughter and her gifted, difficult parents, and an adolescent girl's confrontation with her own qualities of light and darkness.

Mary Moore