It is her worst fear come true.  Livi Hughes watches her husband, Carl Larkin, head off to work with only two spoken words offered in passing—“see you.”  When she arrives at the college where they work, she learns that he never arrived; he’s missing.  Livi’s first marriage devastated her—she’s never wanted to remember.  Carl’s disappearance launches her into her past.

Carl realizes that he cannot live until he has dealt with his past—a past he has never told Livi about.  As he struggles to face his own skeletons, Livi returns home to her parents.  There, her mother helps her to realize that she cannot move forward until she has dealt with herlong-ago.

It is very hard to categorize Stephanie Gertler’s books.  They are not truly romances, though there is a romantic air, and they are much more emotional than a typical general fiction book.  What never changes is Ms. Gertler’s amazing characters and tender, touching style; she writes with incredible grace.

Usually, her books revolve around a specific theme—true love, the unbreakable bond between parent and child, or a person’s/family’s strength in troubled times.  THE WINDMILL turns to marriage and keeping secrets from your spouse.

The book is told from both Livi and Carl’s first-person point of view.  I know some readers are not as fond of this viewpoint, however I think it is necessary.  By using first-person, Stephanie Gertler is truly able to get inside her characters’ heads.  The reader cannot help but feel anger, sympathy, hope, and sorrow as they read the details of both Livi and Carl’s respective pasts.  Having finished the book in one sitting, I will take extra care to make sure every moment my husband and I have together is unforgettable.