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Table of Contents
About The Book
“A riotous novel about a farewell party that celebrates all of life’s emotions—big and small—while marking the arrival of an exciting new voice in fiction.” —Steven Rowley, New York Times bestselling author of The Celebrants
A rollicking, big-hearted story of long-lost love, friendship, and a life well-lived, set at a Florida retirement resort for queer women, on the last day of resident Hannah Cardin’s life—perfect for readers of Less and The Wedding People.
It’s 2067 and Florida is partially underwater, but even that can’t bring down the residents of Palm Meridian Retirement Resort, a utopian home for queer women who want to revel in their twilight years. Inside, Hula-Hoopers shimmy across the grass, fiercely competitive book clubs nearly come to blows, and the roller-ski team races up and down the winding paths. Everywhere you look, these women are living large.
Hannah Cardin has spent ten happy years under these tropical, technicolor skies, but after receiving a terminal cancer diagnosis, she has decided that tomorrow morning she will close her eyes for the very last time. Tonight, however, Hannah and her raucous band of friends are throwing one hell of an end-of-life party. And with less than twenty-four hours left, Hannah is holding out for one final, impossible thing…
Amongst the guest list is Sophie, the love of Hannah’s life. They haven’t spoken since their devastating breakup over forty years ago, but today, Hannah is hoping for the chance to give her greatest love one last try.
As Hannah anxiously awaits Sophie’s arrival, her mind casts back over the highs and lows of her kaleidoscopic life. But when a shocking secret from the past is revealed, Hannah must reconsider if she can say goodbye after all.
Spanning the course of a single day and seventy-odd years, and bursting with irresistible hope, humor, and wisdom, this one-of-a-kind novel celebrates the unexpected moments that make us feel the most alive.
A rollicking, big-hearted story of long-lost love, friendship, and a life well-lived, set at a Florida retirement resort for queer women, on the last day of resident Hannah Cardin’s life—perfect for readers of Less and The Wedding People.
It’s 2067 and Florida is partially underwater, but even that can’t bring down the residents of Palm Meridian Retirement Resort, a utopian home for queer women who want to revel in their twilight years. Inside, Hula-Hoopers shimmy across the grass, fiercely competitive book clubs nearly come to blows, and the roller-ski team races up and down the winding paths. Everywhere you look, these women are living large.
Hannah Cardin has spent ten happy years under these tropical, technicolor skies, but after receiving a terminal cancer diagnosis, she has decided that tomorrow morning she will close her eyes for the very last time. Tonight, however, Hannah and her raucous band of friends are throwing one hell of an end-of-life party. And with less than twenty-four hours left, Hannah is holding out for one final, impossible thing…
Amongst the guest list is Sophie, the love of Hannah’s life. They haven’t spoken since their devastating breakup over forty years ago, but today, Hannah is hoping for the chance to give her greatest love one last try.
As Hannah anxiously awaits Sophie’s arrival, her mind casts back over the highs and lows of her kaleidoscopic life. But when a shocking secret from the past is revealed, Hannah must reconsider if she can say goodbye after all.
Spanning the course of a single day and seventy-odd years, and bursting with irresistible hope, humor, and wisdom, this one-of-a-kind novel celebrates the unexpected moments that make us feel the most alive.
About The Author
© Robin Silas Christian
Grace Flahive was born and raised in Toronto, Canada. She studied English literature at McGill University in Montreal before moving to London, UK, in 2014, where she’s lived ever since. Palm Meridian is her debut novel.
Product Details
- Publisher: Avid Reader Press/Simon & Schuster (June 10, 2025)
- Length: 256 pages
- ISBN13: 9781668065457
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Raves and Reviews
"Oh, this beautiful, brilliant book. WHAT a debut. Achingly funny and utterly heartrending, written with so much joy and hope and love. I am bereft to have finished and to have left Hannah, Sophie, Esme, Nate, Luke, the Eileens, and everyone at Palm Meridian."—Sara Nisha Adams, author of The Reading List
“Hilarious and wise with an enormous heart, Palm Meridian is an extraordinary achievement. Fun to read, while also bittersweet, Flahive’s prose can sneak up on you. One minute you’re laughing aloud, and the next you’re choked up by a poignant punch to the gut. Consider yourself warned. This novel will make you feel alive.” —Camille Perri, author of When Katie Met Cassidy
“Bursting with humor, queer joy, and heart. A unique and deeply touching celebration of both community and life." —Emily Austin, author of We Could Be Rats
“A joyous ode to the truth that it’s never too late for love, friendship, and living the life of your dreams. Beautiful and funny, this book stole my heart and then handed it back full of hope." —Ashley Herring Blake, USA Today bestselling author of Delilah Green Doesn’t Care
"Palm Meridian is a masterful love story set in a time of crisis. . . Flahive deftly weaves between the past, present and future. It is heartful and hopeful in equal measure." —Nicola Dinan, author of Bellies
“This book is an absolute hoot. It's also a poignant celebration of love, life and friendship in all its forms. Flahive's debut is wildly entertaining, lovingly written and beautifully anarchic—a visit to Palm Meridian Retirement Resort is a must.” —Jess Kidd, author of The Night Ship
“Fresh, funny and full of hope. Grace writes with such originality and heart, I know readers are going to fall in love with Hannah and her joyfully life-affirming end-of-life party.” —Freya Sampson, author of The Last Chance Library
“I defy anyone to read this novel and not wish they too were living in a Floridian lesbian retirement community in 2067 (and that is not a sentence I ever thought I'd write). Palm Meridian is artfully crafted, a love story, a tragedy, a comedy, a meditation on life and death—our own, and that of the planet we are, for now, lucky enough to occupy. I laughed out loud, I turned pages hoping against hope and I wept. This is a very special novel, and in these extraordinary times, I think it is exactly what we all need to read. I will be thinking about it for a long time.” —Laura Kay, author of Wild Things
“The kind of read that takes you for a ride—backwards and forwards and in directions you didn’t know you could go. I love a story that spans joy and grief, love and loss, laughter and tears. What a thrilling novel this is.“ —Hillary Yablon, author of Sylvia’s Second Act
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- Book Cover Image (jpg): Palm Meridian Hardcover 9781668065457
- Author Photo (jpg): Grace Flahive © Robin Silas Christian(0.1 MB)
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