Every August, four women gather together to spend a week at the beach, renting a new house each year. The ritual began when they were in their twenties and their husbands were in medical school. Their only criteria was oceanfront and isolation, their only desire to strengthen their far-flung friendships. They called themselves the Girls of August. But when one of the Girls dies tragically, the group slowly drifts apart. Years later, after a new marriage reunites them and they come together on a remote barrier island off the South Carolina coast, the women make startling discoveries that will change them in ways they never expected.

Every August, four women would gather together to spend a week at the beach, renting a new house each year. The ritual began when they were in their twenties and their husbands were in medical school, and became a mainstay of every summer thereafter. Their only criteria was oceanfront and isolation, their only desire to strengthen their far-flung friendships. They called themselves the Girls of August. But when one of the Girls dies tragically, the group slowly drifts apart.

Every August, four women would gather together to spend a week at the beach, renting a new house each year. The ritual began when they were in their twenties and their husbands were in medical school, and became a mainstay of every summer thereafter. Their only criteria was oceanfront and isolation, their only desire to strengthen their far-flung friendships. They called themselves the Girls of August. But when one of the Girls dies tragically, the group slowly drifts apart and their vacations together are brought to a halt. Years later, a new marriage reunites them and they decide to come together once again on a remote barrier island off the South Carolina coast. There, far from civilization, the women make startling discoveries that will change them in ways they never expected.

Every August, four women gather together to spend a week at the beach, renting a new house each year. The ritual began when they were in their twenties and their husbands were in medical school. Their only criteria was oceanfront and isolation, their only desire to strengthen their far-flung friendships. They called themselves the Girls of August. But when one of the Girls dies tragically, the group slowly drifts apart. Years later, after a new marriage reunites them and they come together on a remote barrier island off the South Carolina coast, the women make startling discoveries that will change them in ways they never expected.

Every August, Maddy, Rachel, Barbara, and Melinda would gather together to spend a week at the beach, renting a new house each year. They called themselves the Girls of August. The ritual began when they were in their twenties; their only criteria were ocean-front and isolation, their only desire to strengthen their far-flung friendships. But when Melinda dies tragically, the group slowly drifts apart and their vacations together come to an end. Years later, a new marriage reunites them and they decide to gather once again, this time on a remote barrier island off the South Carolina coast. Baby, the new and much younger addition to the group, soon tests their patience and good will. But Baby is the least of their worries: on this island, far from civilization, the strength of their friendship will be tested -- and all four women will make startling discoveries that will alter them in ways they never expected. With lush prose and richly imagined character, The Girls of August is a poign