A compelling love story–inspired by the author’s own family history–set in the segregated South during and after World War II, perfect for fans of Kristin Hannah’sThe Womenand Brit Bennett’sThe Vanishing Half.

When three young Black men enlist in the US Army hoping to serve their country with honor, their lives are forever changed.

When Pearl Harbor is attacked in 1941, Cora’s brother, Benny, rushes to enlist against the wishes of Cora and their mother. Able to pass as white due to his pale skin and light eyes, Benny reports for duty only to realize he’s been mistakenly enlisted as a white man in a racially segregated military.

Lee has been friends with Benny ever since he was a troubled teenager, and he’s been sweet on Cora for nearly as long. When Lee enlists without telling Cora, she is heartbroken and feels betrayed by the man she expected to spend the rest of her life with.

Meanwhile, family friend Roscoe, encouraged by Benny, offers to marry Cora in order to ensure that she and her mother–who both remain home–will be provided for should Benny not make it back.

Benny does return, but his new white identity leaves him struggling to find his place in between, in a country that only sees race. As America promises postwar prosperity to white veterans through the GI Bill, Black soldiers are excluded.

While the war may be over, the fight has only just begun for Cora, Lee, Benny, and Roscoe.

Tammye Huf grew up in California, before moving first to Germany and then to the UK with her husband and their three children. In more normal times, she still returns to the US regularly to catch up with friends and family. She has worked as a teacher, translator and copywriter and has published stories inDiverse Stories Quarterly,The Forge,Ginosko Literary Journal,The Storyteller,Necessary Fiction,New Plains ReviewandThe Penman Review. She was runner-up in the 2018London MagazineShort Story Prize.

• Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
• Publish Date: February 03, 2026
• Pages: 382
• Language: English
• Type: Hardcover
• EAN/UPC: 9798874868376
• Dimensions: 9.1 X 6.1 X 1.3 inches | 1.3 pounds
• BISAC Categories: Historical Fiction, Popular Fiction, Romance