Go Gentle

by Maria Semple · 2026

Adora Hazzard has built a life she believes is perfect: a stoic philosophy, a teenage daughter she adores, a rewarding job tutoring the twin boys of an old‑money family, and a close‑knit "coven" of single women on the Upper West Side’s historic Ansonia. Her mantra—"desire only what you have"—has kept her content, until a chance encounter with a charismatic stranger shatters her carefully curated routine. Suddenly, black‑market art deals, secret rendezvous, and a buried past erupt into her present, pulling her into international intrigue and a fierce, unexpected desire for more. As Adora navigates love, mystery, and a mid‑life transformation, she must decide whether to protect the world she’s built or risk everything for a new, exhilarating future.