{"product_id":"skipping-a-beat-9781451609820","title":"Skipping a Beat","description":"\u003cb\u003eFrom the author of the acclaimed \u003ci\u003eThe Opposite of Me\u003c\/i\u003e, a poignant, witty novel about marriage, forgiveness, and the choices that give shape--and limits--to our lives.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eWhat would you do if your husband suddenly wanted to rewrite all of the rules of your relationship? This is the question at the heart of \u003ci\u003eSkipping a Beat\u003c\/i\u003e, Pekkanen's thought-provoking second book. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eFrom the outside, Julia and Michael seem to have it all. Both products of difficult childhoods in rural West Virginia - where they were simply Julie and Mike - they become high school sweethearts and fall in love. Shortly after graduation, they flee their small town to start afresh. Now thirty-somethings, they are living a rarified life in their multi-million-dollar, Washington D.C. home. Julia is a highly sought-after party planner, while Michael has just sold his wildly successful flavored water company for $70 million. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eBut one day, Michael collapses in his office. Four minutes and eight seconds after his cardiac arrest, a portable defibrillator jump-starts his heart. But in those lost minutes he becomes a different man. Money is meaningless to him - and he wants to give it all away. Julia, who sees bits of her life reflected in scenes from the world's great operas, is now facing with a choice she never anticipated. Should she should walk away from the man she once adored - but who truthfully became a stranger to her long before this pronouncement - or give in to her husband's pleas for a second chance and a promise of a poorer but happier life? \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAs wry and engaging as her debut, but with quiet depth and newfound maturity, \u003ci\u003eSkipping a Beat\u003c\/i\u003e is an unforgettable portrait of a marriage whose glamorous surface belies the complications and betrayals beneath. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003ePekkanen, Sarah:\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e - Sarah Pekkanen is the bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eThe Ever After\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Opposite of Me, Skipping a Beat, These Girls, The Best of Us, Catching Air, \u003c\/i\u003e\u003ci\u003eThings You Won't Say\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eThe Perfect Neighbors\u003c\/i\u003e. Her work has been published in \u003ci\u003ePeople, The Washington Post, \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eUSA TODAY\u003c\/i\u003e, among other publications. She lives with her family in Chevy Chase, Maryland.","brand":"Atria Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50466268217618,"sku":"9781451609820","price":15.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_418b6a94-d0e7-4528-84e3-020c491e9fdc.jpg?v=1730116847","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/skipping-a-beat-9781451609820","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}