The third book by John Martell is a departure from his dark thrillers, with a romantic drama set in 2001 during Hurricane Michelle. Erick Sunstrom travels to his family home on the coast of North Carolina to protect it from the oncoming storm, as a favor to his parents. When he gets there, the weather is the least of his concerns as he discovers his long time, and now former, girlfriend, Eliza Rhodes, is back on the beach too. 
The story goes almost hour by hour as the hurricane washes over the island, with the two trapped inside, while flashbacks to their time as teens, and when they were adults in a serious relationship, tell how they became closer as well as have setbacks, some with terrifying consequences.
This is as much a love story of a time and place as it is a novel of two people's personal relationship. A tale of life on the coast, living with the threat of weather and the struggle of growing up. This is a serious, emotional, passionate story of what it is like to grow up from teens to adults, to deal with issues for the first time, and how to face up to choices to make things better, for oneself or for each other.