Rose Smith

The Shared Life of Egan and Lucian

An epic, sweeping, and engrossing debut novel about twin brothers and their many loves and losses as they make a life on and away from their tiny family island off the coast of Maine

Love conquers all. But which kind of love? The love of a passionate partner? The love of one sibling for another? The love of a parent for their child, or the love of an artist toward their art? And what about the love one feels toward home, a landscape one always wishes to return to?

Rose Smith’s debut novel feels like an instant classic in its examination of the many kinds of love within the McCauley family, who live on Shep’s Island off the coast of Maine. Sheila and Ian have raised their twin boys here; Egan wants to be a professional athlete, Lucian an artist, following in the footsteps of his complicated and distant mother. On a trip abroad, Lucian meets Lea, who accompanies him to idyllic Shep’s Island. When a family secret comes to light, Lea flees back to the mainland—but with a different man: Lucian’s twin, Egan. Their connection is immediate and undeniable.

The years will pass with Lea caught between the two brothers. Even when she decides to begin a life on Shep’s Island with Egan, fate will continue to bring these three into one another’s orbit, all circling around the family unit. The island, with its shifting shoreline and harsh beauty, mirrors the inner lives of Smith’s characters. Ultimately, it is the heart of the family unit that perseveres—a magic and a bond that supersedes all that has come before.