Who says you can't go home again?
Sylvia can't imagine why anyone would ever try. She had left rural Newfoundland as a scrawny, shy girl who was too smart for her own good. When she dragged herself home for her cousin's wedding, she couldn’t believe how much had changed—or how much had stayed the same.
Ten years older but no less fixated on an exit strategy, Sylvia returns to confront the person she left behind: her younger self. When she left, she was Miss Sylvia Pride, a fisherman's daughter without an education, money, or any sophistication. Returning now, she is a different person.
Whether she wants to or not, Sylvia reconnects with her long-lost best friend. While they are unpacking things left unsaid for years, Sylvia's life gets more complicated when her husband arrives from Boston. Surrounded by the successful families in her hometown, and with her own marriage on the brink of collapse, Sylvia finds herself at a crossroads. Is there such a thing as happily ever after? And can the family and friends she left behind now help her find it?
The People Who Stay is a tale of love and redemption in which the heart of family beats like the relentless tide against the rugged Newfoundland shores.

Samantha Rideout was born and raised in an outport community in Central Newfoundland. She is an alumna of Memorial University, where she received a bachelor of arts in English and bachelor of commerce. Samantha currently teaches public relations at her second alma mater, Mount Saint Vincent University, where she received her master of public relations.Samantha’s first novel, Pieces, was released in 2013 and she has also been published by PR News, The Hockey Writers, and, like any aspiring writer growing up in Notre Dame Bay, the Lewisporte Pilot. She has been a conference speaker on the topics of reader habits and shaping of reader identity. Samantha enjoys travelling, cheering on the LA Kings, and dragging her “long-suffering husband” to art galleries and bookstores.Samantha lives in New York with her husband, Rob.

Samantha Rideout's profile page

• Long-listed, The Miramichi Reader The Very Best! Book Awards

The road not taken

by JamieLynn

There was something haunting and sad about this book, even though it was pretty funny and light. It was all about what could have been and what was left behind. Going home after you have been gone for years is never easy. Sylvia's story made me think of the Robert Frost poem about the road less traveled.

"Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference."

Love for The People Who Stay

by robjeff81

Just finished reading Samantha Rideout's wonderful book. I truly loved it. Sylvia, Ty, Charlie, and Drew are an amazing cast of characters. You can feel the pulse beat of Newfoundland in every conversation. (Though it totally stayed clear of the cliches which I appreciated.) Loved the twists and turns as well. I think this book has broad popular appeal, but if you're someone who grew up in a small town (could be Newfoundland, but really doesn't matter where) and then moved away, you will identify with this story. Add it to your reading list. You won't regret it. Sometimes you have to go away, to come back.