Prissy Montgomery goes to great lengths to avoid having sex with her husband, Howie. So when he confesses to having an affair, and requests a divorce, she shouldn’t be all that surprised.

With her fourteen-year-old son in tow she leaves the comfort of her Toronto home and heads back to Paradise Bay, her childhood home in Newfoundland. But Prissy’s mother, in an effort to spare her daughter humiliation, takes out an obituary to announce Howie’s untimely demise. Prissy is horrified by the deception, especially when her childhood friend becomes widowed for real.

When their son has an altercation with the law, Howie, the “dead” husband, heads home to help, and his arrival leaves the town of Paradise Bay reeling, with more questions than answers.

Jill Sooley grew up in Mt. Pearl, NL. She enjoyed a successful career in public relations first with the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, and later, at a boutique public relations firm in midtown Manhattan. She currently resides in Long Island with her husband and children. The Widows Of Paradise Bay is her first novel.

Jill Sooley's profile page

"The Widows of Paradise Bay is a strong debut from Jill Sooley, well-paced, and stocked with good dialogue and telling details: the plaid bathrobes, the vinyl tablecloths, the TVs tuned to "The Price is Right... And the mood shifts, which sometimes even careen from farce to grief to quotidian concerns, are never out of hand, and instead feel realistic and believable. This is a good read."

Joan Sullivan, The Telegram

"Sooley writes about contemporary life in today's Newfoundland in a way that is absolutely authentic and captures both the pace and concerns of modern life. This is Jill Sooley's first novel; I certainly hope it's not her last!"

Trudy Morgan-Cole, Compulsive Overreader