Description

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“Kim Wright’s charming novel, The Unexpected Waltz, chronicles one woman’s second chance at happiness and an opportunity to find her authentic self. The writing is pitch perfect—this is a winner!” (Elin Hilderbrand, New York Times bestselling author of The Matchmaker)

From the author of the “sharply written and emotionally accessible” (Kirkus Reviews) debut Love in Mid Air comes this moving novel about a middle-aged woman who regains her balance in life. Kelly Wilder becomes recently widowed from a much older, wealthy man with whom she spent her married life doing charity work, building a lovely home, and, as she says, “pretending to be a whole lot more conservative and stupid and nicer than I really am.”

Now, with too much time and money on her hands, Kelly has absolutely no idea what happens next. So on a whim she signs up for a ballroom dancing class, and slowly, step by high-heeled step, begins to rebuild her life with the help of friends old and new: Nik, a young Russian dance teacher who sees the artistic potential she left behind; Carolina, a woman in hospice, anxious to experience a whole lifetime in a few months; and Elyse, Kelly’s girlhood best friend who knows all of her past secrets—including the truth about the man who long ago broke Kelly’s heart.

In the vein of Jennifer Weiner’s novels, The Unexpected Waltz is a deeply felt story about moving on after loss and finding a new walk—or dance—of life through the power of second chances.

About the Author

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Kim Wright is the author of Love in Mid Air, The Unexpected Waltz, The Canterbury Sisters, and Last Ride to Graceland. A two-time winner of the Lowell Thomas Award for travel writing, she has been writing about travel, food, and wine for more than twenty years for magazines such as Wine Spectator, Self, Travel & Leisure, and Vogue. She also ballroom dances competitively. Kim lives in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Praise For…

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"Kim Wright's charming novel chronicles one woman's second chance at happiness and an opportunity to find her authentic self. The writing is pitch perfect -- this is a winner!"
— Elin Hilderbrand, New York Times bestselling author of The Matchmaker

“Wright…expertly guides us through a moving, layered, and lyrical exploration of transformation.”
— Publishers Weekly (starred review, Pick of the Week)

"An insightful novel about the unexpected places where we stumble upon second chances. Kim Wright writes with wisdom and grace."
— Sarah Pekkanen, bestselling author of THE BEST OF US

"Wright’s second novel, after Love in Mid Air (2010), captures our fear of the unknown and the tender joys of coming into one’s own.”
— Booklist

“The Unexpected Waltz is [as] inspiring as [it is] awakening of oneself. Additionally, it feels genuine, as new beginnings and second chances aren’t always prefect and fairy-tale like, even if outward appearances suggest otherwise. With strong characterization and a cast of intriguing secondary characters, the story dances its way through all the right steps as readers watch Kelly Wilder embrace waltzing through her new life,stumbles and all.”
— Romantic Times

“The novel has everything I look for in a good read: intrigue, interesting characters at a crossroads and a comfortable authority that allows me to surrender to whatever happens next. What's more, the novel is set in Charlotte.”
— Charlotte Observer

“From the author of the overlooked gem Love in Mid Air (check it out in paperback), a joyful novel about regaining your midlife groove through ballroom dancing.”
— PEOPLE Magazine, "Great Summer Reads"

“I often read books that eventually pull me in, but it is an all-too-rare experience for me to browse the first page of a new book and become instantly hooked, as I was with The Unexpected Waltz.”
— BookReporter.com

“A charming novel about midlife rebirth.”
— People Magazine, "New in Paperback"