The Ripple Effect

A grumpy ex physician and a sunshine psychologist fake an engagement in Maggie North's sparkling second novel about starting over.

A grumpy burnt out physician and a sunshine psychologist must fake an engagement to save his whitewater canoeing/ relationship therapy startup in Maggie North''s sparkling second novel about starting over.

Burned-out former ER doc Stellar J Byrd can solve any crisis except her own life. But with her financial prospects dwindling, she’d do anything to stay in her beloved, pricey wilderness town—even take a job as a camp physician at The Love Boat, an unspeakably touchy-feely relationship therapy startup. If there are sing-alongs, she’s calling in sick.

What’s worse? Her boss is Lyle “McHuge” McHugh, the sunshiny psychologist she’s masterfully avoided since their disastrous hookup last year. Hardheaded relationship scorekeeper Stellar plans to dodge his pathological generosity from now until September, but after a scathing article puts McHuge''s romantic credibility into question, a fake engagement is the only way to salvage the camp’s crumbling public image.

It’s strictly business . . . but the more closely they work together, the more Stellar realizes her feelings for McHuge are anything but professional. With competitors hard on their heels and trade secrets at stake, they must find a way to marry his softness with her steel to build a business–and a love–that will last past summer’s end . . .

• | Author: Maggie North
• | Publisher: St Martin's Press
• | Publication Date: Jul 21, 2025
• | Number of Pages:
• | Language:
• | Binding: Paperback / softback
• | ISBN-13: 9781250910134
• | ISBN-10: 1250910137