The Encore

In 2003, at the prestigious Brookfield Conservatory in Boston, a chance encounter sparks an inimitable friendship between driven pianist and singer Anna Buckley and composer wunderkind Will Pendleton. As they strive toward careers as professional musicians, their bond deepens both from shared skill and the inexplicable sense that they’re kindred souls. But soon after graduation, one night forever alters the trajectory of their lives, destroying their relationship in the process.

 

Twenty years later in New York, sixteen-year-old piano virtuoso Lottie Thomas is grappling with the rigors of her elite prep school and the confounding disappearance of the woman who gave her up at birth. When Lottie suddenly discovers the startling truth of her identity, the revelation catalyzes a chain of events that not only reunites Lottie with her birth parents, but forces them together on a rock tour-bus for a careening cross-country journey. It is there, trapped in these tight confines, that the three must finally reconcile with irrevocable choices from their shared past.

Additional information

Genre

Book Club, Contemporary, General Fiction, Literary Fiction, Upmarket, Women's Fiction

Age

Adult

Publisher

Hachette

Imprint

Union Square & Co.

Language(s)

English

Format(s)

Audiobook, eBook, Trade paperback

Author

Juliet Izon

Release Date

03 March 2026

Release Month

March Releases

Author Identity

BIPOC

About the Author

Juliet Izon is a New York City and Hudson Valley-based journalist and author. Her work has appeared in national newspapers such as The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, and magazines like Vogue, Travel + Leisure, Food & Wine, and Architectural Digest. In her free time, you can often find her traveling the world with her husband Mike and daughter Aveline. But when she’s home, she’s probably at the theater catching a new dance performance or off-Broadway show.

 

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