When Josie Serafini’s brother Vic loses his wife and children in a tragic accident, Josie leaves her home and beloved horses in Upstate New York to join him in Los Angeles. While helping Vic pick up the pieces of his shattered life, Josie confronts broken relationships with her estranged father and rebellious, singer-songwriter daughter. Josie and Vic each struggle to find where they belong in their changing worlds. Josie finds comfort in nature and in a budding, long-distance relationship with the empathetic equine veterinarian caring for her horses back home. Vic battles depression as he seeks purpose in his life. Josie’s three horses and a Siberian husky help open hearts to tenderness and healing—but it’s an unexpected journey to the US-Mexico border that offers this fragmented family a chance to reconnect. A story of love, loss, and forgiveness, Josie and Vic conveys hope—even in the darkest of times.
Genre: Literary Fiction
Genre: Literary Fiction
Praise for this book
"Debra Thomas is a magician. Her artistry and empathy and gentle humor allow Josie and Vic, a novel grounded in the deepest of grief, to shine with hope, with compassion, with the reminder that connection and service offer us paths toward healing. An unforgettable, heart-filled, heart-filling novel." - Gayle Brandeis
"There is so much hope and forgiveness laced throughout Debra Thomas's examination of a family that has drifted apart and finally learns how to come back together. The imagery in Josie and Vic is equally powerful - from the intertwining roots of the maple trees in the family's upstate New York home to the glass sculpture reflecting light, music, and energy in Seattle to the vibrant tradition of Dia de los Muertos in Southern California, celebrating love, life and remembrance. These characters stayed with me long after the final page. Bravo!" - Mary Camarillo
"Against a Southern California backdrop, shifting dynamics in a family are brought into focus in a sensitive story of people set adrift from life's great tragedies. A clear-sighted, moving, contemporary story of the familial support it takes to bravely move forward, Josie and Vic explores what it takes to heal a shattered self in favor of joining a greater whole." - Claire Fullerton
"In this beautifully crafted novel, tragedies test family bonds while revealing the power of love and the strength and resilience of the human spirit." - Elizabeth McKenzie
"Debra Thomas is a master at creating complex and believable characters who deal with abandonment issues, tragedy, starting over when all seems lost-and the soul connection between animals and humans." - Kathleen M Rodgers
"Beautifully crafted and richly detailed, this is a novel with a conscience and something important to say." - Jeannée Sacken
"With tenderness and empathy, Debra Thomas weaves together decades of family secrets, betrayals, and tragedies. How do you find your way back home after unimaginable loss?" - Eileen Harrison Sanchez
"Josie Serafini - tough yet tender - wins us over from the first page in award-winning Debra Thomas's second novel Josie and Vic. Dealing with layers of anxiety, grief, and loss, Josie shows us that sometimes the longest road home teaches us the most about ourselves. For fans of Ann Patchett, Joyce Carol Oates, and Barbara Kingsolver. A lovely book." - Ashley E Sweeney
"Josie and Vic captured me; I devoured it in two sittings, totally engaged and invested in the characters. An amazing story of love and loss, love and family, love and hope, this heartwarming novel is a compassionate tale of connections and explorations, underlining well-known truths and providing new insights as to how we navigate our worlds." - Romalyn Tilghman
"Josie and Vic encompasses personal love, human love beyond borders, and, ultimately, global love, as Madre Tierra's Turtle Islands slowly move together to create a new Pangaea. A new form and a new hope-the future reimagined." - Alma Luz Villanueva
"Josie and Vic is about transcending tragedy and finding the way back, or the way forward, with the help of those you love - or those who care enough to leave 'blue flags' along the way. An incredibly touching, heartbreaking story, filled with heart and soul." - Lorraine Devon Wilke
"There is so much hope and forgiveness laced throughout Debra Thomas's examination of a family that has drifted apart and finally learns how to come back together. The imagery in Josie and Vic is equally powerful - from the intertwining roots of the maple trees in the family's upstate New York home to the glass sculpture reflecting light, music, and energy in Seattle to the vibrant tradition of Dia de los Muertos in Southern California, celebrating love, life and remembrance. These characters stayed with me long after the final page. Bravo!" - Mary Camarillo
"Against a Southern California backdrop, shifting dynamics in a family are brought into focus in a sensitive story of people set adrift from life's great tragedies. A clear-sighted, moving, contemporary story of the familial support it takes to bravely move forward, Josie and Vic explores what it takes to heal a shattered self in favor of joining a greater whole." - Claire Fullerton
"In this beautifully crafted novel, tragedies test family bonds while revealing the power of love and the strength and resilience of the human spirit." - Elizabeth McKenzie
"Debra Thomas is a master at creating complex and believable characters who deal with abandonment issues, tragedy, starting over when all seems lost-and the soul connection between animals and humans." - Kathleen M Rodgers
"Beautifully crafted and richly detailed, this is a novel with a conscience and something important to say." - Jeannée Sacken
"With tenderness and empathy, Debra Thomas weaves together decades of family secrets, betrayals, and tragedies. How do you find your way back home after unimaginable loss?" - Eileen Harrison Sanchez
"Josie Serafini - tough yet tender - wins us over from the first page in award-winning Debra Thomas's second novel Josie and Vic. Dealing with layers of anxiety, grief, and loss, Josie shows us that sometimes the longest road home teaches us the most about ourselves. For fans of Ann Patchett, Joyce Carol Oates, and Barbara Kingsolver. A lovely book." - Ashley E Sweeney
"Josie and Vic captured me; I devoured it in two sittings, totally engaged and invested in the characters. An amazing story of love and loss, love and family, love and hope, this heartwarming novel is a compassionate tale of connections and explorations, underlining well-known truths and providing new insights as to how we navigate our worlds." - Romalyn Tilghman
"Josie and Vic encompasses personal love, human love beyond borders, and, ultimately, global love, as Madre Tierra's Turtle Islands slowly move together to create a new Pangaea. A new form and a new hope-the future reimagined." - Alma Luz Villanueva
"Josie and Vic is about transcending tragedy and finding the way back, or the way forward, with the help of those you love - or those who care enough to leave 'blue flags' along the way. An incredibly touching, heartbreaking story, filled with heart and soul." - Lorraine Devon Wilke
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