Story of My Life

Zoey escorts Hazel to the Hoight Hotel’s Ballroom B, where a multi-author event is taking place. While there are 600 readers in attendance, Hazel’s publisher could only scrounge up 50 copies of her books for her to sign and give out during the event. While Hazel isn’t expecting a stampede, she isn’t prepared for her booth to entertain so few visitors. The unsuccessful signing event makes her feel more like a has-been than ever before. During their downtime at the event, Zoey and Hazel briefly discuss Hazel’s toxic ex-husband, Jim, who never approved of Hazel’s career and lifestyle as a writer. He despised author events and even meddled in Hazel’s business, informing Zoey on Hazel’s behalf that she didn’t want to attend events or do activities that might further progress her career.

The highlight of the event comes toward the end when a mother and her daughter visit the booth. The mother excitedly introduces herself as one of Hazel’s biggest fans. She claims that Hazel’s books got her through rough times—specifically, the death of her mother, who was in hospice when they read the entire series together. Later, she encouraged her daughter to read Hazel’s books. At their request, Hazel signs and personalizes her Spring Gate series for the mother and daughter.

After the author event disaster, Zoey gives Hazel a pep talk, reminding her that she’s always been motivated by a challenge and that she’s “a kick-ass author with amazing stories to tell” (29). Zoey receives bad news; she accidentally missed an event for another author scheduled for the same day as Hazel’s author event and has been fired by her agency. Hazel insists that she will write a great book that will vindicate Zoey and restore her career as an agent. Zoey appreciates the sentiment but doesn’t quite believe Hazel. After all, it’s been two years since she’s published anything.

That night, when Hazel returns home, she listens to her missed calls, one of which is from Rachel Larson, Jim’s attorney, calling to discuss the divorce settlement. There was an agreement that Hazel would vacate her current apartment by August 15—in five days. Hazel rushes to call Rachel back, and after insisting that her name is on the deed of the apartment that she and Jim bought together, she learns that he only put her on the mortgage—making her a half owner of the debt but not the asset.

Hazel has always lived in New York and panics at the thought of leaving the city, but after scouring the internet for affordable homes in the area, she decides that she may have to do so after all. When Hazel spills a folder of paper, she comes across her brainstorming ideas from the past. She rifles through them and discovers an old news article about a small town in Pennsylvania that banded together to save the home of an elderly resident. The articles details how Bishop Brothers Construction aided the owner, Dorothea Wilkes, in repairing her house at no charge. The article includes a picture of Dorothea and the Bishop Brothers. The caption describing the scowling brother, Campbell “Cam” Bishop, captures Hazel’s attention and gives her writing inspiration. She writes a few hundred words based on a new novel idea—about a grumpy small-town hero who develops a romance with the big-city girl who moves to town. While researching the area on the internet, Hazel discovers that the Heart House from the article is up for auction. Hazel impulsively buys the house at four o’clock in the morning and then checks her social media for the first time in nearly a year. Hazel begins a live stream that only three people attend but reintroduces herself and speaks about her forthcoming plans to move to a small town. The next morning, Hazel shows up at Zoey’s apartment and begins packing things for her hungover friend as she shares the news that she’s moving to Story Lake for inspiration and bringing Zoey with her.

Hazel is an inexperienced driver, having never had a reason to drive in the city, but she rents a car to drive to Story Lake anyway. After a chaotic drive, they stop at a gas station near town, where Hazel rear-ends a pickup truck while struggling to pull up to a pump. She is saved by a benevolent, handsome stranger who mediates the conflict; all it costs Hazel is a $20 bill, and the man whose truck she hit drives off satisfied. The benevolent stranger, whose name she doesn’t learn, helps her by pulling her car around to the pump. Hazel pumps gas for the first time while Zoey gets sick in the convenience store bathroom, still suffering from a hangover.

Back on the road into town, a bald eagle assaults the open-top convertible, dropping a fish onto Zoey’s lap. As the women are flailing, the grumpy Cam Bishop happens to drive by and reluctantly stops to help. He treats a cut on Hazel’s forehead with a medical kit that he keeps in his truck and removes the fish from the car. He explains that Goose, the bald eagle, is up to his usual antics—even going so far as to fake an injury to mess with Hazel and Zoey. Unable to drive the battered convertible into town, Hazel and Zoey hitch a ride with Cam to Story Lake’s downtown, where Hazel plans to meet with the town mayor, whose Heart House listing online also offered the buyer a seat on the town council.

Hazel immediately recognizes Cam as the grumpy Bishop brother from the news article and is excited to observe her muse to gain inspiration for her novel. Downtown, Cam argues with a man at the general store who has climbed a ladder to do repairs. Cam eventually coaxes the man off the ladder and does the repair himself. Hazel learns that the man is Cam’s father. Cam takes them to the address of Heart House, and Hazel is shocked to find it in disarray. There are weeds in the front yard of the ramshackle mansion, which looks nothing like the listing. A school cross-country team passes by, and one kid separates from the pack to stop in front of Hazel. He introduces himself as Darius Oglethorpe, the youngest elected town mayor. He admits to blatantly lying about the house’s condition and photoshopping its online photos before giving Hazel a tour.

Though the house needs a lot of work, Hazel sees potential and endless inspiration. Darius tells Cam about Hazel’s fame as a novelist, but Cam is not impressed. Darius also offers to have Cam and Bishop Brothers Construction do the necessary repairs on Hazel’s new home. While inside the home, Cam receives text messages from his sibling group chat—including his brothers, Gage and Levi, and his sister, Laura. His siblings have already heard from Hazel’s new neighbor, Felicity, that author Hazel Hart has moved into Heart House and that Cam is currently with her.

During the tour, Zoey interrupts to ask about Hazel’s Facebook Live, which has gone semi-viral with hundreds of comments. While Hazel tours the upstairs with Darius, Zoey stays behind to lecture Cam about being on his best behavior. She warns him not to put out the creative spark that Hazel has recently reignited.

Hazel and Zoey settle into the home, opening windows to air out the dust. Zoey tells Hazel that she’s proud of her for making the best of the situation and using it as fuel for a comeback. A gruff man named Gator, who owns Gator’s Towing, tows Hazel’s unusable rental car to Heart House, but Hazel and Zoey discover that their packed belongings have been ruined. The red wine that Hazel packed has broken and spilled over all her belongings. Meanwhile, Zoey’s bags in the back seat have eagle feces all over them.

Hazel and Zoey walk to the general store, where they discover Cam working the front counter. He is unhappy to see them again and can smell the stench of alcohol on them. Hazel and Zoey buy groceries and some clothes but get impatient when Cam is slow to ring them up. The women walk behind the counter and take over scanning and bagging items while Cam fields a call on the store’s landline from his sister, Laura, who is spying from outside the shop. She scolds him for making one of her favorite authors scan and bag her own items.

Cam reluctantly offers the women a ride home when their groceries are too much to carry back by themselves. He even carries the bags inside to Hazel’s kitchen. When they suggest walking to the nearest restaurant for dinner, Cam offers them yet another reluctant ride. Though the town is safe at night, he doesn’t trust the women not to get into trouble on the five-block walk given their current track record since arriving in town.