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Won't Be Long Now

Elizabeth Hardinger

$60

Hardback

Forthcoming
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English
Kensington Publishing
02 June 2026
Coming of age in 1950s Kansas, a misunderstood young woman must find her way through a society ill-equipped to give her grace in this powerful, exhilarating story about loyalty, family, and hard-won self-acceptance for readers of Jayne Anne Phillips, Patti Callahan Henry, and Donna Everhart.

Billie Enholm has never known quite how to define what makes her different from her schoolmates and her cousins, but there's no denying that she is. Bright but awkward, gifted with numbers and words yet baffled by the ease with which others interact, Billie lives with a constant, nagging voice that insists she's doing everything wrong. Even Billie's mother, Dixie, describes her as an ""odd-wad.""

When Billie's father dies and Dixie retreats deeper into beer and apathy, Billie's alienation grows. Summers spent at her grandparents' house in small-town Wiley, eighty-some miles away, have always been a source of comfort-until rejection by her favorite cousin leaves her feeling even more alone. No one can fathom how Billie sees the world-the piercing moments of beauty and heartache she experiences, her uncompromising honesty and lack of guile. And while it feels as if everywhere else, the 1960s are ushering in a new era of protest and change, her own prospects remain stagnant.

Then tragedy engulfs the Enholm family, prompting revelations, questions, and a life-changing dilemma. Out of these unlikely circumstances comes a chance for forgiveness and understanding, and a way, at last, for Billie to reconcile her desire for love with her need for acceptance, just as she is.

In a novel as emotional and nuanced as her acclaimed first novel, Elizabeth Hardinger gives readers a wholly original heroine whose journey is as unforgettable as it is ultimately uplifting.
By:  
Imprint:   Kensington Publishing
Country of Publication:   United States
Dimensions:   Height: 210mm,  Width: 140mm, 
Weight:   567g
ISBN:   9781496758767
ISBN 10:   1496758765
Pages:   304
Publication Date:  
Audience:   General/trade ,  ELT Advanced
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Forthcoming

Elizabeth Hardinger is the author of novels and stories that explore the psychology and sociology of people who live in the Great Plains. Born and raised in Kansas, she holds a BA in English from McPherson College and an MFA from Wichita State University. She now lives with her husband in Eugene, OR, and can be found online at ElizabethHardinger.com.

Reviews for Won't Be Long Now

Praise for All the Forgivenesses ""The characters in this story are vividly portrayed, with nuanced, complex personalities. The resilience and strength of the narrator will stay with readers long after they've finished."" —Publishers Weekly ""A wrenching read...this book stayed with me for a long time because it so vividly brings to life how poverty and lack of choice so profoundly affect a person."" —Historical Novels Review ""The author pulls no punches detailing the hardships of life on a Kansas farm at the turn of the twentieth century. What starts out as a tale of hardscrabble historical fiction turns into an uplifting story of forgiveness and grace."" —Booklist ""This emotional story of deep hardship is told in Bertie's distinct voice and is recommended for readers who enjoyed Winter's Bone by Daniel Woodrell and Jane Hamilton's The Book of Ruth."" —Library Journal ""Not since Daniel Woodrell's Winter's Bone and Bonnie Jo Campbell's Once Upon a River have I met such an original, strong young woman, full of resourcefulness, passion, and courage, dedicated to saving her family no matter the personal sacrifice. This is an extraordinary, unforgettable novel, with a haunting voice that follows you into your dreams at night."" —Jonis Agee, award-winning author of The River Wife and The Bones of Paradise ""Equal parts tender and brutal, All the Forgivenesses is a rich, exquisite novel."" —Alex George, author of A Good American ""It won't take a page to know this is an abiding story told in an utterly captivating voice. I fell into this novel in a way I've only experienced when reading Kaye Gibbons, Louise Erdrich, Dorothy Allison, and Alice Walker. The sense of place and time, of family, guilt, grief, and love are so richly layered, reading All the Forgivenesses is mesmerizing. No one writes like Hardinger. Thank goodness she does."" —Sandra Scofield, National Book Award finalist for Beyond Deserving ""Composed with unassuming wisdom and grace, All the Forgivenesses is an exhilarating testament to the human spirit. You'll fall in love with the remarkable Bertie, whose unwavering loyalty to family delivers her a life rich with meaning and hard-won transcendence. A captivating debut by an exciting new voice in fiction."" —Wayne Harrison, author of The Spark and the Drive


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