Beecham's latest is a historical family drama set among the turmoil and uncertainty of the English literary world on the brink of World War II. The mystery of a missing infant sets the twisty pace as the publishing industry runs low on paper and a nation finds solace in the words of uncommon valor. Alice Cotton is carving out her place at Partridge Press London in 1943 with an instinct and drive her colorful colleagues come to depend on. Alice is focusing on bringing interesting stories to the general public when American Theo Bloom arrives to assist the publishing house and share his own success printing popular novels for the war effort in the States. Together they embark upon a collection of stories to save both the press and Alice as she unravels the dark secrets of "baby farmers" and the underbelly that threatens to consume her own family. Character-driven with the impending doom of war looming, When We Meet Again delivers a softly paced mystery with a dash of hope and romance to keep readers rooting for Alice when outlooks look dim.

Beecham's tense American debut follows an unwed London mother's search for her stolen newborn, who was given to child traffickers in 1943. Alice Cotton races to find her baby before the trail goes cold after her mother, Ruth, takes one-day-old Eadie to a "baby farmer" while Alice is sleeping. Ruth leaves a note, saying, "this really is for the best." With the pregnancy a secret from the father and her book publishing colleagues, Alice had taken a leave of absence and given birth outside town. Panicked, Alice returns to London to locate the trafficker and confront her mother. She also cleverly convinces her colleagues to use a journalist's research to publish a book on the buying and selling of children, while she uses the information gleaned to track down Eadie. Meanwhile, Theo Bloom, from the publishing firm's New York City office, arrives to assist the London branch, leaving behind his fiancée, and a romance between Alice and Theo develops. While depictions of Alice's weepy emotional state grow tiresome, Beecham pulls off a thrilling conclusion and elevates the story with some well-researched context on the publishing industry during the war, when demand for books was high. Fans of sentimental WWII fiction will fly through this. (July)