The Inspiration behind Back to the Cape by Judy Lannon

I never thought I would write one book, let alone three books and then a sequel, but sometimes life pushes you beyond your own expectations. 

The pull to take on another book was inspired by book number three, Callahan’s Cottage. 

Back to the Cape, which was launched on May 25, 2026, is the sequel to Callahan’s Cottage. I was encouraged to keep the storyline going after reading a quote about Callahan’s Cottage from Cape Cod Life magazine. “Set in Orleans, readers familiar with the Cape will appreciate the authentic references, while newcomers will be drawn into the portrayal of growing up by the ocean.” 

As a person who summered on the Cape as a kid and has now been a year-round resident for over fifty years, living close to Nauset Beach, I felt such a rush of emotion reading that quote. I grew up by the ocean but only for three months of the year.

The joy of learning to swim in salt water, moving onto body surfing and taking on waves bigger than I should have is in my DNA. I know the beaches, the sandy back roads, and the best spots to escape from the tourists. I gave my characters Ellenor, Esme, and Emma the same love of Cape Cod as I do, but gave them fuller, more complicated relationship with the Cape, experiencing not only the beauty but the sometimes harsh reality of living year-round by the sea.

 When asked to describe the part of the Cape that I know so well, to someone who has never been here I had Emma speak to the reader saying, “I would tell them Nauset Beach is ten miles of stunning, unspoiled landscape that kisses the ocean on one side and hugs the sand dunes on the other. It is where you can escape from reality and reawaken the joy that lies just beneath your heart. I would tell them they have a world of options for a day at Nauset Beach, take a walk along the pristine shoreline, bring a book and a chair, sit by the water’s edge, and get lost in the sounds and smells of this magical place. Brave the cold water and waves, build sandcastles, and look for treasures to bring home with you.”

If you aren’t familiar with Cape Cod, “the Cape,” it’s a peninsula in MA. But to me, it’s an island. The only way to get on or off the Cape is to go over one of the two bridges. Once you leave the mainland, your blood pressure drops and your endorphins rise. Many studies have shown that the salt air, the motion of the sea, and the tranquility of a secluded beach are good for your health. Anyone who lives here could have told you that.

The inspiration to continue with Back to the Cape was refueled when Callahan’s Cottage won a first-place award for Best Beach Read. I actually really like my characters, Ellenor, Esme, and Emma, and it was a joyful challenge to keep them going for another story in Back to the Cape. But it also gave me the chance to share more of the place I call home with others.

Callahan’s Cottage is contemporary fiction, and the story is centered on three women who grew up on the shores of Nauset. Now in their thirties, they reunite after years apart, bringing with them all the challenges life has given them.

BACK TO THE CAPE

Back to the Cape is a story of memories, secrets, and the invisible threads that pull us home. When Emma, Esme, and Ellenor—lifelong friends known as the Three E’s—return to their Cape Cod childhood haven, it isn’t for a reunion. Ellenor’s father, Ordelle Snow, is gone, and in his passing, he’s left behind one final twist none of them expected.

It’s been less than a year since they last said their goodbyes at Callahan’s Cottage, yet each woman arrives changed. Emma, quiet and retrospective, struggles to let go of a pain that threatens to undo her. Esme, restless with her new life, stands at a crossroads between the ache of an old love and the temptation to start over somewhere far away. And Ellenor, who once fled the Cape with no intention of looking back, is finally ready to stay—if she can summon the courage to rebuild her life from the ground up.

Ordelle Snow’s unexpected death forces them to confront the secrets, heartbreaks, and unfinished business they hoped time would erase.

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Judy Lannon writes award-winning contemporary women’s fiction about the beautiful messiness of real life.

Her stories explore friendship, family, and the surprising ways we find ourselves again, which might explain why readers often swear she’s been eavesdropping on their lives.

Judy lives on Cape Cod, close to the Atlantic Ocean, with her husband and their standard poodle, Puck, and is the author of Nine Days, The Making of Genevieve, Callahan’s Cottage, and Back to the Cape.

She feels it’s a cliché to say she is inspired by the ocean, but it undeniably finds its way into her stories.

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Category: Contemporary Women Writers