Previously published as: Island of saints.

In 1942, German subs are dispatched to the Gulf of Mexico to sink U.S. vessels carrying goods and fuel. While taking a late-night walk, Helen Mason--widowed by the war--discovers the near-lifeless body of a German sailor. Enraged at the site of Josef Landermann's uniform, Helen is prepared to leave him to die . . . until an unusual phrase, faintly uttered, changes her mind. In The Heart Mender, as a small town prepares itself for the worst the world has to offer, Josef and Helen must reconcile their pasts to create a future. -- p. [4] of cover