"Archer's Voice" by Mia Sheridan

Bree Prescott has arrived in the small town of Pelion, Maine, having fled Ohio on the spur of the moment after surviving a horrific and terrifying event.  She doesn't know how long she will stay, so she rents a small cottage by a lake with her little dog and gets a job as a waitress at a local diner.  Soon she meets Archer Hale, a scruffy young man who never speaks and is ignored by the townspeople.  But Bree feels a connection with him and discovers a damaged yet kindred spirit who has also survived enormous tragedy. 

This was a beautiful, very moving, and emotional story that I had trouble putting down.  The author has created two soulful characters who are hurting deeply and find healing through each other.  Although he is mute, Archer is not deaf like Bree's father was.  Luckily, they both know sign language, and most of the conversations are through their hands.  Archer has been out of society since the age of seven, and Bree does her best to help him reintegrate.  She is fearless when it comes to advocating for him with the townspeople and his mean-spirited cousin.  Archer is an especially well-written character, and we get to see his journey from isolated, wounded loner to confident hero, mostly thanks to Bree.  It was told mainly in her POV, but his POV was also given in several chapters, which were sometimes difficult to read because of the subject matter.  There was just the right amount of angst, misunderstanding, and ultimately bliss to make for an amazing story.  Highly recommended.  337 pages (Kindle edition).