Safe in Sound by Ania Ray
(A Blue Spruce Hills Novella)
Publication date: October 29th 2026
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Holiday, Romance
She’s “happy,” but someone might say she’s “settled.” What happens when the life that makes you feel safe is also the one keeping you small?
Thirty-four-year-old piano teacher Riley O’Connor believes her chance to become a world-class musician has sailed. She’s content-ish with her life in Blue Spruce Hills, a quaint mountain town that is safe, quiet, and predictable. Instead of performing on stages, she teaches the neighborhood kids, hangs out with her best friend Clara, reads books surrounded by her houseplants, and rehearses like she’s about to be called to join the London Philharmonic.
Though she’d be too scared to go. Grammy called her ’Fraidy Cat, after all.
When what Riley thinks is a break-in turns out to be a dog who won’t leave, she’s thrust into a series of events that challenge her to confront her anxiety. First, the social kind: the veterinarian is incredibly handsome. And kind. And grieving his wife. And looking for someone to give his son piano lessons.
She agrees.
Suddenly, Riley is on a winter hike with a man where bears, snakes, and fatal injury are possibilities. And when an opportunity arises to accompany renowned violist Albi Drechsler, the dream she’d long ago decided was out of reach is suddenly within it. To get what she wants, she must prove that fear doesn’t have the final word. But could she actually leave the safety of Blue Spruce Hills?
Safe in Sound is a story about overcoming fears, leaning into friendship, and trusting that even when the night feels darkest, love can hold you through. If you miss your loved ones a little extra during the holidays, you’ll love this redemptive story that proves those we miss most can still find a way to make us courageous.
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EXCERPT
I exhale, the breath in front of me a wisp reminiscent of the steamed milk Clara’s grandmother would mix into the hot chocolate we’d share after school. While I waited for Grammy and Pappy to come home from the Mom and Pop store they owned and ran together, Clara was my safe place.
I stuff my gloved hands in my pockets. This morning I am hanging an angel on a doorknob with someone who risked social status by befriending me. The school playground was too giant a target for a skinny eight-year-old with fiery hair. Grammy always said I’d grow into my hair one day, but I’m pretty sure the “big-tempered redhead” myth fell apart with me. Maybe because Clara has always been my fire. I’m more like old embers buried under kindling.
So way back when… gosh, has it really already been over two decades? Way back when Clara asked if I wanted to skip on the sidewalk with her—and my answer was a genuine yes—we began our friendship.
Basically, I’ll do whatever Clara asks. She knew I was the new kid and approached me anyway. Anyone who does that—when kids seem to feel most powerful when they’re being mean and exclusive—deserves to have their best friend wake up early.
And even though I’d love to still be sleeping right now, three blissful hours remaining in my regular schedule, I feel a thrilling anticipation at seeing my best friend. Sure, I see her in passing every weekday, and we catch each other up in text messages all the time, but to sit down and really connect usually only happens when she comes over once a month. And we’ve missed a lot of those lately because she’s doing big baker things.
And I do little piano teacher things.
Hi, I’m Ania Ray, an author of women’s fiction that dives into the raw, transformative journeys of complex female characters. My books force each protagonist to confront the worst of herself before she evolves into the hero of her own story.
The Cromwell Rules trilogy features interconnected standalones, so you can enjoy each book individually or follow Lily Cromwell's entire arc from start to finish. In The Cromwell Rules and Breaking the Rules, I explore how boundaries can feel stifling or nonexistent, and how we each must find our sweet spot of self-respect.
When I’m not writing, I lead Quill & Cup, a writing community that helps authors finish the stories that matter to them. Outside of writing, I’m a wife, a mom to a toddler who’d live outdoors if she could, and a tea lover (Cinnamon Apple Spice is my favorite).
If you love reading novels with relatable, complex characters and emotionally gripping stories, you’re in the right place.
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