The Cape Fear River cuts the southern North Carolina coast in half like a ripe peach, each half sweet and gleaming with the freshness of spring and all that comes with it, including baseball and romance. Nestled into the quaint downtown on the north side of the river are the azalea littered cobblestone streets of Wilmington, featuring a brand new baseball stadium along with a larger than life movie studio, giving a fictional sheen to the town, a mystique that glimmers like the Atlantic that hugs the coast. Bathed in that glimmer is the love story of Jessica Valentine and Spur Gunson, two members of the Wilmington Cannons, a newly established minor league baseball club and farm team of the New York Mets.

In The Slump, by Leslie Bere, we meet Jessica Valentine, who has spent only a few years coaching college baseball when she takes a job as the assistant hitting coach for the Cannons. There she is introduced to former MVP Spur Gunson, mired in a slump so bad he’s been sent back to the minors to prove himself worthy of the show. Though they come from different backgrounds, there is an immediate spark between the two.

Under the tutelage of Myrl Silver, a grizzled coach and longtime friend of Spur’s, and Wally Kitchens, a lifelong minor league manager lured back for one more season in the sun, Jessica finds success early on as well as myriad challenges. In addition to the stresses of professional baseball she must juggle the myriad personalities tied to the Cannons’ first season, including millionaire owner Kenny Gray, whose rivalry with a longtime business partner drives his nefarious schemes, and brash, young infielder Foy Buckner, whose immaturity adds unwanted tension. Overshadowing it all is Spur. As his success is hard to come by and his frustration grows, it is up to Jess to help him find his groove – and in doing so to help the team win and get Spur back to the majors.