Entering Normal by Anne LeClaire
Opal is a single mother with a five-year-old son, Zack. Unhappy with her partner Billy, who takes no responsibility for Zack, and her parents, who side with Billy, she packs the car and, with Zack, throws a dice. Landing a three she vows to stop the car when three tanks of fuel are empty. And so she ends up in a small town in Massachusetts called Normal and rents a house next door to Rose. But Rose is still locked in grief for her son who was killed in a car accident five years ago. The two women couldn't be more different but, thrown together by circumstance, they become close when Opal is forced into a custody battle for Zack. Rose, who knows what it's like to lose the person you love most, becomes inextricably linked to Opal's struggle.