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Ruminating Daisies
A fragmented play and a heap of whimsy paint a portrait of three perspectives with one shared rumination:
“What if she never left?”
Revisiting the beloved characters from her New Adult coming-of-age saga, The Isa Project, Gina R. Briggs tosses readers into the deep end of nostalgia with themes of life after loss, estranged friendship, and growing older in this sequel-like novelette collection.
It can be tempting to romanticize the past—the hardships that once kept us awake at night are now fleeting, and what was good is all the more rose-colored in hindsight. Each character in Ruminating Daisies contends with a story from their past that won’t let them go: Lincoln wonders if he could have altered the inevitable; past mistakes torment Isa; and K is determined not to let history repeat itself.
The three must find a place to store the bittersweetness of their youth, if only in dreams.
“What if she never left?”
Revisiting the beloved characters from her New Adult coming-of-age saga, The Isa Project, Gina R. Briggs tosses readers into the deep end of nostalgia with themes of life after loss, estranged friendship, and growing older in this sequel-like novelette collection.
It can be tempting to romanticize the past—the hardships that once kept us awake at night are now fleeting, and what was good is all the more rose-colored in hindsight. Each character in Ruminating Daisies contends with a story from their past that won’t let them go: Lincoln wonders if he could have altered the inevitable; past mistakes torment Isa; and K is determined not to let history repeat itself.
The three must find a place to store the bittersweetness of their youth, if only in dreams.
162 pages, Hardcover
Published September 8, 2025
3 people want to read
About the author
Gina R. Briggs
10 books27 followersGina R. Briggs is a self-taught writer who refuses to stick to one genre. With a BFA in Theatre and MA in Human Communication Theory, Gina wore many hats before finding her creative home in fiction.
Currently residing in the Sunshine State, Gina lives with her husband, furry familiars, and daughter. When she’s not writing, she thrives by planning creative homeschool activities.
Gina is the author of the psychological suspense novel, PORCH LIGHT ON, and the new adult magical realism series, THE ISA PROJECT QUARTET. She has also penned and illustrated two children’s books with her husband--HOW WE MADE LOVE BLOOM: AN ADOPTION STORY and FOREVER IN BLOOM: A REMEMBRANCE LULLABY.
Currently residing in the Sunshine State, Gina lives with her husband, furry familiars, and daughter. When she’s not writing, she thrives by planning creative homeschool activities.
Gina is the author of the psychological suspense novel, PORCH LIGHT ON, and the new adult magical realism series, THE ISA PROJECT QUARTET. She has also penned and illustrated two children’s books with her husband--HOW WE MADE LOVE BLOOM: AN ADOPTION STORY and FOREVER IN BLOOM: A REMEMBRANCE LULLABY.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
September 2, 2025
Before you read this - I HIGHLY recommend reading The Isa Project. This work WILL stand alone on its own, but I appreciate it SO much more having a deeper understanding and connection with the characters.
This is a freaking masterpiece though. A short read, but worth every page turn. I feel like I was aching to hear some of Isa’s wild perspective, her free spirit on the page, and Gina DELIVERED. We all have a way a character sounds in our head, and it’s like she knew exactly how that girl was being portrayed in my brain, reading my every thought.
And to add in the aspect of writing parts as a PLAY? Stop. Here for it. It helped circle out the book even more, connecting the characters to their love of the theater. I also appreciated all the references of motherhood and the STRUGGLES lol because I know that all too well, and I felt so seen.
This is beautiful work, you feel her passion coming into the second Isa chapter and I cannot wait for the next read ❤️🫶🏼
This is a freaking masterpiece though. A short read, but worth every page turn. I feel like I was aching to hear some of Isa’s wild perspective, her free spirit on the page, and Gina DELIVERED. We all have a way a character sounds in our head, and it’s like she knew exactly how that girl was being portrayed in my brain, reading my every thought.
And to add in the aspect of writing parts as a PLAY? Stop. Here for it. It helped circle out the book even more, connecting the characters to their love of the theater. I also appreciated all the references of motherhood and the STRUGGLES lol because I know that all too well, and I felt so seen.
This is beautiful work, you feel her passion coming into the second Isa chapter and I cannot wait for the next read ❤️🫶🏼
August 5, 2025
I'm honoured to be an ARC reader for this collection. Now listen to me babble!
First thing first; go read The Isa Project. Then come back here.
Alright, you're back! You've read The Isa Project? Excellent. You fell in love with it like I did? Perfect. I knew you would.
Now let's discuss... This collection here contains novellas, shorts, and plays all based around The Isa Project and it's special characters. We have familiar faces and some new. We learn more: about then and about now.
What do we learn the most you ask? We learn that love never dies. We learn that grief is love with no place to go, so we search for a place to put it. Somewhere creative. Somewhere meaningful. Sometimes, no place at all, so we sit with it. We are always in the ocean when it comes to grief. Sometimes the waves of reminders of our loss are gentle, manageable. Sometimes it's a wave so big it threatens to drown us for days. Why am I drowning but still breathing? How is this fair? But we come up again, and we manage it. We live with it and we see tomorrow.
There was one part of this book that made me cry. It was so simple, but so realistic that it sank into my soul and demanded to stay. But I think the only reason it chose to stay is because I felt seen. So next time I get hit by the big wave, I can remember it. I am not alone. Other people get this too, even fifteen years later. Because, ah, there it is; love NEVER dies.
How long can I go on? This book recalls memories, it shows us life after loss. The good. The bad. It fills us with a little more joy after finishing a good book and wanting more! What did the characters do next? You got it!
It also lets us see a play written out (a particular favourite for me!)
Gina is so talented in her ability to write a story, to fill it with entertainment but also SO many raw and honest emotions. And she isn't afraid to do something different.
Seeing my name in the acknowledgements was a special moment too. How could little ol' me have impact on this beautiful world? My friendship with Gina reminds me of this quote: "Shared sorrow, joined purpose."
Which also sums up this book too! ✨
First thing first; go read The Isa Project. Then come back here.
Alright, you're back! You've read The Isa Project? Excellent. You fell in love with it like I did? Perfect. I knew you would.
Now let's discuss... This collection here contains novellas, shorts, and plays all based around The Isa Project and it's special characters. We have familiar faces and some new. We learn more: about then and about now.
What do we learn the most you ask? We learn that love never dies. We learn that grief is love with no place to go, so we search for a place to put it. Somewhere creative. Somewhere meaningful. Sometimes, no place at all, so we sit with it. We are always in the ocean when it comes to grief. Sometimes the waves of reminders of our loss are gentle, manageable. Sometimes it's a wave so big it threatens to drown us for days. Why am I drowning but still breathing? How is this fair? But we come up again, and we manage it. We live with it and we see tomorrow.
There was one part of this book that made me cry. It was so simple, but so realistic that it sank into my soul and demanded to stay. But I think the only reason it chose to stay is because I felt seen. So next time I get hit by the big wave, I can remember it. I am not alone. Other people get this too, even fifteen years later. Because, ah, there it is; love NEVER dies.
How long can I go on? This book recalls memories, it shows us life after loss. The good. The bad. It fills us with a little more joy after finishing a good book and wanting more! What did the characters do next? You got it!
It also lets us see a play written out (a particular favourite for me!)
Gina is so talented in her ability to write a story, to fill it with entertainment but also SO many raw and honest emotions. And she isn't afraid to do something different.
Seeing my name in the acknowledgements was a special moment too. How could little ol' me have impact on this beautiful world? My friendship with Gina reminds me of this quote: "Shared sorrow, joined purpose."
Which also sums up this book too! ✨
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August 10, 2025The sequel I never expected!!
Hi Readers,
I thought the story was complete. I’m so glad I was wrong.
My initial plan was to write one short story to be included in the bonus content of THE ISA PROJECT, second edition. But, as I wrote, I realized: The story isn’t over. The idea for a collection was born.
I’ll always be a theatre freak, so I wasn’t surprised that my subconscious manifested an excuse to write for the stage. The play element was devised as a method to weave the stories together, and given that theatrical storytelling is a binding force for these characters, it was a natural solution. When it dawned on me that some of my readers might not have read a play before, I became even more excited. To be someone’s introduction to script reading…that’s pretty cool.
In short, this book was never part of “The Plan.” Though, it’s fitting that I pantsed my way into an Isa sequel seeing as I pantsed the entire first novel.
Will there be more from the Isa universe? No spoilers, but…absolutely. In fact, you can count on not one, but TWO more stories (especially now that I have paid a cover artist LOL).
The story is *still* not over.
Sending you hugs as warm as a Chubbie’s chai (IYKYK),
Gina R. Briggs
Please be advised: This work contains references to suicide, drug use, underaged drinking, and the termination of a pregnancy. The back matter contains resources on the aforementioned subjects. For an exhaustive list of all content warnings, please visit my website, www.ginarbriggswrites.com.
Hi Readers,
I thought the story was complete. I’m so glad I was wrong.
My initial plan was to write one short story to be included in the bonus content of THE ISA PROJECT, second edition. But, as I wrote, I realized: The story isn’t over. The idea for a collection was born.
I’ll always be a theatre freak, so I wasn’t surprised that my subconscious manifested an excuse to write for the stage. The play element was devised as a method to weave the stories together, and given that theatrical storytelling is a binding force for these characters, it was a natural solution. When it dawned on me that some of my readers might not have read a play before, I became even more excited. To be someone’s introduction to script reading…that’s pretty cool.
In short, this book was never part of “The Plan.” Though, it’s fitting that I pantsed my way into an Isa sequel seeing as I pantsed the entire first novel.
Will there be more from the Isa universe? No spoilers, but…absolutely. In fact, you can count on not one, but TWO more stories (especially now that I have paid a cover artist LOL).
The story is *still* not over.
Sending you hugs as warm as a Chubbie’s chai (IYKYK),
Gina R. Briggs
Please be advised: This work contains references to suicide, drug use, underaged drinking, and the termination of a pregnancy. The back matter contains resources on the aforementioned subjects. For an exhaustive list of all content warnings, please visit my website, www.ginarbriggswrites.com.
September 8, 2025
I got to beta read this gem of a story and to read it in ARC form was just as delightful! Seeing the story take shape took away none of the magic of reading the ARC; in fact, it heightens it for me.
I have been a longtime reader of Contemporary YA and there are a handful of characters I will always love and wonder about. When I read The Isa Project, K and Lincoln and Isa were so real to me, and here is more insight into them.
The story is made up of three chapters, one from mid-30s Lincoln, one from Isa in her downward spiral, and one from mid-30s K. And, it is interwoven with a play that the character Lincoln wrote. It is creative and unique and everything you could want in a story. If you haven’t read The Isa Project, that’s okay, but it will enhance your experience of this story.
What a beautiful continuation of hope and beauty and love in life even I the most of grief and hard times.
Content courtesies: references to suicide, drug use, underaged drinking, and the termination of a pregnancy. The back matter contains resources on these subjects. For an exhaustive list, please visit Gina’s website website, www.ginarbriggswrites.com.
I have been a longtime reader of Contemporary YA and there are a handful of characters I will always love and wonder about. When I read The Isa Project, K and Lincoln and Isa were so real to me, and here is more insight into them.
The story is made up of three chapters, one from mid-30s Lincoln, one from Isa in her downward spiral, and one from mid-30s K. And, it is interwoven with a play that the character Lincoln wrote. It is creative and unique and everything you could want in a story. If you haven’t read The Isa Project, that’s okay, but it will enhance your experience of this story.
What a beautiful continuation of hope and beauty and love in life even I the most of grief and hard times.
Content courtesies: references to suicide, drug use, underaged drinking, and the termination of a pregnancy. The back matter contains resources on these subjects. For an exhaustive list, please visit Gina’s website website, www.ginarbriggswrites.com.
August 13, 2025
Ruminating Daisies is a tour de force in miniature for Briggs. The way she combines playwriting and short form fiction with strong symbolic images and ties to her previous work is nothing short of brilliant. For fans of her first novel, The Isa Project, this work is both an extension and an expansion, taking a look at key moments both within the first story as well as the future of the characters. She tackles themes of redemption, friendship, heartbreak, grief, and the beauty and struggle of parenting. Briggs’ true talent lies in her characters, which shine through as truly tangible people. The lives of K, Lincoln, and Isa become much more deep and vibrant with each story, and she paints a picture so beautiful that you don’t want the book to end. These characters will stay with me for a long time.
September 12, 2025
Such a beautiful collection. I loved that this was short stories woven around a play. It made it such a unique read. I loved being back with these characters and seeing different parts of their lives! I can’t wait to read what comes next!
September 10, 2025
There is a small but exceedingly bright constellation of indie authors shining light on oft-ignored problems with such inventiveness that their work transcends the confines of mere books. These writers are true multimedia artists, and with Ruminating Daisies, Gina R. Briggs has not only joined their ranks but stepped to center stage and taken a leading role.
Ruminating Daisies is “a sequel-like novelette collection” of stories told from the perspective of three main characters who originated in Briggs’ earlier novel, The Isa Project. Cleverly structured as a classic three-act play complete with stage directions, dialogue, and even a theme song, these new stories in Book 2 both pick up where The Isa Project left off and provide additional insight into that first book, yet can be enjoyed standalone by readers who have just discovered the series.
Such an ambitious timeline might sound confusing, but trust me, the author handles it so well it’s transparent. Indeed, as Briggs herself writes, “Time is irrelevant. This story is about how that time was spent.” Major themes in Ruminating Daisies include the far-reaching effects of mental illness on friends and family, and the near-universal desire to assume responsibility and atone after personal tragedy. But above all, the stories are about giving voice to our most private thoughts, because only then can we forgive both ourselves and others.
Brainy, gutsy, and proof that the very best things do come in small packages, Ruminating Daisies is the book I needed a decade ago, and it wouldn’t surprise me if ten years hence, it’s being hailed as a seminal work of literature. It really is that good! Don’t miss it.
Ruminating Daisies is “a sequel-like novelette collection” of stories told from the perspective of three main characters who originated in Briggs’ earlier novel, The Isa Project. Cleverly structured as a classic three-act play complete with stage directions, dialogue, and even a theme song, these new stories in Book 2 both pick up where The Isa Project left off and provide additional insight into that first book, yet can be enjoyed standalone by readers who have just discovered the series.
Such an ambitious timeline might sound confusing, but trust me, the author handles it so well it’s transparent. Indeed, as Briggs herself writes, “Time is irrelevant. This story is about how that time was spent.” Major themes in Ruminating Daisies include the far-reaching effects of mental illness on friends and family, and the near-universal desire to assume responsibility and atone after personal tragedy. But above all, the stories are about giving voice to our most private thoughts, because only then can we forgive both ourselves and others.
Brainy, gutsy, and proof that the very best things do come in small packages, Ruminating Daisies is the book I needed a decade ago, and it wouldn’t surprise me if ten years hence, it’s being hailed as a seminal work of literature. It really is that good! Don’t miss it.
September 22, 2025
A great follow up to The Isa Project. The three characters thinking about what happened and still trying to come to terms with their grief. I enjoyed the play parts in particular in this book. A look at the past while Isa was still around and the future without her while they reflect on what happened. I look forward to reading more next year when the next two books are out.
January 13, 2026
Beautifully written. Be sure to read Isa Project first. This book does such a great job reuniting characters that you love. Highly highly recommend Isa Project and then reading this great pairing.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews