Award-winning author Dara Levan is back with her second novel, Shaken to the Core, and the buzz in the literary community is palpable. Featured in People, Southern Living, and selected for Zibby Owens’ Summer 2026 Most Anticipated list, Shaken to the Core asks: When life is cut short, what do we do with the time we have left?

Dara Levan is the podcast host of Every Soul Has a Story, and a former pediatric speech-language pathologist who made her mark in publishing with her 2024 award-winning debut novel, It Could Be Worse. Based in South Florida, Dara is a community leader, a founding member of Artists Against Antisemitism, and a contributor to the USA Today bestselling anthology On Being Jewish Now.

Dara’s sophomore novel, Shaken to the Core, is already receiving abundant praise. Corie Adjmi (bestselling author of The Marriage Box) calls it “…a tender story of love, loss, and perseverance, a tale reminding readers at each surprising turn that regardless of what the universe dishes out, we all have choices.” Gila Pfeffer (award-winning author of Nearly Departed) says, “With warmth, humor, and emotional honesty, this uplifting novel reminds us that when life breaks our hearts, it can rebuild them even stronger and better than they were before.”

I couldn’t wait to learn more about the book, in this second installment of my new series highlighting Jewish authors as they publish new work. (Because if you haven’t noticed, there’s never been a better time to support the Jewish community.)

View this post on Instagram

Leah: Mazel tov, Dara! Tell us about Shaken to the Core and what you’re most excited for readers to take away from this story.

Dara: Shaken to the Core was inspired by the sudden, tragic loss of my husband’s mother. I had to grow up quickly, hearing the news while at a shiva, and just in my early twenties. Our lives changed in an instant. The story explores the question, “What do we do with the time we have left?” Joy and her husband, Andre, leave Miami to bring the tropics to the mountains of Vermont. A family photographer, Joy agreed kids weren’t part of their plan. After Joy’s mom Allegra dies (readers spent a........

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)