A depressed English professor finds love in the most unlikely place in Stephanie Fournet's emotional debut novel, Fall Semester . Despite his stunning good looks, Dr. Malcolm Vashal is perhaps the most detested professor on campus. A floundering career and the aftershocks of a painful divorce have left the thirty-four-year-old with more than a little self-loathing, which only grows when he meets Maren Gardner. The graduate student with the loyal heart and searching eyes is much too good for him. She is off-limits for more reasons than one, but Malcolm can't seem to resist her. Maren is facing the greatest loss of her life, and her family needs her now more than ever. Between caring for them and building her future, Maren doesn't have time for a social life, much less a relationship, but she can't push a certain green-eyed professor from her mind. She sees in him a goodness that others don't, but that might not be enough. As the two discover each other, their blossoming friendship soon turns into something more, but self-doubts, family tragedy, and personal demons stand in their way. Can they overcome these odds and share a love that each desperately needs? Or will the end of the semester find them heartbroken?