Two Seattle authors pair up Jan. 25 to present a thought-provoking discussion on women, love and literature at Eagle Harbor Books.

Randy Sue Coburn will be bringing her second novel, “Owl Island,” while Kit Bakke will present her debut novel, “Miss Alcott’s E-Mail: Yours For Reforms Of All Kinds.”

“Owl Island” is a pretty straightforward romance novel, with descriptions like “ … a tale about mothers and daughters, power and control, and the liberating lessons of opening one’s heart.”

The story is set on fictitious Owl Island in Puget Sound, which is not entirely unlike Bainbridge Island, except there’s a bridge to the mainland. The island is divided between the earthy, artsy types on the north end of the island and the affluent newcomers on the south end.

Bridging the gap between these two cultures is the heroine, Phoebe, a widowed single mother who mends fishing nets for a living and lives on the north end.

The story’s central conflict surrounds the arrival on Owl Island of Phoebe’s first love, now a rich and successful Hollywood director. Guess which end of the island he’s just bought a house on?

From there the plot swirls out to encircle the paternity of Phoebe’s grown daughter, now a computer programmer in Seattle, Phoebe’s new lover/old friend, artist Ivan and the secrets hidden in Phoebe’s conflicted past.

The book has gotten good reviews since its release last summer, and was the best-selling book at Seattle’s M. Coy Books in July and the best-selling book on the Book Sense/Northwest Booksellers list in August.

Coburn is also the author of “Remembering Jody,” and the screenplay “Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle.”

Coburn was born in Chicago and raised in South Carolina. She now lives on the Seattle waterfront with her husband Nick Fennel, who is a visual artist, and their dog, Binx.

She has worked as a journalist, with essays and articles in numerous national publications including Esquire, Smithsonian, the Washington Post and the Chicago Tribune.

“Miss Alcott’s E-Mail” is a historical fiction with a unique hook — it’s based on a series of letters that Bakke writes to Louisa May Alcott, via e-mail, which are mysteriously answered across the centuries.

As Bakke writes in the book’s introduction: “I wish I could explain more about the mechanics of our correspondence, but I can’t, because other than frying six surge protectors, I don’t know how it worked either.”

The premise is that Bakke researched and wrote short histories of Alcott, the 19th century author of “Little Women,” which she would then “send” to Alcott for correction and comment.

“In return for her editorial efforts, Louisa would have a chance to speak out one more time and she could learn the 21st century fate of her own most heartfelt causes,” Bakke writes.

Alcott was a woman ahead of her time, a single, independent woman who campaigned for abolition of slavery and for women’s rights. She was, and still is, a role model for women.

Bakke is a Seattle native who had careers as a nurse and business consultant before turning to writing in her 50s, about the same age Alcott was when she died.

“I love books more than anything in the world,” Bakke writes. “Books have given me so much: I wanted to see if I could give something back.”

Coburn and Bakke share their books at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 25 at Eagle Harbor Books, 157 Winslow Way E, Bainbridge Island.