Those of you who have siblings know that life would be unthinkable without them, despite the lifelong conflicts and competitions. If you have ever lost a sibling, you also know that the memories can unite you or tear you apart, but that life will never be defined in the same way again.
The Garland family faces tragedy when son Daniel, a brilliant medical student, is killed in a senseless automobile accident while out running a simple errand. Daniel was a shining star, full of promise and newly in love, and his death has ramifications that splinter the family and affect decisions and relationships for years to come: father's drinking increases, parents divorce, and sisters Josie and Meredith grow further apart.
Fifteen years later, Josie is a first grade teacher, single, free-spirited, and longing for a family of her own. Her most serious relationship was destroyed by her own guilt over the suspicions she has been nursing for years about her own possible role in Daniel's death. Meredith, seeming living a perfect life married to Daniel's best friend, Nolan, is a successful lawyer and harried mother barely coping with her marriage and motherhood. Meredith considers Josie to be irresponsible, self-involved, and inconsiderate while she herself is a martyr. When Josie, who adores her niece Harper, decides that the time is right to have a child of her own, family secrets and guilt come to the surface, threatening relationships and raising questions that have been beneath the surface for years.
If you've ever lost a sibling, or even if you haven't, this story might open up some wounds, but it might also inspire some growth and healing. Giffin knows how to get to the heart of family dynamics and the family love that can never truly be eradicated by tragedy.
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