by Sue Miller
First published 1987
Anna Dunlap believed she had finally found happiness. After years in a stifling marriage, her divorce freed her to build a new life with four-year-old Molly in Cambridge. When she meets Leo Cutter, a sculptor, their passionate relationship awakens desires Anna had never experienced. She introduces Leo to Molly, hoping to create the loving family she always wanted. But when her ex-husband Brian discovers the relationship, he uses it as ammunition in court. Brian argues that Anna's sexual openness makes her an unfit mother. The custody hearing forces Anna to choose between the love that transformed her and the daughter who means everything to her. Miller examines how society judges mothers differently than fathers, and how women's sexuality becomes evidence against their character.
Genres: fiction, literary-fiction, contemporary, family-drama
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, family-secrets
Setting: Cambridge
Period: 20th-century
Paperback · Versal.
Content warnings: sexual-content