by Julie Clark
First published 2018
Paige Robson works as a geneticist and thought she had built a stable life for herself and her eight-year-old son Miles. When Miles starts at a new school, he struggles to fit in and begins asking persistent questions about his biological father. Paige used an anonymous sperm donor and has no answers to give him. Then fate intervenes and brings the donor directly into their lives. Paige's controlled world starts falling apart as Miles's paternity becomes a threat to everything she values. She must navigate new friendships with other mothers, confront her own buried emotional wounds, and deal with her absent father's sudden reappearance. The laboratory breakthroughs that define her professional life pale beside these personal revelations. When tragedy strikes their family, Paige faces the full weight of a secret only she carries. She discovers that while DNA science fascinates her, the emotional complexities of identity and family origins prove far more challenging than any genetic puzzle.
Genres: fiction, literary-fiction, contemporary, family-drama
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, secrets
359 pages · Paperback · Gallery Books