In these 15 poignant stories, Melanie S. Hatter explores the tenuous hold we have on those we love, the heartache of loss, and the peace of self-discovery. The characters make their way through an often confusing world. They grapple with the complex nature of relationships and struggle to understand their place in such roles as wife, husband, lover, mother, daughter.

The collection opens with "Things We Cherish," where a couple welcomes into their home the woman's ex-husband who is dying from cancer. "Like the Geese" tells the story of a woman who, while mourning the loss of her husband, discovers she can fly. In "Something Worth Saving," a woman struggles with the aftermath of a terrifying abduction. "Taking the Shot" takes place in the jungles of Colombia where an unlikely love is formed between a hostage and her captor. "Cornbread," explores a daughter's struggles to understand her mother's increasing dementia, and in "Nikki," an abused wife is inspired by a stranger she meets in a corner store.

"Melanie Hatter is an adept seer in the manner of Marita Golden and Maxine Clair. Her catchy stories play out in the shadowbox of the heart ? familial dramas loaded with emotional spunk and live wires that spit and short out in a burst of fireworks. She plunks us down among generations of women trapped in the fantasy of happily ever, their damaged goods men, their family problems, their schemes, and their despair. These spirited characters, kidnappings, betrayals, obsessions, and losses, resonate long after you close this spectacular book." ? Richard Peabody, editor, Gargoyle Magazine

"Melanie Hatter is a sensitive soul who writes about love and loss with her whole heart." ? Donna Britt, journalist and author of "Brothers (& me): A Memoir of Loving and Giving"