Fiction, Romance: The author's story follows the life of Hope Sterling, as told by her Aunt Sarah. The story traces Hope's early years in a promising marriage that slowly disintegrates following numerous moves, her husband's poor career choices, subsequent disability, and the influence of alcohol. However, Hope manages to pull herself together, reunite with her adopted children and their new families and to find a new life as a caregiver for an invalid and the lover of her charge's husband.