Sera is a woman with a reputation. And together with her friends with  reputations of their own, she is fighting for the rights of women. Sera writes and speaks about marriage, work, sex, relationships, and, of course, reputations. 

Returning to her childhood home (to immerse herself in depression) to write what will be her explosive memoirs, Sera goes out one night for a planned liaison and meets Adam instead. 

Adam is a Scottish architect working on a nearby estate. He’s hoping this project will help him make it big. He’s a widower and a single dad. 

There is instant attraction. There is innuendo and outright propositioning. There is high heat. 

There is also later upon layer of devastation. The main characters in this book have been through abuse, addiction, ostracism, abandonment, betrayal, and grief, to name a few.* This is all of course while Adam is trying desperately (with help from his sister) to parent his grieving children and Sera’s detractors are getting more dangerous. 

Sera and Adam are pulled together by lust and love and then separated. Both use the separation to desperately pine for the other, obviously, but also, Peckham uses their time apart to thoughtfully address the individual mental health needs of her main characters. 

Also the story is just great: world class misogynistic villains; the secondary characters are a delight; the apologies are extremely extremely good; AND the epilogue and author’s note shine. 

*Please check CWs for specifics.