For some people, life sucks.

Research chemist Mia has been through a lot. Dragged by boyfriend Mike into a life of crime, coerced into working in a factory producing counterfeit cosmetics, she is stuck in a cycle of hope and despair. Landing in a psychiatric clinic after attempting suicide, Mia is offered the prospect of friendship, in the form of Alice, a fellow patient. But that prospect turns to tragedy, while shady Mike - is it love, hate or both? - sticks to her like glue.

A helping hand is not far away, as Ava, a nurse at the clinic, enters with her apparently insolvable problem. Can Mia return Ava's kindness and save Brice, Ava's husband?

This is a story of a young woman's search for meaning in a world of crime, betrayal and exploitation, from debut author Emilie Tschanz.