This heartfelt story about sisters, family and the tenuous connections we forge in life will stay with you long after you turn the last page.

Rose was a child when the worst possible thing happened—her sister Lily drowned. While Rose was supposed to be watching her. From that moment, Rose knew it was all her fault. After all, that’s what her mother told her. But life must go on, no matter what, and Rose and her sister, Ivy, grow up in a family without their little sister. In a family where alcoholism and arguing defines their parents. In a family that personifies dysfunction. In a family where anger forces their brother away. Was it any wonder that Rose was so excited to get to college? Was it any wonder she sometimes had a date with Mr. Merlot, the wine bottle she hid to help her get through life’s tougher moments?

At times whimsical, always genuine, this story looks at the bonds of sisters and how family can become our foundation even when we don’t expect it.