Book two of Katherena Vermette's Stranger family trilogy — a searing exploration of race, class, inherited trauma and matrilineal bonds that refuse to be broken. Elsie, struggling with addiction, is determined to turn her life around and reunite with her daughters. Between flickering moments of warmth, the women diverge and reconnect, fighting to survive in a fractured system that expects them to fail. Facing racism from those they trusted most, they urge one another forward, all the while wondering if they will ever emerge safely on the other side.