Breathe

By Joyce Carol Oates

Book Overview

A NOVEL OF LOVE AND LOSS FROM BESTSELLING AND
PRIZEWINNING AUTHOR JOYCE CAROL OATES

Amid a starkly beautiful but uncanny landscape in New
Mexico, a married couple from Cambridge, MA takes residency at a distinguished
academic institute. When the husband is stricken with a mysterious illness,
misdiagnosed at first, their lives are uprooted and husband and wife each
embarks upon a nightmare journey. At
thirty-seven, Michaela faces the terrifying prospect of widowhood - and the
loss of Gerard, whose identity has greatly shaped her own.

In vividly depicted scenes of escalating suspense,
Michaela cares desperately for Gerard in his final days as she comes to realize
that her love for her husband, however fierce and selfless, is not enough to
save him and that his death is beyond her comprehension. A love that refuses to be surrendered at
death--is this the blessing of a unique married love, or a curse that must be
exorcized?

Part intimately detailed love story, part horror story
rooted in real life, BREATHE is an exploration of hauntedness rooted in the
domesticity of marital love, as well as our determination both to be faithful to the
beloved and to survive the trauma of loss.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 006308547X
• ISBN13: 9780063085473
• Release Date: August 2021
• Publisher: Ecco Press
• Length: 384 Pages
• Weight: 1.26 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.3" x 9.5"