The nineteen stories in Anne Leigh Parrish's People Ruin Everything blend magical realism with love lost and misbegotten. Ornamental statuary takes on a life of its own; a woman learns years later why the man she adored abandoned her; and a devoted daughter-in-law hears a shocking truth about her husband's father. Throughout run the themes of broken marriages and those on the brink; missed chances, irreconcilable differences, and secrets hiding in plain sight. These are stories that lay bare passion and despair in souls searching for redemption, acceptance, and a moment's kindness.