On The Ropes

Lou had waited a long time to get married and have children. In fact, the shock and relief expressed by her friends and family when she announced her engagement registered on the Richter Scale. She had given Steve’s proposal, when it came after a year of dating, brief but serious consideration. She was thirty eight. As far as she was concerned, this was as good as it gets. When Steve pulled the rug out from under her and their two-year-old daughter Alex, and unborn child, three-and-a-half years later, Lou was left reeling from the shock. Suddenly she was living a life not of her choosing. She was a single, unemployed, pregnant and middle-aged mother bunking with her parents, fighting to protect her daughter from the fall-out of a marriage in crisis, and a world shattering around them. But, if Lou could not stop Alex’s father from leaving them, then she was going to make damn sure that her daughter learned to live a life that bounced back from adversity, took no prisoners and was heartfelt.

On the Ropes is an honest and poignant account from mother to daughter about the implosion of their family, and the lessons learned along the way. It’s at times funny and whimsical in the face of a serious relationship breakdown, which not only affects the main players, but the supporting cast of siblings, parents, in-laws, friends and even new un-invited and unwelcome partners who arrive on the scene. It’s a family drama at its very best—and very worst.