The Odds of You and Me: A Novel

Bernadette “Bird” Connolly is close to freedom. After a stint on probation, punishment for writing bad checks to get herself and her son, Angus, through a rough patch, Bird has just thirteen days left before she can bid her parole officer goodbye. Determined to turn over a new leaf, she is confident that nothing can go wrong. She spends her days navigating her son’s preschool friendships, planning a move to a lovely new apartment, and cleaning houses with her mother, who believes that what Bird needs is a good dose of church. It’s in a church, however, that Bird unexpectedly encounters James Rittenhouse, a fugitive who escaped from a police car after brutally assaulting a man at a bar. Bird’s history with James is scant, but the brief friendship they had five years ago spurs Bird to take action when she finds him, wounded and frightened, in the choir loft. She can’t turn her back–but helping James puts her freedom, and her entire future, at risk.

Exploring questions of moral clarity, the nature of love, and whether we can ever truly know another person, The Odds of You and Me suggests that risking great heartache is the only way to truly live.