Written with a deft hand, the novel features an extraordinary protagonist, a middle-aged gynecologist wracked by guilt over his son's death and riddled with a sense of social and personal responsibility for not only his professional obligations but his personal life as well. "Doc" is in an awkward situation here, never having recovered fully from the loss of his son and feeling torn between his lover and his errant, manic-depressive wife whom he cannot seem to let go of entirely. Doc Jordan is also caught up in the mystery of Rosa Littlefoot, who is sitting in jail for having killed her common-law husband and has entrusted the confused "Doc" with the care of her infant daughter. Did she kill him? What really happened on that night? Will "Doc" get custody of Maria?