I love the authors style of writing. The way she told Catherine's story had me very invested in her life. I came to know her and like her, and I came to want to sit her down and lecture her for her poor choices in life. Catherine is a dichotomy. At once fiercely independent, and incredibly lonesome. Controlling to a fault, her world is sent spiralling out of control for awhile.Catherine lived an unsupervised childhood on the docks helping her father in his fish business. Her family was always viewed as a little off, who ever heard of good Catholics CHOOSING to have only one child. And a mother who wears men's suits to dress up, being averse to dresses and skirts. It seems that Catherine was guided from an unguided childhood, to never need anyone, and yet she desperately wants to be able to be vulnerable. She feels compelled to push everyone away so she doesn't look weak, even as life brings her to her knees. She waffles back and forth between wanting to end her engagement to a man she feels she should want to marry, and though every bone in her body tells her its wrong, she stays and stays.....I wrote more, but I inadvertantly erased it, and I don't feel like writing it again.I like it, worth a read,the end. ( )