The stories in this collection circle around women who are either literally missing - a mother in rehab, a daughter never born - or who are missing some metaphorical piece of themselves. A father tries to convince his uncompromising, anorexic daughter to want to live, a single woman lures men to her bed only to abandon them, and marriage is shaken by a search party for a woman who's disappeared. How does one balance safety with adventure? Dreams with practicality? Grief with joy?