Amy Bloom has long been regarded as a master of the short story form. Here, her brilliance shines across two decades and more than twenty-five stories. From the bereaved widow who finds unexpected comfort in ‘Sleepwalking’, to the matchmaking shrink in ‘Psychoanalysis Changed My Life’; from the teenage girl furious at her dying mother in ‘Hold Tight’ to the transgressive lovers of ‘The Gates Are Closing’; from the married friends irresistibly drawn to one another in ‘William and Clare’ to the brave and heartless girl in ‘Permafrost’ – these are stories brimming with life and grief, erotically charged and beautifully crafted.