At the age of fourteen, author Anne Branch is faced with a horrific situation-she must marry the man who raped her.

Her rapist husband, Manny, is a close friend of her stepfather's. Almost eleven years older than Branch, Manny enjoys the company of many young women on their home of Cape Verde Island, located off the western coast of Africa. But after Manny assaults Branch, her mother forces her to marry him. Soon after their marriage, the couple leaves the island for the United States, where she eventually gives birth to four daughters. It's not long before her husband abandons her for...