A lone gunman takes the women and doctors at a controversial abortion clinic hostage. Nobody has ended up there by choice.

As the tense negotiation for their release unfolds, hour by crucial hour, back in time through the day that brought the hostages and their captor to this moment, every certainty is questioned, every judgement thrown into sharp relief.

Because matters of life and death look very different when you, or the ones you love, are staring down the barrel of a gun . . .

Powerful, thought-provoking and deeply involving, Jodi Picoult's new novel is told in reverse, propelling the reader through intertwining characters and uncovering motives in this unflinching exploration of what makes a life.