The Blessings of the Animals: A Novel (P.S.)

From Cam Anderson is a fixer. As a small-town veterinarian, she ministers to the usual parade of household pets, and as an animal-rescue volunteer she liberates abused horses, abandoned donkeys, stray goats. The one thing Cam can’t salvage is her marriage. The morning her temperamental husband tells her he’s leaving her, she’s dumbfounded. The afternoon she catches him in the arms of a much younger woman, she’s devastated. And the fact that everyone around her seems to be rejoicing in their own relationships isn’t helping. Her best friend is engaged; her parents are celebrating their fiftieth anniversary; her gay brother and his partner are adopting. Though she turns to both an old friend and a new acquaintance to help her learn to trust her heart again, Cam ultimately discovers that her menagerie of maltreated critters are her most reliable instructors. With subtle yet shimmering insight, Kittle explores the resilience of human nature and the indelible role animals play in healing shattered emotions. --Carol Haggas Review “Wonderfully poignant characters and a deeply satisfying exploration of love in its many incarnations, some of them a bit furrier than others, make this novel Katrina Kittle’s most insightful yet. Don’t miss it!” (Lesley Kagen, New York Times bestselling author of Tomorrow River )

From Katrina Kittle, critically acclaimed author of The Kindness of Strangers, comes a wry and moving story of forgiveness, flexibility, happiness, and the art of moving on.

Veterinarian Cami Anderson has hit a rough patch. Stymied by her recent divorce, she wonders if there are secret ingredients to a happy, long-lasting marriage or if the entire institution is outdated and obsolete. Couples all around her are approaching important milestones. Her parents are preparing to celebrate their fiftieth anniversary. Her brother and his partner find their marriage dreams legally blocked. Her former sister-in-law—still her best friend—is newly engaged. The youthfully exuberant romance of her teenage daughter is developing complications. And three separate men—including her ex-husband—are becoming entangled in Cami's messy post-marital love life.

But as she struggles to come to terms with her own doubts amid this chaotic circus of relationships, Cami finds strange comfort in an unexpected confidant: an angry, unpredictable horse in her care. With the help of her equine soul mate, she begins to make sense of marriage's great mysteries—and its disconnects.

Publishers Weekly

Beginning with the end of Cami Anderson's marriage, Kittle (The Kindness of Strangers) wades through heartache and tragedy yet manages to find elegance and charm in her latest novel. Cami's distress is palpable as she deals with her husband's seemingly inexplicable decision to leave her and their teenage daughter, Gabriella. Juggling her veterinary practice, her now cynical daughter, and her own feelings takes up all of Cami's time but she soon realizes that she has no monopoly on struggle: her brother and his male partner lose their adopted daughter to the child's biological mother. Cami taps into her own experience with loss to help the couple, which leads her to take a more honest look at her marriage and the new life ahead of her. While Cami stumbles through post-divorce dating and raising Gabriella, her family of animals--horses, cats, dogs, and a goat--provide respite. Cami's reflections, in tandem with those of delightful friends, present a long-view of the nature of marriage and relationships. (Aug.)

“[A] beautifully crafted novel....A must-read not only for animal lovers, but for anyone who has found the courage to come back from heartbreak and find love again, without reservation, without fear.”—Sara Gruen, New York Times bestselling author of Water for Elephants“A marvelous page-turner, a story of an unexpected heartbreak and the unexpected blessings that result. I didn’t want to put this book down!”— Ellen Baker, author of Keeping the House “Wonderfully poignant characters and a deeply satisfying exploration of love in its many incarnations...make this novel Katrina Kittle’s most insightful yet.”—Lesley Kagen, New York Times bestselling author of Tomorrow River From Katrina Kittle, the critically acclaimed author of The Kindness of Strangers, comes The Blessings of the Animals—a wry, engrossing, and moving story of a veterinarian’s journey through the aftermath of divorce amidst a motley crew of beasts. In the aftermath of a divorce, veterinarian Cami Anderson is surrounded by couples approaching different milestones in their relationships, and must also contend with her animal patients, all while trying to move on with her life