Dawn McDowell Edelstein

Dawn is the narrator of the novel and the main character. She is well-educated, a wife and mother, and is ultimately a flawed character in some ways. When Dawn was a graduate student, working to finish her doctorate in Egyptology, she learned that her mother was ill. Dawn left school to be at her mother's side during the final weeks of her life, and she took over responsibility for her younger brother, Kieran, when their mother died. Dawn put her education on hold to do so, vaguely planning to return someday. Instead, she had a child and married, She never finished her doctorate. She struggled financially because of the debts her mother left behind – some due to Dawn's education. Throughout the process of being there for her mother, she learned she had a compassionate side. Later, she set up a business as a death doula. In...