“What’s wrong is seldom one thing; it’s one more thing.”

Slanted Light, a novel by Teddy Jones, is a compelling contemporary novel of a Texas family in crisis.

Claire Havlicek’s world is falling apart. Professionally, she seems successful. She’s a nurse practitioner and owns two clinics. The clinics are a few miles apart and she sees patients at both. But there’s never enough time and she often needs to bring work home just to keep up with the endless record keeping.

Claire’s husband, C.J. is a cattle rancher and is constantly fighting to keep the ranch profitable in a years-long drought. Their ranch, located near the small town of Jackson’s Pond in the Texas Panhandle, has been in Claire’s family for generations.

Amy, their thirteen year-old daughter, is flirting with bulimia, influenced by two trouble-making friends. Jay Frank, Amy’s sensitive younger brother, senses his family is in trouble. He’s frightened, but doesn’t know how to help.

When Claire suspects that her husband is being sought after by another woman, a fellow member of the local stockman’s association, she’s terrified that her marriage is threatened. C.J. has often said Claire doesn’t have time for them, that she seems to care more for her patients than her family.

Troubles are piling up and Claire collapses under the strain. What comes next is a tribute to extended family, to the ability to recognize human weakness, and to find the necessary resilience to make change.

I enjoyed Slanted Light and found the characters to be realistic and in tune with modern-day situations. I appreciated learning about the role of nurse practitioners and associated health care clinics, and about the unique challenges in modern-day cattle ranching in Texas.