Mountains, Malbec, and Men - Paperback

by Noelle Cumberland (Author)

Allyn Thompson thrives by setting and accomplishing goals. Engineering degree? Check. Home ownership? Check. Husband? Check and uncheck. Baby? In progress.

After another negative pregnancy test following her third IUI round, Allyn confides in her therapist that she's spiraling, not knowing if she should continue fighting against her diminishing fertility odds. Her therapist encourages her to take a trekking trip because it has helped Allyn find clarity in the past. Hiking is her haven despite her family's insistence that a Black woman alone in the woods is dangerous.

But then the pandemic closes trails and shutters Allyn's ability to decide her next steps. When the shutdown ends, Allyn is confronted with crowded trails and a changing America. And then, a close friend asks to be her partner and father her child. Instead of joy, Allyn has gnawing doubts-about him as a partner, about him as a father, and about the America her child would inherit.