4.5 stars. To say that I liked this book is incorrect. It's not a happy book, it's not a likeable book. Most of the characters are violently flawed, but it is one of the most though provoking books I've read in a while. It's made me think about my relationships - with Deon, my parents, my sister, my friends. And the relationships of others around me. Parts dragged a little - I think Shriver went on a bit too much about the state of the American health system - but I wanted to keep reading. I had to know, although the ending was known, what was going to happen. It might be time for that discussion no one wants to have - what will you and partner do in the face of an incurable disease?