Charlotte Walsh and her husband, Max, are executives at a tech company in Silicon Valley, but she wants more. Originally from Pennsylvania, she decides to return there to run for Senate against Ted Slaughter, a Republican who generally runs unopposed because he’s occupied his seat forever. 

The book follows Charlotte and her family for a little over a year as she launches her campaign, moves back to Pennsylvania, and focuses all her time and effort on winning. 

As the pressures of campaigning mount, Charlotte’s personal life is starting to unwind too. Her friendship with Leila, her assistant, becomes strained after Leila makes campaign decisions Charlotte doesn’t agree with. She finds it strange to be back in her hometown, living in the house she grew up in, which was left to her after her parents died. 

Max becomes the primary caretaker for the children, but it also makes him a little bitter, and she finds herself fighting to save her marriage at the same time. 

And all the while, Ted Slaughter is saying terrible things about her, presenting them as fact. 

When it’s finally election day, Charlotte knows that no matter the outcome, everything will change the next day. She’s either going to be preparing to go to Senate or she’s going to be deciding what becomes of her marriage and the issues she and Max are facing. Or maybe she’ll be doing both. 

This is definitely a good book to read if you're interested in women in politics. I think the more interesting thing is the way it looks at gender roles and its portrayal of the idea that women can have it all and do it all. The flip side of that is knowing that "all" means the good and the bad. That's life, and women unfortunately often have to pay a toll for ambition.