What happens when a single decision threatens to unravel a long and loving marriage? Ruth Kagan has built what looks like a perfect life: a devoted husband who’s a successful physician,two wonderful children,a comfortable home,and a PhD in sociology underway. But after years in Dallas,she finds herself haunted by a longing for her homeland,Israel,and struggling to hold on to the promise of the American Dream she and her husband once shared.

What happens when a single decision threatens to unravel a long and loving marriage? Ruth Kagan has built what looks like a perfect life: a devoted husband who’s a successful physician, two wonderful children, a comfortable home, and a PhD in sociology underway. But after years in Dallas, she finds herself haunted by a longing for her homeland, Israel, and struggling to hold on to the promise of the American Dream she and her husband once shared. Torn between family obligations and self-fulfillment, between the pull of her homeland and the life she’s made across the ocean, Ruth embarks on a journey to understand where she truly belongs - and whether love can endure when dreams diverge. The Kagan family embodies both the allure and the disillusionment of the American Dream. In vivid, finely observed prose, Efrat Israeli portrays a marriage at a crossroads - caught between love and estrangement, Israel and America - where the yearning to belong is as fragile as it is enduring. Efrat Israeli was born and raised in Jerusalem and has since made her home in both Tel Aviv and Dallas, Texas. She holds a law degree from Tel Aviv University and a master’s degree in sociology from the University of Texas at Dallas. She published two more novels in English: Her Promised Road (2014) - inspired by the early life of Golda Meir, and Waiting for His Return (2025) - a moving portrayal of a family waiting for their son’s return from captivity.