Asunder

Best-selling author Richard Goldsmith has always been at war—with his past, his addictions, and the ghosts of those he’s lost. Drowning in the wreckage of his choices, he reminisces about the life he’s destroyed. He’s holed up in a New York hotel room with drugs, whiskey, deadlines, and a plan to end it all.

When a chance arrest lands him in a jail cell alongside Damien Worthridge—a sharp-tongued, fiercely defiant teenage runaway—Richard’s carefully constructed isolation begins to crack. As he takes Damien under his wing, their bond becomes a mirror, reflecting the traumas Richard has buried and the humanity he thought was gone forever.

Set against the haunting backdrop of post-9/11 New York City, Asunder is a raw and intimate exploration of grief, addiction, and the fragile hope of rebuilding from the ruins. Jessie Rose weaves a gripping narrative of human fragility and resilience, where redemption is hard-won and the past is never far behind. A tale of trauma, loss, and the fight to find connection in chaos, Asunder is an unforgettable story for readers who crave literary fiction that cuts to the bone.