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Sarah Damoff
The Burning Side
Synopsis
A house fire forces a young family to confront the cracks already forming in their marriage, in this family saga about grief, forgiveness, and what we inherit from those who raised us — from the author of The Bright Years.
Genres
Characters
April TorresProtagonist
One of two alternating protagonists; a wife and mother who accidentally leaves a stove burner lit the night their house catches fire, and who reckons with guilt, motherhood, and the strain in her marriage to Leo.
Leo TorresProtagonist
April's husband, a high school history teacher shaped by a lonely, fractured childhood, whose marriage to April has quietly unraveled.
Deb RussoSupporting
April's pragmatic, no-nonsense mother, who takes the family in after the fire while caring for her husband Billy through his early-onset Alzheimer's diagnosis.
Billy RussoSupporting
April's father, living with early-onset Alzheimer's; his care is central to Deb's storyline.
Sadie (The Burning Side)Supporting
April and Leo's young daughter.
Frequently asked questions
Is The Burning Side a sequel to The Bright Years?
No. The Burning Side is Sarah Damoff's second novel, but it is a standalone story with its own characters and family — it does not continue the story of The Bright Years.
How is The Burning Side structured?
The novel alternates between three points of view — April, Leo, and April's mother Deb — and moves between the present day and flashbacks tracing April and Leo's relationship from its beginning.