“See, this is why I moved to Vermont,” Sophie muttered.

Not all conflict is created equal. Surface-level squabbles (who pays for dinner) are boring; existential betrayals are riveting. A well-drafted family storyline escalates through three tiers:

Outside, the rain stopped. A single beam of moonlight cut through the clouds, illuminating the old porch where generations of Ashworths had argued, reconciled, and failed each other—and where, perhaps, they might finally begin again.