The Nature of Fragile Things is a story filled with love, disaster, secrets, and abuse. Sofie Whalen is an Irish immigrant who answers a mail order bride ad and within a short period of time she relocates your life from NY to CA. She marries a man she does not know and met for the first time upon arrival in CA, falls in love with his young daughter, and experiences the tragic San Francisco earthquake in 1906. As the plot unravels we discover that Sofie's new husband is not the gentleman she hoped he would be and secrets are discovered and brought to light. In the midst of it all, Sofie will meet two new women who are somehow involved with her husband. Her life will change forever. Written so beautifully and heartachingly, I could not put this book down.