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Chancers  By  cover art

Chancers

By: Susan Stellin,Graham MacIndoe
Narrated by: Susan Stellin,Graham MacIndoe
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Publisher's summary

In this powerful memoir of addiction, prison, and recovery, a reporter and a photographer tell their gripping story of falling in love, the heroin habit that drove them apart, and the unlikely way a criminal conviction brought them back together.

Books for a Better Life Award Finalist
LitHub Best Book of the Month

When Susan Stellin asked Graham MacIndoe to shoot her author photo for an upcoming travel book, she barely knew him except for a few weekends with mutual friends at a summer house in Montauk. He was a gregarious, divorced Scotsman who had recently gotten sober; she was an independent New Yorker who decided to take a chance on a rough-around-the-edges guy. But their relationship was soon tested when Susan discovered that Graham still had a drug habit he was hiding.

From their harrowing portrayal of the ravages of addiction to the stunning chain of events that led to Graham's arrest and imprisonment at Rikers Island, Chancers unfolds in alternating chapters that offer two perspectives on a relationship that ultimately endures against long odds. Susan follows Graham down the rabbit hole of the American criminal justice system, determined to keep him from becoming another casualty of the war on drugs. Graham gives a stark, riveting description of his slide from brownstone Brooklyn to a prison cell, his gut-wrenching efforts to get clean, and his fight to avoid getting exiled far away from his son and the life he built over 20 years.

Beautifully written, brutally honest, yet filled with suspense and hope, Chancers will resonate with anyone who has been touched by the heartache of addiction, the nightmare of incarceration, or the tough choice of leaving or staying with someone who is struggling on the road to recovery. By sharing their story, Susan and Graham show the value of talking about topics many of us are too scared to address.

Praise for Chancers

“Stellin and MacIndoe, in entries sometimes akin to fighters in the ring, tell the story of their lives as MacIndoe rides a roller-coaster life of drug addiction and prison.... [Chancers] grabs in a voyeuristic way and propels page-turning to find out what happens next in a saga no soap opera could create.” (The Buffalo News)

“Emotionally resonant and evenly structured, their tandem chronicle resists overly romanticizing their bittersweet interactions to focus on the dedication and devotion necessary to make their already-complicated relationship survive the fallout of critical hardships. An emotionally complex and intensely personal binary memoir of addiction and sustainable love.” (Kirkus Reviews)

©2016 Susan Stellin and Graham MacIndoe (P)2016 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"Emotionally resonant and evenly structured, their tandem chronicle resists overly romanticizing their bittersweet interactions to focus on the dedication and devotion necessary to make their already-complicated relationship survive the fallout of critical hardships. An emotionally complex and intensely personal binary memoir of addiction and sustainable love." (Kirkus Reviews)

What listeners say about Chancers

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Skillful mix of personal and political

I listened to the audio version of Chancers during a road trip and was immediately drawn into the memoir, which is narrated by the authors themselves. It is an amazing love story but extends beyond the personal realm, delving into addiction, criminal justice, and immigration. I found it rivoting and can easily imagine it becoming a Hollywood movie.

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7 people found this helpful

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AMAZING! THANK YOU SUSAN AND GRAHAM! INSPIRING!

I listened to this audio book and finished it in two days. My husband an addict like me actually bought a splitter so that we could listen to the book together! We too struggled with addiction in the past, we started using together after a solid year of being together. I desperately wanted to stop and did while he had a much harder time. He had been incarcerated for over a year and his 3 kids will no longer speak to him. However, hearing your story has helped us both by just knowing it is possible to trust again and to stay clean and move on. Thank you Susan for not giving up on someone who had given up on himself and thank you Graham for your willingness to share your story and your openness. Seeing the pictures online that you took while using where so powerful! I've saved a few just as a ill reminder of where heroin WILL take us if we don't stay on top of our health, healing and recovery! god bless you both and thank you from the bottom of my heart!!!

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6 people found this helpful

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Introspective....

First of all, I am thankful I downloaded this book. I don't know what makes me do it, and it packs a powerful punch for me. The fact that it is real life makes it more potent. Wow, Graham what a journey. It makes me think how easy it is to be addicted, and how it demeans and destroys peoples' lives. The fact that he survived to tell this story shows how strong he is.

Susan, am telling you, you are a better woman than I am. The way she fought, stood by Graham and love him is reminiscent of a woman to have as an advocate. That was some powerful emotions which jumped at me from the pages of this book. This should be read by people who have families. Anything can happen to anybody. As a minor comment, Graham, stay away from Nancy. Thank you.

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4 people found this helpful

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Wow! Just Wow!

This is an incredible story. It should be manitory reading for every citizen concerned with Trump's policy on immigration.

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Very real and inspiring

Unbelievable journey. So many aspects of the legal system that the average person would never know. Honest, heartbreaking, ultimately uplifting.

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A solid production of a beautiful story

At first glance, this seemed like a story of a co-dependent woman desperately trying to make a relationship work with her lover, who happens to be a heroin addict. But as the story played out, it was clear that it was not that at all. This is a story of pure, unconditional love, told in all its beauty, pain and tragedy. At the end of the story, I was left with a profound respect and admiration for both of them. On a side note, I'm glad that they read for themselves. What it lacked in voice, it gained in intimacy. I feel like I know both authors better after hearing their own authentic voices. All told, it was a solid production of beautiful story.

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This book is honest about white priviege & jail.

Susan Stellin reads in an odd monotone.

Graham's women are to readily charmed by his accent, I suspect.

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Provocative-Fascinating-Honest

Excellent! Loved the window into a life unfamiliar to mine. I was captivated by the complexity of addiction, immigration, living in NYC and the evolution of Susan and Graham's relationship.

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Effing Brilliant!!

Very well written and just an awesome collaboration between these two! I should add very well read also! It had been a while since an Audible Book gripped me like this. Thank you both for sharing your story.

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Incredible

This book was an incredible journey of addiction and all of its affects on family and friends. I learned so much about addiction. Especially interesting was Graham’s description of what withdrawal feels like. I could not put this book down, never lost interest. I enjoyed this book! Thank you!!

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