All They Ask Is Everything

A Novel

By: Hadley Leggett

Length: 11 hrs

Publisher's summary

In this hopeful debut about the silent struggles of motherhood, three very different women want custody of the same two little girls—and learn they have more in common than the children they’re fighting for.

Determined to be a better mother than her own, Hannah has devoted her life to her daughters. She ignores her increasing exhaustion and isolation as a widowed mom—until a disastrous mistake lands the girls in foster care.

Julie is single and lonely and dreams of being a mother. After infertility issues lead her to foster parenting, she falls head over heels for Hannah’s daughters. The more she bonds with these sweet, precocious girls, the more she worries about their previous home life and becomes intent on finding a way to keep them.

Recently forced into retirement, Elaine is devastated by the way her daughter, Hannah, has shut her out. When she discovers her granddaughters are in foster care, she resolves to rescue them from the system: her one chance at a parenting do-over.

Each woman thinks she’s the best possible mother, but none understands the full truth. Old hurts, long-held secrets, and budding new relationships collide as they fight for the girls who could make them a family.

©2024 Hadley Leggett (P)2024 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.

Critic reviews

“Hopeful, wise, and ultimately uplifting, All They Ask Is Everything surprised me in the best possible way. Hadley Leggett is such a gifted storyteller that her debut reads like the work of an author at the height of her career. I loved every page of this engrossing and empathetic story about motherhood and the risks—and rewards—of being a woman in this world.”—Camille Pagán, bestselling author of Good for You

“All They Ask Is Everything is a relevant and absorbing exploration into parenting, foster care, and love. Leggett skillfully captures what it takes to be a mother—especially with no help—and how much better off everyone can be if offered the hand of compassion in all of its complicated forms.”—Ann Garvin, USA Today bestselling author of There’s No Coming Back from This

“All They Ask Is Everything has everything—a compelling plotline and a cast of perfectly crafted, flawed characters, each certain they’re the best mother for two bewildered little girls. It’s a roller-coaster ride through the intense emotions motherhood brings—complete love and joy one moment, frustration and overwhelm the next. I was hooked from the very first page.”—Kitty Johnson, bestselling author of Five Winters