After the death of her baby brother, Alice dedicates her life to finding the man who stole his breath.
Alice Monroe is four years old when a man appears in her bedroom and takes the breath of her baby brother. Her father, Shaun, never recovers from the loss, and two years later dies while taking a bath. Alice catches glimpses of him for months after. Her mother, Teri, doesn’t believe in ghosts, and definitely doesn’t believe in the man who took David’s breath.
Paul Sinclair runs Beechwood nursing home in Tilehurst, and kindly offers a nursing job to Teri after Shaun’s death. Alice meets the ghost of an old lady at the home, who tells her she’s actually been seeing Death.
Alice begins a life-long obsession with catching Death. From the age of twelve to the age of eighteen, Alice tries to trick and cajole him into appearing. Her tactics become more desperate, threatening to close the nursing home and destroy her life. When she finally corners Death, she learns that fantasy and dreams almost never work out.