The Full Catastrophe

The Full Catastrophe: a memoir.  by Karen Elizabeth Lee. Berkeley: She Writes Press, 2016. 259 pages. ***

In this memoir about domestic abuse, it's 1998 and Karen Lee decides she wants out of her second marriage to bigger than life Duncan. When Duncan is diagnosed with cancer, Karen stays to help him through his operations and treatments. Duncan's death does not bring the freedom and self-actualization that Karen so desperately seeks.  Working as a consultant and successful business woman did not bring satisfaction to her life and she escapes into wine, denial, and disastrous relationships.

A courageous glimpse into the life of a strong woman who cannot resist the lure of "Prince Charming" saving her from the life she created for herself. It's not until she realizes what she doesn't want, is Lee able to discover what she does want and need in a man. Written in retrospect, Lee's plight may help other women in similar marriages find the strength to leave a toxic relationship.

I received an Advance Reader copy from BookSparks for a review.

Karen E. Lee grew up in rural Southern Ontario, Canada, and is a retired clinical psychologist and management consultant. She has lived in Canada, England, and Hawaii. She received an undergraduate degree in 1970 in anthropology, worked in exploration geology in Toronto and Calgary, and in 1991 became a chartered psychologist in Alberta. She moved to England in 1995, where she lived and worked as an independent management consultant for ten years. Her consulting work and general interest have taken her to many different countries. Today, she helps her husband, Bill, in his jewelry business, volunteers for political concerns, and is on the board of Peter Support Services for Abused Women (PSSAW). She and her husband live in Calgary, Alberta.

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