Outside the Lines Amy Hatvany

Eden loved playing with her father and he was a great teacher in an unorthodox way. She knew he had a mental illness but was optimistic that he would get better. Sometimes he had bad days and sometimes he had good days, but she was just grateful that he was there.


David had huge mood swings, from anger to depression to elation, as well as voices talking in his head. He tried to be the husband and father that his family needed, but it was just not him. He wanted to be who he was without conforming to what society dictated how he should act and he should perform. But eventually the demons became too much for him and he tried to kill himself one afternoon. Unfortunately, his young daughter Eden found him, bleeding out.

David never came home. He went to a psychiatric hospital and his wife presented him with divorce papers. He spends the next twenty years in and out of mental institutions and living on the street. He is a gifted artist and he uses his ability to get by.

Eden becomes a chef and is very good at what she does. Her love life though, is lacking. Knowing her father never stayed, never communicated after he left, she is afraid to commit to any relationship. But when her mother is diagnosed with cancer, Eden knows she can't leave things where they are. She wants to find her father so that she can forgive him and move on with her life.

With the help of a local homeless shelter and Jack Baker, the shelter's handsome owner, Eden sets out on a journey of the heart. But will she find what she is really looking for or was it in her backyard all along?

Outside the Lines is a beautifully wrought novel that pulls at the heartstrings. A story about family, tragedy, love, hope and being free to be whom you are, Amy Hatvany does an impeccable job of writing such a heart-breaking, yet inspiring novel. Realistic and complex characters, eloquent writing, and an in-depth taste of how mental illness affects everyone surrounding them, Outside the Lines is a well-recommended read!