This book offers fifteen portraits of women who managed to break free from situations of domestic violence and go one step further to rebuild their lives. For two years, Annette Lucas and photographer Jane Evelyn Atwood carried out research among women of various ages and social backgrounds living in France. Their unique stories are presented in this work. Determinedly optimistic, these written and photographic portraits shun any sordid realism to powerfully document the dignity, integrity and sense of freedom these women have managed to regain. The photos show the women in their daily lives and the accompanying stories relate in their own words their suffering, struggle, demand for justice and the necessary support, all while detailing the stages of their reconstruction.