Love can bloom in the darkest of times. Inspired by actual events, The Orderly is a story of love, trauma, disease, and the power of relationships to heal or destroy us. Francis MacKenzie should be dead. It's 1969 and Francis is the oldest person alive with cystic fibrosis. Aware he may not survive another year, Fran focuses on his job at a hospital in Massachusetts and doesn't allow himself to think about marriage and family. Then Irene Boutelle, a traumatized young mother, is committed to the psychiatric ward where Francis works. Over the three months he helps her recuperate, Francis sees Irene's strength emerge and fantasizes about a romance he knows can never happen. When Irene is discharged, it seems they'll never see each other again. But fate has other ideas. "'Would you like to talk about what brought you here?' This is the question that drives this beautiful and gripping novel about love, loss, perseverance and healing, and above all, the power of hope. Original and deeply felt, The Orderly gives voice to those who are too often silenced." ~ Hester Kaplan, author, Unravished