This is a book for our time, when marriage is in a state of transition, with both higher expectations and increased breakdown. Firmly based on psychological and sociological reality, it presents marriage as a developing relationship with recognizable cycles. The penultimate section deals with breakdown, which is the end point of between a third and a quarter of all marriages. The final section gives the Christian dimension of hope. Jack Dominian is a specialist in the psychology of marriage and he is also a Christian. He present the historical background of marriage and its current Christian context. The theme of the book is that the inner nature of love is 'availability'. Marriage cannot do without love, and the availability of man and woman to each other at every level lies at its heart. From it flow relationship with children, and then with others. Ultimately, the author suggest that marriage not only has a future, but also is the single most important institution for healing human wounds in society today.