Includes index.

Announcing the good news : why isn't everybody happy? -- The wedding : here comes the bride, here comes complexity -- Stepmatters -- Opportunities or dangers? : can the graces overcome the furies? -- Does it really matter how the old marriage ended? : part 1, Divorce -- Does it really matter how the old marriage ended? : part 2, Widow(er)hood -- Whose house is this anyway? -- Whom do you love best? : your lover or your loved ones? -- Your children and mine : can they ever become ours? -- The grandchildren : pawns or bridges? -- Who should inherit my property? -- My inheritance : great expectations, gone with the wind -- Love is great the second (or third) time around : but should the old folks be doing it? -- When couples don't marry -- Family celebrations and commemorations : the banana peel beneath your heel -- Thank heaven the caretaker is on duty -- The brave new world of adult stepfamilies.