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This is the first book I've read by Chris Cleave. Though his critically acclaimed Little Bee garnered much attention, this seemed to not have such critical support, but I decided to try it anyway. The story follows three cyclists in the span of a few days with several flashbacks tracing their cycling careers. All are in training for the London 2012 Olympics, a few months away. One, Zoe, is a two-time Olympic champion with a haunted past that she deals with the only way she knows how - on the seat of her bike at breakneck speed. Another, Kate, has just missed her chances at gold twice and is hoping to finally clinch it. And last there is Jack, Kate's husband and fellow champion cyclist. The story follows the three cyclists' complex relationships with each other as well as their struggles with Kate and Jack's daughter, Sophie, an adorable eight year old with an obsession with Star Wars that helps her deal with the fact she has leukemia. Switching from these four character's point of views as well as Kate and Zoe's coach Tom, the story traces the happenings of the few days while slowly over the course of the book Cleave allows the reader to know more and more about their pasts to see how it plays into the present. It was fascinating to read the mindset of a champion cyclist and Cleave clearly did the research. It was heartbreaking but also very interesting to read about Sophie and her leukemia, in such contrast to the cycling. Well timed with the London 2012 Olympics while I read it, I enjoyed the book a lot, though didn't love it. Something about the storyline bothered me, especially SPOILER ALERT with the revelation that Kate is not Sophie's mother but in fact Zoe is. Though the three were a unit, I don't know if anyone would or should put up with all that Kate did. Jack also seemed a bit too passive as a character. Though the book was mainly about Zoe and Kate's relationships, Jack's story seemed to quiet considering how important he was for both Kate and Zoe's storyline. Overall though, I loved reading about the cycling and getting inside the mind of a driven athlete and I loved all the Star Wars references with Sophie.