Set 15 years after the ending of Waiting to Exhale, the novel takes place in Phoenix, Arizona, and follows the experiences of four African-American female friends (Savannah, Robin, Bernadine, Gloria) in their late 40s and early 50s.

McMillan wrote the novel as a guide for older women who have experienced loss and dejection, forcing them to hit the reset button on their lives.

Robin has been so hyper-focused on maintaining her job and raising her outspoken daughter Sparrow that she has had no time to even think about her love and sex life.

Due to this scandal, Bernadine was cheated out of her own money, closed her café, became addicted to pills, and rekindled her relationship with John.

She shared a happy and healthy marriage with her husband Marvin, had a wonderful family, and a flourishing salon and spa business called "Oasis".

Gloria plunged into depression, causing Oasis' success to heavily decline and her to gain back all the weight she lost over the years.

While navigating through a new time period in their lives, each experiencing extreme emotional and mental distress along the way, these four best friends will need to remain strong, connected, and faithful to get back to their happy.

Bernadine realized that hiding behind pain medication was not going to improve her situation or get her back to normal; instead, she was going to have to face her faults and “regain her former joy".

[3] This novel consists of many letdowns from men, such as Bernadine having to pay back a loan that her ex-husband was supposed to be taking care of, Savannah finding out about her husband's porn addiction and then having to lend him money after their divorce, and Robin being a single parent providing it all for her now teenage daughter.

Between Bernadine's ex-husband John becoming a good friend of hers and lending a helping hand after "James", Bernadine taking in Taylor (John's daughter) after her mother abandons her, or Robin's daughter Sparrow, who is highly mature, acting as her matchmaker to help her mother, the novel highlights that you can find assistance and comfort from the people you least expect.