Since childhood, Eva Holland has been gripped by two debilitating phobias: fear of losing her mother and fear of heights. The worst comes to pass with her mother’s sudden death in 2015, and something shifts for Eva. Then, when an ice-climbing expedition ends with Eva embarrassed and in tears, a new resolve kicks in: Fear may define her past, but it won’t decide her future!

Through incredibly moving storytelling and boots-off-the-ground investigation, Holland peels back the layers of paralyzing dread to ask: Is fear necessary? Is it rooted in the body or the mind? And even: Is there a better way to feel afraid? By grappling with, even embracing, her innermost dreads, Holland aspires to give us all the nerve to face down the phobias that limit our lives.