28 Years with a Covert Narcissist: A Memoir of Love, Betrayal, and Survival

This isn’t just a memoir.
It’s a reckoning.

Ruby Vale thought she had married her soulmate. What she didn’t realize was that behind the charm lived a man who mastered the art of control, silence, and emotional erasure. For 28 years, she played the role — wife, mother, business partner — while slowly unraveling under the weight of his manipulation.

When the truth finally surfaced, she didn’t just walk away.
She lit the match.

Told with brutal honesty and sharp insight, Burning Bridges, Building Paths is a raw, powerful story of betrayal, survival, and the fire it takes to rebuild a life from the ashes. For anyone who’s ever stayed too long, believed too much, or lost themselves trying to love the wrong person — this book is for you.

Because sometimes the only way forward… is through fire.

Cover: Original watercolor artwork by Ruby Vale, 1988.

Symbolic Pricing: $19.11 honors the press that gave this book a voice - Nineteen Eleven.