"Anyone involved in, embarking on, or yearning for, an intimate relationship should buy, borrow or steal Intimate Partners."
—New Woman

"Intimate Partners is easy to read–and to identify with—especially if you're married. The author does not address the institution itself, but rather the individual, though quite universal, strains that pervade it."
—The Boston Globe

"Maggie Scarf…applies her prodigious energy to the task of diagnosing and treating the malignancies of marriage."
—The New York Times Book Review

"In Intimate Partners, Maggie Scarf takes on all the big questions, and manages to give some surprisingly substantial answers."
—Newsday

"Maggie Scarf has captured the essence of our search for intimacy…Anyone who is married or contemplating marriage will be richly rewarded by the reading of this remarkable book."
—Dr. Carol Nadelson, Past President of the American Psychiatric Association

“Scarf has written an intriguing and intelligent book about the causes of and cures for marital incompatibility…. She writes with refreshing forthrightness…. There is … no marriage that will not be illuminated by at least some sections of this book.”
—Savvy

“Scarf is a gifted interviewer, and the reader becomes personally involved in the unfolding of each story…. Scarf’s analysis of different emotional triangles and how couples use them is brilliant…. A sure hit”
—Psychology Today

“So much mumbo jumbo about relationships between men and women finds its way into print these days…. Mumbo jumbo this is NOT…. The testimony of her examples has a momentum all its own.”
—The Atlantic

“One of the rare books to offer more than that sort of quick-fix self therapy is Intimate Partners.”
—The Seattle Times

“Her calm commonsense look at the things that drive most of us nuts is soothing and informative…. One of the most compelling nonfiction books about men and women I’ve read- I think it should be required reading for everyone.”
—Susan Cheever

“Trains a powerful searchlight on our passionate attachments, illuminating conflicts that sabotage couples. It’s hard to read two consecutive sentences in this book without experiencing a shock of recognition, followed by an aftershock of understanding.”
—New Woman

“Probing…literature study on the nature of intimacy…The author’s clear-headed, constructive advice about marital problems, including guidance on sexual adjustments, should be of help to couples at all stages.”
—Publishers Weekly

“Every marriage contains a story, and it begins long before the wedding, Maggie Scarf tells us in her ambitious, thought-provoking… ultimately compelling study….Read it and feel consoled.
—USA Today

“A storehouse of information for committed partners who want to have “joyful and mutually rewarding” marriages….Short of marital therapy itself, Intimate Partners may well be the most helpful boost to come along in years for stumbling marriages”
—The Providence Journal

“A manual on how to render the marital dilemma not just tolerable but sensational”
—The Kirkus Reviews

“Scarf is remarkably skilled at inducing couples to reveal in fascinating detail their problems with intimacy…. Highly recommended for popular collections.”
—Library Journal

“Intimate Partners is a carefully researched yet eminently readable examination of how a healthy marriage can be threatened by ghosts of past relationships.”
—Salem Press