Cell Mates/Soul Mates is based on extensive research by the author into a largely neglected aspect of imprisonment: the development of intimate relationships by 'inside' and 'outside' partners despite the physical and formal barriers. The book contains introductory material and extended extracts from interviews with people who have experienced the phenomenon. These suggest that - against the odds - the partners concerned often remain committed to each other. Despite the precarious nature of the enterprise - and sometimes hostile reactions from people around them - they stay together and build a new life in which crime becomes a thing of the past, something which should be an encouragement to a range of people concerned with offending behaviour, sentence planning and release decisions - where the role of the prisoner's family may be a key factor.