Widely respected Marriage and Family Therapist Esther Perel discusses desire in long-term relationships in her Ted talk. Her acclaimed and original explorations of emotional and erotic intelligence can be read in greater depth and detail in Mating in Captivity and The State of Affairs: Rethinking Infidelity.

Brené Brown’s captivating Ted talk, The Power of Vulnerability, introduces her original work on courage, worthiness, and shame. Her books carry her breakthrough research further still.

Don Miguel Ruiz wrote The Four Agreements to illuminate timeless paths toward personal freedom. His voice is unique — and therefore, not for everyone — but his wisdom is universal. His book is followed by several sequels, each, like the original, brief and profound.

Sue Johnson developed Emotionally Focused Therapy, and is one of the greatest living voices of couple therapy. Her books are as insightful as they are inspirational. Her latest is Love Sense, which delves into the nature of love, supported by the most recent research findings — findings which would vindicate her once-controversial, seminal hit Hold Me Tight, which established her credentials as an attachment-bond theorist who could make a difference in the lives of ordinary people.

David Schnarch’s pioneering classic Passionate Marriage has helped countless couples develop their personal and sexual well-being, and his contributions are often seen as foundational to couple therapy and to sex therapy.