Synopsis
"I'm dying. I'm very rich. I have an extremely interesting offer for you."
Kate Lerner, a Chicago radio host, cannot believe what she's reading when the letter comes. It's from her ex-husband, Richard, who disappeared fifteen years ago when their son, Danny, was still a toddler. Not a word, not a dollar has come Kate's way in all that time . . . Until now, when this despicable man has the audacity to come back into her life.
What does it mean? And even though she could surely use some financial help, does Kate really want to find out? Her twin sister, Karen, says of course. Even David, the new man in her life, agrees.
When Kate finally hears about what Richard has to say, she decides that his outlandish proposal is worth one innocent lie to her family. But one lie inevitably leads to another, triggering a chain of events that completely turns her carefuly constructed world upside down.
Publishers Weekly
Lies threaten to tear a family apart in this second novel by Chicago radio personality Markey (The Daddy Clock). Radio host Kate Lerner hasn't heard from her first husband, Richard Farley, since the day he abandoned her and their infant son, Danny. For 15 years, Kate has worked hard to provide for Danny and her daughter from a second marriage, Sarah Rose, without any support from Richard. But when Richard contacts Kate, telling her that he will be dead within one year and that he will pay her a huge sum if she accompanies him to Italy for one week, she accepts his proposition-Danny will be in college soon and Sarah Rose needs reconstructive surgery for an old burn injury. Without explaining her trip to her twin sister, Karen, her second ex-husband, Tim, or her radio show co-host David Weiland, Kate joins Richard in Rome, where she realizes how very little he has changed and that his motives may be suspect. Back home, Kate tries to repair the damage her deceit has done, finding comfort in the arms of David, who is at her side when even more devastating lies are revealed. Markey adequately captures Kate's turmoil over her deceptions, but this lukewarm, implausible family drama lacks suspense, and its easy conclusion is too good to be true. (Aug.) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.