Marital Assets

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Ducker ( Bankroll ) surveys the subtle, treacherous landscape of love and betrayal in this poignant story of four middle-aged, well-to-do friends. Journal entries by 61-year-old New York City lawyer Charles Meredith tell of events that began 15 years earlier, when he and his wife Evelyn, vacationing in the Caribbean, met William (Weemo) and Claudia Abbott. Third-person narratives supply additional viewpoints, which let readers know before Charles does that a friendly foursome has turned into an adulterous love triangle. Claudia, who was adopted, seeks Charles's help when her wealthy grandfather leaves his fortune only to ``heirs of the body.'' Claudia and Charles, who early on declares that he has lived his life ``without passion,'' have an unconsummated romance, while Weemo and Evelyn enjoy a brief affair. California lawyer Jeremy Slatkin, aiding Charles in Claudia's case, joins their summer vacation in Aspen and leads the way to the suit's settlement. Claudia leaves Weemo, but not for Charles, whose reminiscences are full of both regret and acceptance. Ducker's unadorned yet elegant prose is well suited to his characters, the self-contained members of the ``leisure class at leisure.'' (Apr.)

Library Journal

When the Merediths from New York meet the Abbots from Cincinnati on the golf course of an exclusive Caribbean resort, there is instant rapport and particular attraction between opposite spouses. So they share summer vacations in Aspen, with Weemo Abbott and Evelyn Meredith pursuing athletics and an affair, while Charles Meredith, an estate attorney, joins Claudia Abbott for cultural activities and advises her about a substantial family trust, which precludes her divorcing for years. Claudia wants freedom, yet Charles--though smitten with her--provides lawyerly advice. Then Los Angeles investor Jeremy Slatkin joins the small circle and the trust negotiations, further altering relationships. Ducker's characters are well drawn, and their story is skillfully told at a fittingly sedate pace, in part through Charles's journal entries. We have here the grand passion of a repressed upper-class WASP whose acts do not equal his emotion; for fans of Louis Auchincloss perhaps.-- Michele Leber, Fairfax Cty. P.L., Va.