Indiscretion

October 8, 2012
Dubow tracks the fallout of an affair in his elegant debut centering on a golden couple, Harry and Maddy Winslow. He’s an award-winning writer, she’s a beautiful heiress; Walter Gervais, Maddy’s childhood friend and secret admirer, narrates the story. One weekend in the Hamptons, the Winslows meet Claire, a needy ingenue who develops a crush on the couple, especially Harry. Her role as hanger-on is severed when the Winslows leave for a year abroad, but Harry finds himself struggling with his next novel, and a chance encounter with Claire while on a business trip back to the U.S. launches him into a heady affair. Dubow draws the relationship perfectly—Claire is a giddy romantic, and Harry delights in playing the wealthy cosmopolitan. When Maddy discovers her husband’s betrayal, the four players form a miserable face-off, where Walter’s unrequited love bubbles to the surface in the face of Maddy’s grief, and Harry and Claire negotiate the affair’s relationship potential. Despite a disappointing and drawn-out ending, smart and observant writing makes the story well worth the ride. Agents: Britton Schey and Eric Simonoff, William Morris Endeavor.

January 1, 2013

Because they exude the easy charm and self-assurance often held by persons possessed with the advantages of talent, intelligence, and beauty, Harry and Madeleine Winslow are the golden couple everyone wants to know. It doesn't hurt either that they own both a Manhattan brownstone and a lovely cottage in the Hamptons to which they readily issue summer-weekend invitations. Harry, a National Book Award-winning author is the gregarious host, while Maddy's good nature and excellent culinary skills keep each guest satisfied. They are very much in love and adore their little boy, and so, to have any kind of story, something must go wrong. Enter the youthful and very beguiling Claire, who falls for Harry and Maddy in a big way. Their story is told by Walter Gervais, Maddy's dearest friend since childhood, who observes and tells all. VERDICT Dubow's first novel is a deliciously absorbing page-turner. His captivating characters jump off the page to pull the reader into their story. [See Prepub Alert, 8/9/12.]--Sheila M. Riley, Smithsonian Inst. Libs., Washington, DC

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