Passing Through Paradise

Starred review from January 28, 2002
One February night, the car of politician Victor Winslow and his wife, Sandra, skids off an icy bridge. Afterwards, Victor is missing and presumed dead, and his wife is widely suspected of his murder despite the official conclusion that the crash was an accident. Finding that her hometown—ironically named Paradise—is a haven no longer, a dazed and shocked Sandra decides to renovate and sell her old beach house in order to finance a move. Mike Malloy, the contractor she hires, is an expert on historic restoration and a single dad struggling to rebuild his life after a punishing divorce. Sandra and Mike move warily toward love and healing as the house is painstakingly restored. In the process, Mike pushes Sandra toward clues that might explain Victor's fate and clear her name forever. Wiggs's characterizations are strong, particularly the portrait she paints of Mike, who is at once a fantasy romantic hero and a convincing modern man; even minor characters such as Sandra's warring parents and Mike's confused kids jump off the page with a winning blend of realism and warmth. A richly textured story that successfully moves beyond the conventions of the romance genre, this book will polish Wiggs's already glowing reputation. Agent, Meg Ruley.

February 15, 2002
Sandra Winslow is a woman the people in Paradise, RI, love to hate. Her husband, Victor Winslow, their golden boy state senator, is dead, and they all blame her: she was driving the car the night it went off the bridge into the water, and then there was that bullet lodged in the dashboard. Now Sandra lives as a recluse in a run-down Victorian house on a desolate shore. Mike Malloy is a man who's lost everything his wife, his house, his renovation business, and most importantly, custody of his children. Despite Sandra's notoriety, he convinces her to let him restore her house to its former glory. The more contact he has with Sandra, the more Mike is convinced that she's innocent. As he tries to prove that, he discovers an awful truth that threatens to shake up the whole town. Once again, Wiggs proves she's a master of both historical and contemporary romance, unfolding the story in slow, delicious layers. Readers who like Jayne Ann Krentz and Nora Roberts will also enjoy this. Wiggs, winner of both the Romance Writers of America's RITA Award and the Romantic Times Career Achievement Award, lives in Washington State. Shelley Mosley, Glendale, P.L., AZ

Copyright 2001 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.