Passing Through Paradise »

SUSAN WIGGS published her first book with Zebra in 1987, and since then she has been published by Avon, Tor, HarperCollins, Harlequin, and Mira Books, in addition to Warner. Unable to completely abandon her past profession as a teacher, Susan is a frequent workshop leader and speaker at writers' conferences, including the literary institution Fields End and the legendary Maui Writers Conference. She is the proud recipient of two RITA awards for Lord of the Night and The Mistress, and is often a finalist for the prestigious award. She lives on an island in the Pacific Northwest with her family.

It's been two years since the mysterious accident took Sandra Winslow's politician husband, Victor—the favorite son of a town called Paradise—and left Sandra under a cloud of suspicion. She decides to sell her beach house on the edge of town and hires Mike Malloy, who touches her lonely heart. Can she trust a man with unbreakable ties to a community she's eager to leave behind—and who is determined to unearth her deepest secrets?

Publishers Weekly

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. (Feb.) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.