Saving Grace by Jane Green

Afairly prolific author with fifteen titles to her credit, this latest entry was one of her best.

Grace, an accomplished cookbook editor, meets her husband to be at a literary conference.  She has been married for twenty years when the story opens.  From outward appearances onlookers see an accomplished elegant women who throws lavish fundraising dinners and whose husband is a good looking successful writer.

Appearances can be deceiving and in this instance Ted (husband of Grace) has a temper to beat the band and unleashes it at his will on Grace.  The abuse conditions Grace to the point that she is afraid to tell anyone what has been happening and makes every effort to make people think that all is well.

Grace and Ted lead busy lives and have employed the help of an assistant for Ted, who doubles as a housekeeper for Grace.  Ellen is a gem and manages to deal with Ted's outbursts with little to no ripples.  Unfortunately Ellen has to leave the position after many years due to family constraints. Grace tries to do it all for a while but it is quickly becoming overwhelming for her.

Enter Beth, who seems to be the perfect fit.  Beth takes over both roles efficiently.  After a while Grace begins to harbor suspicous thoughts about the newcomer. As time goes by Grace's life takes a spiraling downturn and Grace begins to feel as if she is no longer in control of anything.

When Grace hits rockbottom, she decides to return to her home country, England, where she has hope that she will recover from this gruling experience.

A well-written story with great attention to character development, you may find yourself wanting to read the entire book in one sitting.  The plot motivates the reader to want to discover what happens and to hope that everything will turn out alright.  My only disappointment was the epilogue.  You may feel differently.  Read it and decide for yourself.

Ladybookbug!