Eileen Goudge, Woman in Red

Woman in Red

Eileen Goudge

Vanguard, June 2007, $24.95

ISBN: 1593154445

Nine years ago in Bell Harbor, Alice Kessler filed a wrongful death law suit in civil court against wealthy Owen White, but loses, though he was drunk when he ran over and killed her son. After losing she hits the accelerator, hitting Owen while her other son, seven year old Jeremy sits hysterically in the passenger seat.

In the present, former Manhattan DA, widower Colin McGinty arrives in Bell Harbor to decide what to do with his inheritance from his grandfather William, a renowned artist estranged from his wife and son, Colin's grandmother and father respectively. After nine years in jail, Alice comes home. Jeremy feels that his mom was not there when he needed her, as she only thought of her dead son.

Colin and Alice met when they first arrived on the island just a few days ago. They each tell their tale of woe, and he invites Alice to come to his home to see the portrait William made of her Nana that no one in her family has ever seen before. Meanwhile, at a party, Jeremy has intimate relations with Carrie Ann Flager who passes out afterward. The next day Carrie Ann claims she didn't consent. Alice asks Colin to be Jeremy's lawyer. He agrees, though he tells her she would be better off with someone else.

Eileen Gouge easily moves between the present and 1942, as both casts are solid and believable, especially the "villain", wheelchair bound Owen, who is treated as a person with regrets. The final scene is a fantastic ending, perhaps the best so far this year. Though the collapse of a key player seems too over the top, readers will appreciate this well written strong character driven family drama.