LOOKING BACK
by Belva Plain
As in Fortune's Hand (1999), Plain taps out her trademark declarative sentence rhythms to march her characters toward a climax as unforeseen but unavoidable as death. Three close-knit chums, the beautiful, well-born Cecile with her inheritance; the heavy-legged but brilliant Norma, seemingly due to remain a spinster Latin teacher; and the eager, bright and blooming Amanda, an envious social climber from the South, graduate from college together. Amanda and Cecile go on to married lives, while Norma makes do with her photographic memory. Cecile and Amanda's days often turn on marital arguments about money. Then Cecile, bearing twins, has a miscarriage and everything slowly turns awry with the three friends and Norma at last defaults on their friendship.
Moves quickly and will grip some, but goes just so deep. Big sales, as ever.