THE CHILDREN OF THE ROSES

Adler returns with a sequel to The War of the Roses (1981), offering another generation of nasty stick figures in foreseeable sentences.

It may or may not be a good thing that the action here never gets quite as excruciating as in its predecessor, where divorcing parents battled literally to the death for possession of their stunningly restored house on DC’s Embassy Row. Years later, young Josh Rose, son of the deceased Jonathan and Barbara, marries aggressive ex-lawyer Victoria, the toweringly dysfunctional child of a bitter mother who drove her husband into abandoning them and whose attitude toward men is “Never near when you need them, are they?” Josh and Victoria teach offspring Michael and Emily not to lie, but when Michael is accused repeatedly of stealing Milky Ways from hysterical and lisping fellow student Madeline, can they believe his denials? Victoria’s ire rises stormlike over the child’s private school. Adler sets us up for what bodes to be a Victoria-and-Josh repeat of Jonathan and Barbara’s mortal match, but it doesn’t work out that way. Josh, creative director at an ad agency, finds himself seduced by Angela Bocci, a brilliant Italian artist with two kids and a husband. He can’t bear the strain and breaks up with her after six months, but Angela’s thuggish spouse Dominic decides to blackmail him for $500,000. When Victoria hears about this, she takes Dominic to pieces. Meanwhile, Gordon Tatum, head of Michael’s school, promises to expel the boy unless Victoria blows him. Josh and Victoria head toward divorce, but the kids will have final say about that. And, of course, Josh must discover Victoria’s deed with Tatum.

Strangely compelling through the middle pages, but Adler’s prose is as threadbare as ever.