cover image Season of the Swan

Season of the Swan

Evan Maxwell. HarperCollins Publishers, $19 (245pp) ISBN 978-0-06-017529-0

Haunted by a sense of loss, raven-haired violinist Kate Saarinan has ""left too much of herself in the past."" Just about to sign a deal with a major record label eager to market her as The Black Swan, Kate honors a previous commitment, providing free lessons and concerts in Langley, Wash., a small town near the one she left at age 16. In Langley, she meets the virile and divorced Brian Corry, a former fisherman now salvaging old buildings for wood that he uses to make violins, and his musically talented 13-year-old adopted daughter, Alyssa. As Kate and Brian gravitate toward each other, she is torn by her memories of being seduced and abandoned by Langley's Pastor Thorson. The child she had and gave up for adoption now would be Alyssa's age. The thought of telling Brian proves so painful that she attempts to flee back to New York, where the record deal is about to founder. Kate's dilemma is firmly drawn, and Alyssa's vulnerability is well rendered. If Maxwell (All the Winters That Have Been) gives his 46th book an ending that is more emotional than sensible, readers will undoubtedly enjoy the sentimental message of this passionate romance. Translation and dramatic rights: Dominick Abel. (July) FYI: Maxwell writes the Fiddler mystery series under the name A.E. Maxwell.