Seized

Newlyweds Mark and Rhonda Colter find more than they bargained for during their first year of marriage in Shockey's rampantly melodramatic thriller. Mark hides his obsessive compulsive disorder (brought on by a traumatic childhood accident) from Rhonda; she hides her past history in pornography from him. Together, they are trying to deal with acts of mysterious, escalating violence--threatening phone calls, a rock through a window, missing files and photos from Rhonda's workplace, a vandalized car. These cliched criminal events appear to be related to stalkers from Rhonda's past until a silly revelation in the penultimate chapter undermines everything that has gone before it. An incendiary conclusion brings neighbors to the rescue, a personality turnaround in one of the main characters and total bemusement to any readers still left hanging around. (July)