Two of a Kind

McDonough (A Wedding in Great Neck) crafts a complex romantic tale of two families, skillfully developing multidimensional characters. Widow Christina Connelly desperately needs interior design work to pay for the mortgage on her Brooklyn home and her 14-year-old daughter’s expensive ballet classes. Arrogant widower Dr. Andy Stern, Manhattan’s top ob-gyn, struggles with his 16-year-old son’s moodiness, which is caused by two years of grief and mystical thinking that his mom will come back. Andy hires Christina to redecorate his apartment; she dislikes him at first, but as they get to know each other, Christina comes to admire Andy, and he finds her captivating. McDonough draws strong pictures of N.Y.C., from the glitz to the drug scene, and includes interesting supporting characters, including Andy’s Jewish mother and the gay couple renting the top floor of Christina’s house. Multiple points of view show the complications of dating for parents, the compromise of interfaith romance, and the unforeseen consequences when lives get out of balance. Readers will delight in this layered tale of friendship and love. (Sept.)