Strangers

Two people trapped in the debris of a bombed department store begin a passionate affair that springs from their intimate confinement while they await rescue. Annie is a London homemaker, mildly discontented with her routines as wife and mother; Steve is a bed-hopping advertising executive whose busy life is curiously flat. After their rescue, hospitalization and recuperation, the two fulfill their need for each other, laying siege to the emotional stability of Annie's husband and their two young sons. As Annie struggles against her feelings, she is also devastated by the slow death of her mother and nagging doubts about her life's purpose. Thomas (The White Dove, in what is billed as ""the Brief Encounter for the '80s,'' brings the complexities of adult relationships to an acceptable resolution in a realistic setting of contemporary pain and violence. Literary Guild and Doubleday Book Club alternates; paperback rights to Pocket Books; major ad/promo. (June 26)