Smoke and Mirrors

Michaels delivers another sure-fire winner in this romantic adventure set in the smoky, deceptive arena of American politics. Young, uncertain Erin Hartsock moves to Washington, D.C., after her father's death, and takes a job on the campaign staff of Rosemary White Marshall, an old friend of her parents who is running for the Senate from Virginia. Both exhilarated and intimidated by the nonstop pace of campaign life, Erin is similarly drawn to and put off by the enforced intimacy of Rosemary's inner circle. A series of accidents centering around fires besieges the campaign, and Erin discovers to her horror that she is suspected of harboring a family secret that may destroy Rosemary's chances. Although she and Nick, another member of Rosemary's staff, clear her name, the threat to Rosemary remains and the two young people face mortal danger when they uncover an old plotits victims ready to wreak vengeance, its perpetrators ready to kill again. Michaels eschews her usual suggestion of otherworldly participation in her latest (after Search the Shadows ) eminently satisfying tale, whose realistic setting, plot and vibrant characters should swell her legion of fans. Literary Guild alternate; Doubleday Book Club featured alternate. (Jan.)