Fleming's sophomore effort (after Marriage: A Duet
) follows the frayed connection between two sisters, skimming across their lifetimes and sketching two generations of intriguing family drama, but falling short of a cohesive whole. Clare Layton, a childless, 41-year-old magazine writer in New York City, narrates the novel in a hardened but lonely voice. Her story as the longstanding mistress of a married politician merges with that of her estranged sister, Louise, when Louise shows up from Florida after a 25-year absence. At first believing that Louise is eluding an abusive husband, Clare soon learns her sister hopes Clare can give her teenage son, Luke, who is dying of hepatitis B, a leg up on the liver transplant list. Clare heads down to Orlando, where she meets her charismatic nephew at a "baby evangelists" Christian convention. In a frustrating case of narrative interruptus
, the second half abruptly flashes back to Clare and Louise's singular Hollywood childhood, illuminating their dysfunctional adulthood. Their beautiful, narcissistic mother, a semifamous actress, leaves their screenwriter father, fracturing the family and slowly dividing the sisters, who Fleming then tracks through their 1960s coming-of-age. She eventually ties up all the loose ends, but leaves slack along the way. (Apr.)
