Marriage : A Duet - Softcover

Anne Taylor Fleming is a leading US journalist and TV commentator whose work has appeared in the NEW YORK TIMES, NEWSWEEK, the NEW YORKER and VOGUE. MARRIAGE: A DUET is her first work of fiction. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband, journalist Karl Fleming.

This first work of fiction by Fleming, a journalist and contributor to CNN's NewsNight with Aaron Brown, comprises two novellas that examine the ideas of marriage and infidelity and how spouses can genuinely love each other yet decide to test the boundaries. In the first, "A Married Woman," we meet middle-aged Caroline, a mother of two grown children who is watching her husband, William, slowly die. The narrative is divided between the present and Caroline's recollections of William's having an affair with a friend of their college-aged daughter Katie. Though Caroline loves her husband a great deal and his impending death rattles the whole family, his indiscretion has tainted the household. In the second novella, "A Married Man," Fleming turns the tables. We meet a younger family, the Sandersons-David, a successful investment advisor; his beautiful wife, Marcia; and their two young sons, Trevor and Kyle. Marcia has decided to have a brief fling with a dinner guest and though regretful does not hide her indiscretion. The couple seeks help from a counselor, but David can't seem to cope with having had his idyllic marriage spoiled. Both stories are set in Los Angeles and provide a snapshot of marriages that on the surface appear wonderful. Well-drawn characters and tight narratives allow the reader to observe life beneath the facade and decide what constitutes forgiveness, family, and fidelity. Recommended for public libraries.
Robin Nesbitt, Columbus Metropolitan Lib., OH
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