Synopses & Reviews
In
The Glass Butterfly, Louise Marley winds together a tale of subtle danger lurking in the past and a mother's sacrifice for her son's future....
A new life. A new name. A complete break with the past. It's the only way therapist Victoria Lake can think to protect her son — and herself — from a case turned deadly. She and Jack have barely spoken since he's gone to college. As painful as it is, it's better that he think she's dead than let her enemies suspect that she's not.
Jack could never stand his mother's insistence that sometimes intuition told her things facts couldn't. But he has a strange feeling that she's alive, despite the meticulous police investigation and the somber funeral. Of course, Jack is reconsidering several things his mother said, now that she's gone.
To survive, Victoria knows she has to reinvent herself completely. She can't even listen to her beloved Puccini. But without the music in her ears, eerie dreams invade her sleep. Lush with the sounds and sights of 19th-century Tuscany, they're also loaded with a very real warning she can't afford to ignore....
Review
"Seattle-based opera singer/novelist Louise Marley knits together two related plot lines — a contemporary story about a therapist in deadly peril from a patient, and a domestic drama in the life of opera composer Giacomo Puccini — into a gripping novel about obsession and its consequences." Melinda Bargreen, Seattle Times
Review
"Marley's latest is a poetic blend of historical fiction and suspense. Readers are kept waiting anxiously in the dark for details behind Tory's escape, which are revealed little by little throughout the novel. Marley also awards readers with a book-within-a-book bonus, and a glimpse into the life of the renowned opera composer Puccini. Beautifully written and intimate, the endless intrigue and mystery in this novel will keep readers on their toes and eager to reach the conclusion." Sarah Eisenbraun, Romantic Times (starred review)
Review
"This is a terrific suspense that blends a touch of the Fey with the life of Puccini inside of a taut contemporary thriller. Fast-paced, fans will appreciate the son and the villain searching for the therapist as all roads converge on Cannon Beach." Harriet Klausner, Genre Go Round Reviews
Review
"[A] slipstream offering that might stymie readers intent on easy categorization...a good thing, too, because the result is worth reading. Marley does an excellent job capturing the experience of starting a new life from scratch, and how human (and, memorably, canine) connections insist on forcing their way into the life of a woman who has, for a time, persuaded herself that she's better off alone. It's really a book about those connections, and how Tory can benefit by not making the key mistake of that servant girl whose life has been so strangely connected to hers. The tone is literary, the language rich, and the feelings wrapped up in Tory's intense love of music — and her unresolved relationship with the estranged son she left behind. Plus, there's that dog. Adam-Troy Castro, SciFi magazine
Review
"Marley's novel could easily be classified as a mystery; however such a limited perspective would minimize the intensity of the emotional elements. This is a story of developing self-awareness for Tory and her son, Jack. As Jack begins to accept the feeling of the fey within him, he commits himself to denying his mother's death, persisting in trying to find her so he can repair their relationship. The supporting characters illustrate the meaning and depth of friendship and love." Nocturne Romance Reads
About the Author
Lousie Marley, a performer of classical music, is the author of several novels including The Terrorists of Irustan and The Glass Harmonica, which was the co-winner (with Ursula LeGuin's Tales from Earthsea) of the 2001 Endeavor Award for Outstanding Achievement in Science Fiction or Fantasy. She lives in Redmond, Washington with her husband and son.