Synopses & Reviews
At 26, newlywed Bari Jordan has achieved more than most women her age, especially when she lands a highly-coveted position as an advertising executive at one of New York City's top companies. But the long hours takes lots of time away from her perfect husband Earl and their love nest. Her high school sweetheart is having trouble of his own working for his father at their family-owned paper mill and struggling with unresolved family problems that have tormented him since childhood.
With no one at home to talk to and Bari too busy climbing the corporate ladder of success, Earl begins to feel alone. Not to mention his ego is challenged when he loses his job and Bari becomes the sole breadwinner.
After Earl is lured into an underground world of deception, he emerges as a dark, sinister stranger to Bari--terrorizing her and spiraling their relationship into an emotional abyss. And when Bari's life becomes at stake, she turns to a Jamaican spiritualist for help. But will the spiritualist and the talisman that her grandmother handed down to her be enough to save her from a path where even angels would fear to tread?
Synopsis
At 26, newlywed Bari Jordan has achieved more than most women her age, especially when she lands a highly-coveted position as an advertising executive at one of New York City's top companies. But the long hours takes lots of time away from her perfect husband Earl and their love nest. Her high school sweetheart is having trouble of his own working for his father at their family-owned paper mill and struggling with unresolved family problems that have tormented him since childhood.
With no one at home to talk to and Bari too busy climbing the corporate ladder of success, Earl begins to feel alone. Not to mention his ego is challenged when he loses his job and Bari becomes the sole breadwinner.
After Earl is lured into an underground world of deception, he emerges as a dark, sinister stranger to Bari--terrorizing her and spiraling their relationship into an emotional abyss. And when Bari's life becomes at stake, she turns to a Jamaican spiritualist for help. But will the spiritualist and the talisman that her grandmother handed down to her be enough to save her from a path where even angels would fear to tread?
Synopsis
In this powerful debut novel, a young wife's idyllic life slips into a nightmarish underworld from which she must struggle to escape.
About the Author
Teri Denine lives in Middlesex County New Jersey where she spends time writing novels, screenplays and inspirational works. She is also a script editor. Teri is currently working on her next novel.
Reading Group Guide
1. Bari and Franki were raised together in the same household by the same parents. Discuss the personality differences between them. Which girl is a mirror of their father Jimmy and which is a mirror of their mother?2. Grandma Greta passed down her posy kerchief to Bari for luck and protection. Was the power of the posies any different than the power derived from the dusts and other articles Bari received from Zuma? Discuss examples where the posies and/or the articles from Zuma were helpful to Baris life or marriage.3. It has been said that most women/men see certain signs at the beginning of a relationship that would indicate the direction at which the relationship will go. Discuss some of the early signs that would have told Bari about her relationship with Earl.4. Is it possible to live, sleep and eat with a person on a daily basis and not have any idea whatsoever that that person is abusing drugs? Is it possible to be completely oblivious to every sign? At what point should the lights have gone on for Bari?5. Earls father killed his mother when he was a little boy. Earl is haunted by his deceased mothers image and has become drug addicted as a result of it. Should he have faced his past and turned his father in? Would this have helped his life? His marriage?6. Bari had a very supportive base of family and friends. What could they have done to help Bari get strong and take control of her life? Could they have helped her? If so, how? If not, why not?7. Baris career skyrocketed from the very beginning of her employment with Choler-Raines. She put her blood, sweat and tears (as she put it) and a whole lot of time into her job. If she had put the same effort into her marriage do you think it would have made a difference?8. At the familys reunion dinner at Christmastime when hazel, Ricky, Bari and Franki were all together for the first time in years, Baris physical appearance was frail and stressed. With the small amount of knowledge that Hazel had that perhaps something was wrong n her daughters life, could Hazel have taken a different approach in confronting Bari? What could Ricky have done even though he had no clue as to what was happening until that very night?9. When Earl held Bari captive at their home, could Bari have gotten away f she wanted to? How should she have behaved? What did you expect when the children were singing “Ring around the rosie, pocket full of posies…”? What would you have done that night if you were Bari?10. Were you happy with the ending of the story? What would you have written differently? What would you have happen in a sequel?