Surface

Surface by Stacy Robinson. New York: Kensington, 2015. 381 pages. Internet Resources and A Reading Group Guide. *****

Claire Montgomery lives a charmed country club life married to a wealthy entrepreneur and is assured of her place and status in society. In one night all of that changes. Claire cannot imagine that one act could irrevocably change her life and that of her seventeen-year-old son, Nick. Claire struggles with her own guilt, her husband's anger and scorn, and Nick's recovery. Learning who her true friends are and the realization that people and situations are not always what they seem propels Claire forward to discover what she wants in life and what's really important in a marriage. Betrayal, secrets, the plot twists and turns with surprising results.

I wasn't sure when I started this book whether I liked it, but I couldn't seem to put it down. Initially, it seemed to be predictable, but I still wanted to know what happened next. Claire was much stronger than she knew and seemed to have a clear sense of what is important and what she needs to do for her son. The story went in a direction that I didn't expect and I was surprised to discover that this was a debut novel.  Robinson does an excellent job of a master magician, showing us just enough to peak our interest and alluding to what is hiding beneath the "surface." I look forward to more books from Robinson.

I received a copy of this book from BookSparks to review.

Stacy Robinson is a novelist and a former marketing professional and teacher. She received a B.A. in International Relations from Stanford University. Presently she lives in Denver, where she served on the Executive Board of the Children's Diabetes Foundation and is a member of the Lighthouse Writers Workshop. Visit her at stacyrobinsonbooks.com