Mara di Sandro
De Matteo's recently published novel
Dreams, Lies and a Touch of
Smoke
available in book form, and digitally at the Kindle
Store, and in the iTunes Store
Diana Harrison is a suburban wife and mother who's
dreading the approach of her 39th
birthday.
With the 'big one' not far behind, she’s starting to
realize that she’s not where she’d like to be at
this point of her life. She has been married
to Carl, her high school sweetheart (and one and
only boyfriend) for twenty years; he’s a successful
doctor and a perfect husband; but she's become
painfully aware that she doesn't feel any passion
toward him…and perhaps even love. In this
state of mind, she accidentally bumps into Adam
Parisi, the high school heartthrob whom she only
admired from afar. He's incredibly attractive,
charming, separated from his wife, and has dedicated
his life to painting and living in Italy. It
doesn't take more than a couple of stealthy meetings
for shy and proper Diana to embark into a very
intense affair. Caught in the whirlwind of her
first passionate love, Diana interacts rather
distractedly with her family; thus, she has no idea
that her husband is discontented with his
profession, nor that her nineteen-year-old daughter,
Alexandra, who is in college, is going through a
personal crisis which might have devastating
consequences. At the same time, Diana's mother, a
quiet but judgmental woman, has an unpleasant
surprise waiting in the wings. As Diana's neatly
organized world begins to unravel, she recognizes
the need to make some serious decisions about her
future. Will she be able to save her family
and curb her new-found feelings for Adam (who, in
his turn, turns out to have a few little secrets of
his own)? Will she
want
to?
