AMAZING GRACE

Author: Danielle Steel ISBN: 0385340230 11/2007 CONTEMPORARY FICTION Publisher: DELACORTE

On a warm May night in San Francisco, the Ritz-Carlton ballroom shimmers with crystal and silver as a glittering, celebrity-studded crowd gathers for a charity dinner dance. The evening is perfect–until, just minutes before midnight, the room begins to sway. Glass shatters. And as the lights go out, people begin to scream…. In the earthquake’s aftermath, the lives of four strangers will converge.… Sarah Sloane, the beautiful wife of a financial whiz, watches her perfect world fall to pieces…. Grammy-winning singer Melanie Free, the event’s headliner, comes to a turning point in her life and career…. Photographer Everett Carson, a former war correspondent whose personal demons have demoted him to covering society parties, finds new purpose amid the carnage…and Sister Maggie Kent, a nun who normally works in jeans and high-tops with the homeless, searches through the rubble–and knows instantly that there is much work to be done…. As the city staggers back to life, a chain reaction of extraordinary events will touch each of the survivors.… For Sarah, it begins with the discovery of a crime and a betrayal, then a strength she never knew she had. For Melanie, volunteering at a refugee camp will open new worlds of possibility. And Everett will be shaken by the unlikely relationship he forges with Maggie, who helps him rebuild his shattered life–and upends her own in the process. But as a year passes, and the anniversary of the earthquake approaches, more surprises are in store–as each discovers the unexpected gifts in a tragedy’s wake…and the amazing grace of new beginnings.

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

It was a dark and stormy night. No, really. Last night it was miserable out, but I didn't mind one bit because I curled up in front of a roaring fire with a copy of AMAZING GRACE. This story is so good, so masterful and charming, that it made me forget the howling wind and battering rain. I was completely immersed in this from the beginning and it was well after midnight when I finally closed this book, a smile of satisfaction on my face.

I've never been to San Francisco, but after reading Ms. Steel's account of the area I feel as if I know it intimately. This story takes place there before, during and in the months that follow a large earthquake. Drawn together mostly by a benefit being held at the time of the quake, the key characters find that once they've shared this cataclysmic event they have forged bonds that won't be broken. This is essentially three love stories. Not all have traditional happily-ever-after endings, but each is satisfying in its own way. There are points where I'm moved almost to tears by the heart wrenching betrayal that occurs between one couple. It is portrayed realistically and I felt the emotional devastation as forcefully as I pictured the physical aftermath of the massive earthquake. There are two portrayals of new love, each distinct and somewhat unusual, that are a joy to watch unfold.

All in all, AMAZING GRACE stunned me with its intensity and vivid portrayal of romance-without being seen through rose tinted glasses. This is good storytelling, realistic and heartfelt.

Kay James