Anita Shreve — Strange Fits of Passion

Abacus 2003 Paperback, 336pp. A young and successful journalist working in New York, Maureen English appears to have the perfect life and family. But Maureen's husband, a highly respected fellow reporter, has in private a tendency towards alcohol and violent abuse. When the situation at home becomes unbearable, Maureen takes her baby daughter and flees.In a Maine fishing town she assumes a new identity and spends six weeks battling sub-zero temperatures, intrusive townsfolk and fear of discovery. Against the force of the wintry sea - the cawing of gulls, the lobstermen hauling their catch, the press of waves against the rocks - Maureen settles into the rhythms of a new life. But this calming respite is about to come crashing to an end . (ISBN: 9780349105864). Good.