Three strangers find their lives entwined when a murder investigation shocks the town of Lake Henry. Heather Malone is known in Lake Henry for her kind, gentle nature; but when the FBI takes her into custody, purportedly for murder, the local reaction is stunned disbelief. Poppy Blake -- riddled with guilt over the accident that claimed the life of her male companion and left her crippled -- is struggling to rebuild her life. Writer Griffin Hughes originally traveled to Lake Henry to investigate a national news story involving Lily Blake, Poppy's older sister. It is his chance comment to his brother -- an FBI agent -- that leads the law to Heather. To redeem himself Griffin is compelled to solve the mystery of Heather's past. An Accidental Woman celebrates the values of community, friendship, and the redemptive power of love.
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"I found this story to have many different depths and levels to it. Part romance, part drama and part mystery. A lot happened in 500 pages and a lot of characters were introduced. I'm surprised I enjoyed it though, as I usually don't like stories that revolve around the snow."
— Jenn (4 out of 5 stars)
“[A] powerful domestic drama…from one of women’s fiction’s true masters.”
— BookPage“A gripping story.”
— Audiofile" I liked this story. I loved the Griffin Huges character and wished he was a friend. Thought it was well written, but the only drawback was that the main story line was only a shadow of the relationships that Griffin had and he becomes the main person in the story. "
— Mv7043, 2/17/2014" Romantic mystery; not my usual fare, but in this case the characters are well done. "
— Harry, 2/14/2014" Well, it moved along slowly. I learned about sap-syrup making. Life lesson-don't keep secrets from those you love. Hmm... "
— Jill, 2/14/2014" Sweet, feel good, story set in a small town New Hampshire. Poppy is a paraplegic not feeling worthy of love. Enter a writer who is smitten about her. The main plot is supposed to be about a woman who has been living in the community for years and is arrested for the killing of a senator's son a decade before. I felt I got to know more about harvesting syrup than some of the characters. It was a nice diversion from what I had been reading but not much more. Some steamy love scenes and no offensive language. "
— Kaye, 2/9/2014" An intersting comfortable read as are all of Delinsky's books that I have read so far. "
— Marion, 2/7/2014" A pleasant read but ending was predictable. "
— Sue, 1/30/2014" Good story. Found out part way through that there was another book that came before this one "Lake News" but I never felt lost without having read it. "
— Tracy, 1/18/2014" A quick read perfect for procrastinating. :-) It was a sequel to something else I read. "
— Karyn, 1/10/2014" An interesting story. I enjoyed it enough to go get the first book in the series and I'm reading it now. "
— Debbie, 1/6/2014" At times, I find women's fiction unsatisfying. This is one of those time. It's Jodi Picoult meets romance. A little controversy, a little romance, a happy ending. It was very hard to dredge up empathy for the two dimensional characters. "
— Jessica, 12/30/2013" I loved how this book tied in with "LAKE NEWS" with some of the same characters. Same setting but a different story line. I loved all of the Maple sugaring information and how it was told in the story. "
— Shannon, 12/8/2013" Another in-car read, nice feel good novel. "
— Janet, 12/7/2013" I enjoy Barbara Delinsky's style of writing. I read this in one day and was captivated by it. Accusations, Suspense, Heartache, Love, all wound together to make a great book for me. "
— Stacey, 12/7/2013" Good book, but I got a little impatient with all the maple sugar making! "
— Sue, 11/25/2013" What a great book!!! I can't beleive I had missed this one!!! Barbara...you did it again...keep up the beautiful work!!! "
— Christine, 10/9/2013" A sweet story about sweet people in a sweet town. Even matters of life and death, love and livelihood are couched in the sweetest of terms. The lightest multi-layered read I've had in awhile and I enjoyed. "
— Anne, 7/1/2013" another good one by barbara delinsky "
— Lori, 3/13/2013" I really enjoyed this Barbara Delinsky book. The characters were well written and realistic. It was obvious she researched paraplegia, and Poppy's disability did not seem so beyond believability. Well paced and well detailed. "
— Megan, 2/16/2013" This was a fantastic book about truths! Truths about yourself and people around you. "
— Lyndsey, 1/26/2013" It was slow throughout, but I enjoyed learning about the maple sugaring life in this small Eastern town. "
— Vickie, 1/8/2013" this can make a person cry! "
— Kathy, 10/28/2012" Light and fluffy. Good beach read. There's a little too much serendipity, but that's what Romance novels are all about. "
— Allison, 10/16/2012" For a mindless romance novel it was good!! "
— Leslie, 7/16/2012" A good love story. Everyone deserves a second chance. "
— Mary, 5/30/2012" Feel good story, set in the safe small rural community I'd love to find. "
— Lynette, 4/12/2012" Our of the blue a woman is arrested for a murder that took place many years ago. It gets kind of predictable. "
— Peggy, 11/12/2011" Good, unchallenging read of a wonderful small town where they protect their own and get in the maple sugar harvest on time. "
— Marianne, 7/21/2011" I tackled the audio version of this novel on my commute(s) to work. I found it was a fast-paced story with constant twists and turns, which kept me interested. Definitely a recommended book. "
— Kimber, 6/2/2011" nice book so far...<br/>the pulse of a small village effectively portrayed!;)<br/> "
— Richie, 4/5/2011" Love a book that teaches me something new, this time about the maple sugar industry and process. "
— Nancy, 2/7/2011" Pretty good story line with several twists. Good read for a snow day! "
— Jennifer, 1/19/2011" A quick read perfect for procrastinating. :-) It was a sequel to something else I read. "
— Karyn, 12/20/2010" Two and a half stars, with an upgrade because the plot was interesting.<br/><br/>In the end, an overdose of nice, with a light sprinkling of spunky. "
— Nancy, 11/26/2010" A pleasant read but ending was predictable. "
— Sue, 4/26/2010" Good book, but I got a little impatient with all the maple sugar making! "
— Sue, 3/10/2010" This was a good quick read with a very predictable ending. Enjoyable. "
— Mary, 3/10/2010" I liked this book. I like the twists, turns and suspense this book offered. I loved the character of Poppy. "
— Wendy, 2/22/2010" It was slow throughout, but I enjoyed learning about the maple sugaring life in this small Eastern town. "
— Vickie, 2/21/2010" Well, it moved along slowly. I learned about sap-syrup making. Life lesson-don't keep secrets from those you love. Hmm... "
— Jill, 7/4/2009" Thoroughly enjoyed my first Delisky book. Predictable as noted in other reviews?-yes-but I was not looking for something other than a sit down, enjoy the moment book. This filled the bill. "
— Mary, 6/25/2009Barbara Delinsky, author of Escape, Not My Daughter, While My Sister Sleeps, The Secret Between Us, and Family Tree, has written more than twenty bestselling novels with over thirty million copies in print. After being diagnosed with breast cancer, she also wrote a nonfiction book, Uplift: Secrets From the Sisterhood of Breast Cancer Survivors, which is currently in its fifth printing. All of the proceeds from the book go to charity, which funds an ongoing research fellowship at Massachusetts General Hospital. A lifelong New Englander, Delinsky earned a BA in psychology from Tufts University and an MA in sociology from Boston College.
Jennifer Wiltsie is an actress and Earphones Award–winning narrator. Her films include Wendigo, Uninvited, and The Fever. She has guest starred on HBO’s The Sopranos and Masterpiece Theatre’s Clarissa. On Broadway she has performed with Matthew Broderick in Night Must Fall, and her off-Broadway credits include Shakespeare’s Antony and Cleopatra. In London’s West-End, she starred in Alan Ayckbourn’s revival of Absurd Person Singular.