Bargain of the Heart

This is the story of a couple who are on the brink of a divorce. Crystal, a burnt-out schoolteacher, has suffered a miscarriage 5 months ago. She has spent some time in Japan (why? we don't know) and upon her return she tells her husband Richard, an up-and-coming lawyer, that she wants a divorce immediately. Richard is stunned. He was not aware that anything was wrong. He is the "typical" workaholic husband, the career-obssessed lawyer who has taken his wife for granted. So he makes a bargain with Crystal that she will allow him to date her for three months. If after that, she wants a divorce, that is fine with him. If she refuses this deal, he will hold up the divorce for her. Since Crystal has quit teaching, this means financial hardship for her. So Crystal agrees.The couple spend the next three months dating each other. Crystal lives out in the mountains, in their cabin. She spends time with her aunt Annie who is recovering from a gunshot that broke her hip. Annie's alleged attackers are being defended by Richard (Annie's nephew by marriage) who believes the two boys innocent of this particular charge. Fortunately, that does not destroy the relationship with Annie.What I liked about this book was the details of living in a small town, and life in a southern African-American community. What was particularly interesting to me was that I did not realize until about page 20 or so that this was a romance about an African-American couple, and for most of the book (the couple's relatives aside) I could not tell who was black and who was white. It was really nice though, reading about settled African-American families with their complex interrelationships, as opposed to the virtual absence of African-Americans (and other minority groups) from mainstream romance. And yup, I loved the fact that Crystal came from three generations of teachers and that Richard came from at least 2 generation of civic and political leaders.There were many secondary characters with their own stories. There was Crystal's aunt Annie and her budding romance with a local farmer Travis. There was Richard's parents and their apparently political marriage of convenience. Dare I say that I liked the fact that his mother (although critical of Crystal privately to Richard) treated Crystal decently? She was a complex person in her own right, with her own hopes, fears and dreams. By the end, I understood why she put all her eggs in one basket (all her hopes in Richard).Although the minor characters - Sadie, Abel etc - were occasionally distracting (with a running feud between Sadie and Abel in particular), they did add a lot of color and depth to the story. Literacy was a very strong theme here, because Crystal is asked to carry on her aunt's literacy education efforts locally. She ends up teaching a group of adults in their later years how to read. And Richard and his mother are completely supportive here. [Nice change].I did find the mystery part a bit underdone (and the ending was r

Coming to terms over the delicate issues in their unstable marriage is a struggle for Richard and Crystal Dupree. For the last five years Richard has dedicated time for everythging except his marriage. Disappointed at his reactions during a family tragedy, Crystal distances herself from her husband; five months laters she asks for a divorce. Initially Richard does not take her seriously, he's always had the luxury of a wife who lived for him.When reality sets in, Richard's legal mind swings into action, he proposes that they allow themselves three months to pull their marriage back together. Grudgingly Crystal agrees, and Richardthinks he's back in the saddle. He soon realizes that an apology and flowers no longer work magic, he has to make a moreserious effort. But can he really put his marriage first in his life? And does Crystal still want him to? Ms. Poarch writes a story of an increasingly remote wife and a now penitent husband. Both are trying to overcome deep rooted issues and bargain with matters of the heart. A wondeful storyabout refocusing on what is really important in a marriage. Reviewed by aNN Brown