The Escape Artist

Rating:
Summary: A beautifully written, captivating and poignant story
Review: Ms. Chamberlain writes a beautifully, poignant story of one woman's journey to overcome adversity. One cannot help but feel compassion and support for the main character, Susanna as she's always looking over her shoulder wondering if and when law enforcement will find her; as well as her inner, personal struggle in becoming a strong, self-reliant, woman, especially at the climatic end of the story.

Rating:
Summary: A beautifully written, captivating and poignant story
Review: Rarely does one read a book that "stays" with you. This was one such book for me. Ms. Chamberlain writes a beautifully, poignant story of one woman's journey to overcome adversity. One cannot help but feel compassion and support for the main character, Susanna as she's always looking over her shoulder wondering if and when law enforcement will find her; as well as her inner, personal struggle in becoming a strong, self-reliant, woman, especially at the climatic end of the story.

Rating:
Summary: The *kayters* review
Review: Susanna Miller has just lost custody of her son, Tyler, to her ex-husband and his new wife (the other woman). Unwilling to give up taking care of her son, she runs off with him in the middle of the night, leaving behind a brokenhearted lover, Linc, her son's distressed stepmother, Peggy, and an indifferent ex-husband, Jim. She begins to make herself a new life in Annapolis, MD, light-years away from her former home in Boulder, CO. Yet she feels as though her whole existence is temporary and is constantly looking over her shoulder. Enter artist Adam Soria and his sister Jessie. Adam's wife and two children were killed seven months prior in a drunk driving accident. He and Jessie have been overcome by grief ever since, but with the introduction of Susanna (now known as Kim) and Tyler (now known as Cody) into their lives, things seem to be looking up.

Yet strange things are happening. Two bombings have occurred in Annapolis and Kim's new computer had a file on it with a list of the locations where the bombings occurred as well as more locations for apparent bombings-to-be. She returns from a trip only to find that her apartment has been broken into and her computer left on. Her brakes are tampered with. Obviously, someone knows Kim has the file.

Though this book contains many elements of romance, there is lots of suspense to flesh out the plot. It took me a while to get started, but then once I was into the book, the pages seemed to turn themselves. I am not sure if I will read more by Ms. Chamberlain or not because I was over halfway through the book before I was sure I would finish it. However, it was a good read.

Rating:
Summary: On the run from the law,a mother has a hard choice to make
Review: THE ESCAPE ARTIST Diane Chamberlain HarperCollins, Mar 1997, $24.00, 336 pp. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title

Rating:
Summary: Good, suspensful story!
Review: The Escape Artist was my third book by Chamberlain and a very quick read. I live in the Annapolis area, which made the book even more interesting to me, as Chamberlain describes the scenes downtown near the waterfront.

This is a story of a Susanna, a single mother's fight for her only child as she looses custody to her ex-husband and his new, child hungry, unable-to-bear-children wife. Unfortunately, the theme is all too relevant today in our society, with courts awarding custody not to the parent who can provide the most loving, stable, and balanced home, but instead to the parent to has the most money and can "buy" the child. I could relate to Susanna totally and could not condone her actions, nor can any other mother reading this book! The reader is able to feel her terror and fear as she formulates her plan and carries it out. Yet it is in the day-to-day activities, in which we feel Susanna's fear and her loss of Linc. Susanna sacrifices her own happiness and her chance for love for her only child.

This book was similar to the other Chamberlain books I have read, in that there were a lot of little subplots going on, each a mystery in themselves!! I thought that the characters showed depth, emotion, and portrayed a very real believable element in the plot. Chamberlain writes of very strong female characters, who seem to push out of their paradigms and prove to themselves that they are capable, despite what family and society seems to say about them.

This book will keep you guessing to the very end and the ending once again, will take the reader completely back! I love the way Chamberlain completely fools the reader at the end, when the reader thinks they have it all figured out!! It is not what it appears to be!

Another good story from Chamberlain!

Rating:
Summary: Good, suspensful story!
Review: The Escape Artist was my third book by Chamberlain and a very quick read. I live in the Annapolis area, which made the book even more interesting to me, as Chamberlain describes the scenes downtown near the waterfront.

This is a story of a Susanna, a single mother's fight for her only child as she looses custody to her ex-husband and his new, child hungry, unable-to-bear-children wife. Unfortunately, the theme is all too relevant today in our society, with courts awarding custody not to the parent who can provide the most loving, stable, and balanced home, but instead to the parent to has the most money and can "buy" the child. I could relate to Susanna totally and could not condone her actions, nor can any other mother reading this book! The reader is able to feel her terror and fear as she formulates her plan and carries it out. Yet it is in the day-to-day activities, in which we feel Susanna's fear and her loss of Linc. Susanna sacrifices her own happiness and her chance for love for her only child.

This book was similar to the other Chamberlain books I have read, in that there were a lot of little subplots going on, each a mystery in themselves!! I thought that the characters showed depth, emotion, and portrayed a very real believable element in the plot. Chamberlain writes of very strong female characters, who seem to push out of their paradigms and prove to themselves that they are capable, despite what family and society seems to say about them.

This book will keep you guessing to the very end and the ending once again, will take the reader completely back! I love the way Chamberlain completely fools the reader at the end, when the reader thinks they have it all figured out!! It is not what it appears to be!

Another good story from Chamberlain!

Rating:
Summary: I WANTED TO ESCAPE ALSO
Review: This is another amazing story from Diane Chamberlain. This time she takes a young womans life which is turned upside and brings it right side up only turn it around and around again. The ride was great, I loved this book.

Rating:
Summary: Not up to her normal standard
Review: This is the fourth novel by Diane Chamberlain that I have read. Although it's a decent read, it doesn't approach the standard of her earlier novels. The plot is somewhat transparent and the depth of characterization is lacking. Her effective technique of slowly unraveling a character's past is not present here. There is little we don't know about the major characters early on, except for the mad bomber plot that lacks credibility. The romantic angle is diluted from an overall lack of drama (we know where her heart lies from page one). For those new to this author, I recommend trying Fire and Rain, Reflection or Keeper of the Light instead.