In "The Shadow of Your Smile, "worldwide bestselling author Mary Higgins
Clark weaves a spellbinding thriller revolving around a long-held
family secret that threatens to emerge and take the life of an
unsuspecting heiress. "At age eighty-two and in failing health,
Olivia Morrow knows she has little time left. The last of her line, she
faces a momentous choice: expose a long-held family secret, or take it
with her to her grave.
Olivia has in her possession letters from
her deceased cousin Catherine, a nun, now being considered for
beatification by the Catholic Church--the final step before sainthood.
In her lifetime, Sister Catherine had founded seven hospitals for
disabled children. Now the cure of a four-year-old boy dying of brain
cancer is being attributed to her. After his case was pronounced
medically hopeless, the boy's desperate mother had organized a prayer
crusade to Sister Catherine, leading to his miraculous recovery.
The
letters Olivia holds are the evidence that Catherine gave birth at age
seventeen to a child, a son, and gave him up for adoption. Olivia knows
the identity of the young man who fathered Catherine's child: Alex
Gannon, who went on to become a world-famous doctor, scientist, and
inventor holding medical patents.
Now, two generations later,
thirty-one-year-old pediatrician Dr. Monica Farrell, Catherine's
granddaughter, stands as the rightful heir to what remains of the family
fortune. But in telling Monica who she really is, Olivia would have to
betray Catherine's wishes and reveal the story behind Monica's ancestry.
The Gannon fortune is being squandered by Alex's nephews Greg
and Peter Gannon, and other board members of the Gannon Foundation, who
camouflage their profligate lifestyles with philanthropy.
Now
their carefully constructed image is cracking. Greg, a prominent
financier, is under criminal investigation, and Peter, a Broadway
producer, is a
suspect in the murder of a young woman who has been extorting money from him.
The
only people aware of Olivia's impending choice are those exploiting the
Gannon inheritance. To silence Olivia and prevent Monica from learning
the secret, some of them will stop at nothing--even murder.
Clark's
riveting new novel explores the juxtaposition of medical science and
religious faith, and the search for identity by the daughter of a man
adopted at birth.
About the Author
Mary Higgins Clark's books are world-wide bestsellers. In the U.S. alone, her books have sold over one hundred million copies. She
is the author of thirty-one previous suspense novels. Her first book, a
biographical novel about George Washington, was re-issued with the
title, Mount Vernon Love Story, in June 2002. Her memoir, Kitchen Privileges, was published by Simon & Schuster in November 2002. Her first children's book, Ghost Ship,
illustrated by Wendell Minor, was published in April 2007 as a Paula
Wiseman Book/Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers.
She is co-author, with her daughter Carol Higgins Clark, of five holiday suspense novels Deck the HallsHe Sees You When You're Sleeping (2001), The Christmas Thief (2004), Santa Cruise (2006), and Dashing through the Snow (2008). (2000),
Mary
Higgins Clark was chosen by Mystery Writers of America as Grand Master
of the 2000 Edgar Awards. An annual Mary Higgins Clark Award sponsored
by Simon & Schuster, to be given to authors of suspense fiction
writing in the Mary Higgins Clark tradition, was launched by Mystery
Writers of America during Edgars week in April 2001. She was the 1987
president of Mystery Writers of America and, for many years, served on
their Board of Directors. In May 1988, she was Chairman of the
International Crime Congress.
Mary Higgins Clark and daughter Carol Higgins Clark interviewed at the Dominican Sisters Family Health Service luncheon in Tarrytown NY in December 2007
