Picture Perfect

From Publishers WeeklyThis politically correct Hollywood romance leaves no plotting stone unturned. For her discovery of an ancient human relic, glamorous UCLA anthropologist Cassie Barrett is rocketed to the prominence of a '90s-style Margaret Mead. As if that's not enough, she goes to Kenya as technical consultant on a movie starring hunk-of-the-month Alex Rivers. After a whirlwind romance, Cassie becomes the new Mrs. Rivers, toast of filmdom's beautiful people. But all is not bliss for the newlyweds: Alex's tortured past just won't let go, and Cassie must bear the brunt of his emotional scars. Perhaps attempting to salvage the predictable plot, Picoult administers to Cassie's bland character a dose of adrenalin-pumping amnesia. She also throws in a dollop of Native American culture and a noble savage who skirts the periphery of Cassie's tumultuous existence, always ready with sage advice, spiritual healing techniques and warm embraces. Some rather prettily told Indian legends are added to the mix, but the total effect is wide of the mark.
From Library Journal
Cassie Barrett, an anthropologist, marries handsome, talented, and rich movie star Alex Rivers. They enter upon a picture-perfect life until Alex get a bit reckless. He becomes a Mr. Hyde in all his ugliness and directs his rage toward Cassie with fist and foot. Typical of abusive husbands, he apologizes profusely afterward. Cassie soon finds that she is pregnant-against her husband's wishes-and realizes that she must find a way to protect the unborn child. One of her rescuers is William Flying Horse, a policeman from South Dakota with demons of his own. Picoult (Harvesting the Heart, LJ 10/15/93) writes with an all-knowing and piercing eye. Hers is an important book from a talented writer we hope to hear from again and again. For most popular collections. [Literary Guild and Doubleday Book Club selections.]-Dawn L. Anderson, North Richland Hills P.L., Tex.
--Dawn L. Anderson, North Richland Hills P.L., Tex.