JOY ON PAPER The Radio Archives

Loved talking to Susannah Marren about Maribelle’s Shadow, her latest book set in Palm Beach. 

For a get-away-from-it-all and escape into another world, going to Palm Beach is just the thing. Better than heading off to a distant planet where there isn’t a Worth Avenue to stroll down. One really does rather enjoy reading about uber-rich people spending scads of money on designer clothes–and looking good in them.

The story of a manipulative mother and her three daughters is intriguing. When there is a murder and things start to fall apart or in place it keeps you guessing. Human emotions being what there are make for lots of twists and turns.

The author, Susan Shapiro Barash, in real life has been studying the subject of women. She was on Joy on Paper A Passion for More, which is a study in why women have affairs.

The only thing that spreads faster than gossip in Palm Beach is news of a mysterious death.

Maribelle, the eldest of the three Barrows sisters, deserves to be envied. Not only for her plum position as editorial director of Palm Beach Confidential, but for her impressive husband, Samuel, and his involvement in the family business. Together, they present themselves as the “it” couple of Palm Beach. She might have even aced her two stunning younger sisters.

But things aren’t always what they seem. When Samuel unexpectedly dies, suspicion around the Barrows family swirls. Suddenly the authenticity of their socially ambitious mother, Lucina, and their lavish existence of mansions, prestige and couture clothes are in question. Who are the Barrows, what happened to Samuel, neighbors begin to ask.

Escape into a good book