"The Triumph of Love"

May Taylor is a thirty-six year old woman living in Connecticut with her six year old daughter, Kylie. Periodically she takes Kylie to psychologists as they study and test her for her psychic ability. She sees and talks to angels and knows things before they happen. May is concerned for her beloved daughter. Is her psychic ability real or could she be schizophrenic? They are on an airplane when Kylie sees an angel hovering around a tall man. She asks the man to help her mother and her when the time comes. As the plane makes an emergency landing, he comes forward and helps them off the plane.

May is a wedding planner as her mother was before her. She works with her friend, Tobin, and her Aunt Enid and grows flowers and herbs to make bouquets as well as amulets for luck and happiness for the brides. Her major concern in life is taking care of her unusual child.

Martin Cartier, a star hockey player, is at the end of his career and is driven to win the coveted prize, the Stanley Cup. Can the magic from May and Kylie help him? He is drenched in secrets because of the tragic death of his daughter and his relationship with his prison inmate father. He takes one look at May and knows that she is the one for him. It is love at first sight regardless of all the beautiful blond groupies that follow him. May has been hurt before and afraid to jump into anything too quickly but it isn't long before she succumbs. They have a lot of serious problems to confront them in their marriage but love finds a way.

Wow, hockey must be a very rough sport. I thought football was tough! SUMMER LIGHT is a wonderful family story as Martin is finally able to reveal his secrets only to find more problems to tackle. May is a sweet and loving wife but she can be strong and dogged when necessary. Luanne Rice has written an emotional tale about the complicated relationships between a husband and wife, father and son and father and daughter. It is also a story of the warm friendships that bless their lives. First and foremost it is about a man's obsession of winning the Stanley Cup to honor everyone that he loves and to satisfy his life-long dream.

SUMMER LIGHT has everything between the pages -- a bit of magic, hate, anger, fear, joy and mostly the triumph of love. Ms Rice has found her niche in the literary world with the brilliant relationship stories that she writes to perfection. She just doesn't write fast enough for me. SUMMER LIGHT is not to be missed and will join her other books on my keeper shelves.

Reviewed by Marilyn Heyman
Posted June 28, 2002