Matters of the Heart: A Novel

By Danielle Steel

In this spellbinding blend of suspense and human drama, Danielle Steel tells a powerful and unusual story of one woman’s journey from darkness into light, as she fights to escape a mesmerizing sociopath who holds her in his thrall. . . .
  
Top photographer Hope Dunne has known joy and heartbreak, and finds serenity through the lens of her camera. Content in her SoHo loft, she isn’t looking for a man or excitement. But these things find her when she flies to London to photograph one of the world’s most celebrated writers.

Finn O’Neill exudes warmth and a boyish charm. Enormously successful, he is a perfect counterpoint to Hope’s quiet, steady grace—and he’s taken instantly by her. He courts her as no one ever has before, whisking her away to his palatial, isolated Irish estate.

Hope finds it all, and him, irresistible. But soon cracks begin to appear in his stories: Gaps in his history, a few innocent lies, and bouts of jealousy unnerve her. Suddenly Hope is both in love and deeply in doubt, and ultimately frightened of the man she loves. Is it possible that this adoring man is hiding something even worse? The spell cast by a brilliant sociopath has her trapped in his web, too confused and dazzled to escape, as he continues to tighten his grip on her.
 
Danielle Steel delivers an unforgettable tale of danger and obsessive love, as she explores the dark secrets that sometimes lurk just below the surface of ordinary lives, writing about men and women and their courage to prevail even in the face of evil.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
• Release date: Jun 9, 2009
• ISBN: 9780440339274

Danielle Steel

Danielle Steel has been hailed as one of the world's most popular authors, with over 650 million copies of her novels sold. Her many international bestsellers include Property of a Noblewoman, Blue, Precious Gifts, Undercover, Country, Prodigal Son, Pegasus, A Perfect Life, and other highly acclaimed novels. She is also the author of His Bright Light, the story of her son Nick Traina's life and death; A Gift of Hope, a memoir of her work with the homeless; and the children's books Pretty Minnie in Paris and Pretty Minnie in Hollywood.

Reviews for Matters of the Heart

[pluggedinlibrarian · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Matters of the Heart turns into a strange mystery. Not so much romantic suspense, but readers have to wonder why protagonist Hope doesn't bolt from her abusive relationship much sooner. Flimsy characters, atypical of Danielle Steel. I've got to say, it might be a bit disappointing.

[dbhutch_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is a great book. I was pulled in from the start. In this story Hope is a photographer who is well known. She is contracted to do a photo shoot for a well know author named Finn O'Neill, after doing his shoot they meet for dinner, then he shows up a week later at her apartment in New York they spend Christmas as well as the next few months together as much as possible, Hope tells Finn everything and shares everything with her , he wants to get married and have a baby ... she becomes pregnant and losses the baby and she starts to see a very different side of Finn that makes her start to question him and his motives and it is a long and scary ride for her until she is free of him in one word pshycopath

[soosthemoose · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Decent book. Not as much depth as I would have liked.