Paradise by Judith McNaught

I just finished this 58 chapter, 706 page book and I have to say, it.was.wonderful! One of those you can't put down. 'Paradise' was my tag along for 7 days and I was sad when I finished. It was a compelling story!

Here's a review I found that really is spot on.

Paradise is the story of a young man and woman in love who are cruelly parted. It's also the story of the people they become eleven years later, both of them confident and powerful CEOs. Readers may be tempted to dismiss it as just another book about misunderstandings or millionaires, but that would be a real mistake, because there's so much more.

McNaught refuses to take shortcuts, and the book begins when Meredith Bancroft is an awkward adolescent. She's chubby with stick straight hair and horrible clothes that make her look completely unsophisticated. As the only daughter of a man who owns a prestigious Chicago department store, she is more comfortable with adults than kids her own age, and her dream is to follow in her father's footsteps and run Bancroft's someday. We glimpse her again four years later as she graduates from high school. She's outgrown the baby fat, but she's still chafing against her strict father's unreasonable demands. He thinks women should confine their activities to charity balls and child rearing, and he wants to send her to a college that's little more than a finishing school. One night after a particularly upsetting argument, she attends a country club event and meets Matt Farrell. Matt's background couldn't be more different. He's from the wrong side of the tracks, and he put himself through school by working in a steel mill while supporting his family and paying off his deceased mother's medical bills. But Matt's got big plans; he's about to work for one of the country clubs patrons for two years in Venezuela. His goal is to take the $150,000 bonus he will receive and invest it, so that he can increase his wealth.

But one thing leads to another, and Meredith ends up pregnant with Matt's child. She comes to see him at his family farm in Indiana, and they decide to get married. Matt's plans didn't include a wife and child, but he feels himself falling for Meredith, he thinks that it just might work. But when they confront Meredith's father with the news, he is furious and vows to end the marriage. After he offers Matt money to walk away - which Matt coldly refuses - he appears to consent to the marriage, as long as Meredith stays in America during her pregnancy.

Then comes the misunderstanding to end all misunderstandings, and you can really see it coming. Meredith's father interferes with their mail, so neither she not Matt receives all the letters the other has written. Then Meredith's pregnancy takes a dangerous turn and she loses the baby. As she is lying there, sick with pain and grief, asking every second for Matt, her father sends Matt a telegram telling him Meredith has had an abortion and wants a divorce. When Matt flies home from Venezuela to see her, Meredith's father has him barred from the hospital. He then handles the quickie divorce, and both Meredith and Matt eventually get on with their lives.

Eleven years later, Matt is the CEO of Intercorp, a huge conglomerate which he founded that buys and sells other companies. Meredith is a vice president at Bancroft's with her eye on the president's chair. Their paths cross again when Matt buys a Chicago electronics company, and while both of them have gotten on with their lives, both bear scars from their traumatic marriage. Meredith cuts Matt cold at first, but then her fiancé makes the horrible discovery that her divorce was invalid, and she is still legally married to Matt. Of course the reader can see already that these two are perfect for each other and destined to live happily ever after, but it will take some doing for Matt and Meredith to reach that point. Aside from the years of misunderstanding and bitterness, they have problems involving their respective businesses, families, and relationships. And just when it looks like they are about to overcome their tragic past, they have an eleventh hour crisis that could tear them apart forever.

This truly was a great book. It was long, but I never found myself rushing through it to finish. Now, you go read it!

Happy Reading,
Katie