The Deep End

by Joy Fielding

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Joanne Hunter's secure suburban world is falling apart. Her husband's desertion after twenty years of marriage leaves her stunned. Eve, her best friend, is strangely distant. Her grandfather, who has been a pillar of strength and support, lies ill and helpless in a nursing home. Lana and Robin, her teenage daughters, claim every ounce of her energy and devotion and all the love she feels she has lost. Only one person seems to care -- a stranger with a rasping voice, a tormentor with a show more vicious mind. Danger and despair close in with each ring of the telephone. Each deadly message lures her inexorably towards the deep end... show less

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8 reviews
Subservient, self-deprecating Joanne Hunter suddenly becomes inundated by traumas. First, her husband moves out of their house to slake his restlessness and dissatisfaction. Stunned by his abrupt departure, Joanne seeks support from her best friend and neighbor, psychology professor Eve Stanley, but Eve now suffers from some unidentified illness which she believes is fatal. Eve frantically insists that debilitating pains wrack her body, although her husband tells Joanne that they are psychosomatic ailments. While these crises unfold, senility plagues Joanne's beloved grandfather, and her two adolescent daughters bicker incessantly. Most unnerving of all are the inexplicable threatening phone calls that Joanne receives at the same time show more that someone dubbed "the Suburban Strangler" terrorizes Long Island show less
good mystery @ woman sep. strange calls, strange best friend

Joanne Hunter's secure suburban world is falling apart. Her husband's desertion after twenty years of marriage leaves her stunned. Eve, her best friend, is strangely distant. Her grandfather, who has been a pillar of strength and support, lies ill and helpless in a nursing home. Lana and Robin, her teenage daughters, claim every ounce of her energy and devotion and all the love she feels she has lost.

Only one person seems to care -- a stranger with a rasping voice, a tormentor with a vicious mind. Danger and despair close in with each ring of the telephone. Each deadly message lures her inexorably towards the deep end…
I like this book because it was, for me, about a woman coming out from her husband's shadow and becoming her own person.
This book is a nice suburban thriller...good for that stay at home mom to read.
Tras veinte años de feliz matrimonio, o al menos lo que ella creía que había sido un feliz matrimonio, el marido de Joanne entra en la crisis de los cuarenta y abandona a su mujer y a sus dos hijas adolescentes. Poco después, Joanne se siente acosada por un misterioso comunicante telefónico que la amenaza con violarla y asesinarla. Sola y totalmente desligada de su entorno, no tiene a quién acudir, ya que su única amiga, Eve, se encuentra sumida en una profunda depresión. Sólo puede recurrir a su abuelo nonagenario que está recluido en un asilo y que apenas puede entender sus temores.Con sus hijas de vacaciones, su marido ausente y como símbolo de su desolación una piscina a medio construir, Joanne se siente cada vez más show more aterrorizada. Un día recibe una llamada en la que su acosador le anuncia su muerte inminente y comienza su lucha por su supervivencia.... show less
Tras veinte años de feliz matrimonio, el marido de Joanne entra en la crisis de los cuarenta y abandona a su mujer y a sus dos hijas adolescentes. Poco después, Joanne se siente acosada por un misterioso comunicante telefónico que la amenaza con violarla y asesinarla. Sola y totalmente desligada de su entorno, no tiene a quién acudir, ya que su única amiga, Eve, se encuentra sumida en una profunda depresión. Sólo puede recurrir a su abuelo nonagenario que está recluido en un asilo y que apenas puede entender sus temores.
Con sus hijas de vacaciones, su marido ausente y como símbolo de su desolación una piscina a medio construir, Joanne se siente cada vez más aterrorizada. Un día recibe una llamada en la que su acosador le show more anuncia su muerte inminente... show less

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51+ Works 12,125 Members
Author and actress Joy Fielding was born in Canada in 1945. She received a BA in English literature from the University of Toronto in 1966. While a student, she focused on acting and was one of four stars in a student movie, Winter Kept Us Warm. After graduation, she moved to Los Angeles and appeared on Gunsmoke. Her first book, The Best of show more Friends, was published without an agent. She has written numerous novels since then including Don't Cry Now, The Deep End, The Other Woman, Missing Pieces and Now You See Her. The Periodical Distributors of Canada named her book, Kiss Mommy Goodbye, Book of the Year for 1982. She has contributed book reviews to the Toronto Globe and Mail, CBC's The Radio Show, and CBC-TV's The Journal's Friday Night. Her books, See Jane Run and Tell Me No Secrets, have been adapted into films. (Bowker Author Biography) show less

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Kattelus, Kirsti (Translator)

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Common Knowledge

Canonical title*
Ein mörderischer Sommer
Original title
The Deep End
Original publication date
1986
People/Characters
Joanne Hunter
Dedication
For Shannon and Annie
First words
The phone is ringing.
Last words
(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)Smiling confidently, Joanne watches as her husband of twenty years pulls his suitcases up the front steps.
*Some information comes from Common Knowledge in other languages. Click "Edit" for more information.

Classifications

Genres
Fiction and Literature, Mystery
DDC/MDS
813.54Literature & rhetoricAmerican literature in EnglishAmerican fiction in English1900-19991945-1999
LCC
PR9199.3 .F518 .D44Language and LiteratureEnglishEnglish LiteratureEnglish literature: Provincial, local, etc.
BISAC

Statistics

Members
344
Popularity
90,735
Reviews
6
Rating
(3.15)
Languages
11 — Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, German, Italian, Norwegian (Bokmål), Spanish, Swedish
Media
Paper, Ebook
ISBNs
39
ASINs
8