Synopsis:
Julia and Michael Dunhill are fabulously successful and wealthy, living the kind of lifestyle most Americans merely dream about. They reside in a Washington, D.C. mansion and have a vacation home in Aspen, drive luxurious cars, and shop in the most exclusive boutiques and designer showrooms. After growing up humbly in West Virginia, Julia has established herself as a sought-after party planner and Michael founded his own company after developing a line of beverages. Sales soared and the profits rolled in after Oprah herself was pictured with a bottle during an interview. Julia and Michael have loved each other since they were sixteen-year-old high school students.
Julia’s father was a gambler who lost the family business and home because of his addiction, making the last year Julia lived with her parents virtually unbearable. The experience left her unwilling and emotionally unable to gamble on Michael’s dreams, so prior to eloping, they signed a simple prenuptual agreement and have always kept their financial holdings separate, including the debt Michael incurred in order to launch his company. That arrangement has never stopped Julia from enjoying the benefits of Michael’s success, however. She has a collection of beautiful jewelry that he has purchased for her over the years, and the houses were both purchased with his money and remain vested in his name only.
Just as Julia is overseeing an important event, she gets word that Michael has been rushed to the hospital. As he stood in the conference room, about to make a presentation, Michael collapsed. He suffered a cardiac arrest and was clinically dead for four minutes, eight seconds. Although Michael’s survival, sans brain damage, is nothing less than miraculous, Julia quickly realizes that the Michael who came back from death’s grip is a profoundly changed man. He plans to completely alter the manner in which they live their lives, the roadmap for their marriage and future. Without consulting Julia, Michael has made arrangements to give all of his holdings — including his company — and assets to charity! Julia is so upset and beside herself that she does not know, in light of his decision, whether she can remain married to Michael. But Michael has asked her to give him three weeks in which to consider her options and decide whether to leave him. After all, Michael tells Julia, he survived the cardiac arrest, but has no idea how much time he has left, and he is determined to change his life for the better. The only question is, can Julia accept and embrace the “new” Michael?
Review:
In her debut novel, The Opposite of Me, author Sarah Pekkannen explored the concept of assumptions within the context of the relationship between fraternal female twins. In particular, Lindsey’s assumptions about her sister, Alex, contributed to her own struggles with self-esteem and self-confidence. As the story unfolded, Lindsey learned that the assumptions — some quite erroneous — about both Alex and herself upon which she based life choices and decisions, and the very way that she viewed the world and her own place in it, had contributed to her both her successes and failures. Replacing inaccurate assumptions with the truth allowed Lindsey to see her sister differently, forge a better relationship with her, and move on with her own life.
Skipping a Beat, Pekkanen’s second book, available in bookstores today, is an equally insightful, engrossing, and entertaining exploration of the foundations upon which relationships are built. Through the eyes of Julia Dunhill, the narrator in Skipping a Beat, Pekkanen looks at how two people met, fell in love, and built a life together. Of course, the only constant in life is change, and their relationship naturally changed and evolved over the course of time as they both achieved career success. In Michael’s case, his business accomplishments far exceeded his own dreams, bringing him both wealth and the power that accompanies it. Julia achieved professional success in her own right. But as the two fretted over their businesses’ trajectories, they failed to invest as wisely in their marriage.
The story opens with Michael’s medical crisis, but the focus of the book immediately shifts to Julia’s reaction to Michael’s sudden and completely unexpected personality change. She is totally unequipped to deal with his transformation from a workaholic, driven man, consumed by the demands of the business he built with one great idea and some borrowed capital, into a man looking for redemption for all the mistakes he made along the way, many of which Julia was blissfully unaware. As the story unfolds, the foundations of Julia’s world are threatened and she quickly loses her equilibrium. Everything that she has assumed to be true and relied upon is brought into question by Michael’s sudden metamorphosis. Pekkanen establishes just how far apart Michael and Julia have drifted when Julia ventures into Michael’s separate bathroom and realizes that she is completely unfamiliar with his personal belongings — even the type of toothbrush he uses — as she attempts to pack a bag to take to him in the hospital. Julia is rattled — and extremely angry — when she realizes that the man with whom she has been living is now a stranger to her, especially as it gradually becomes obvious that Julia has either been denying or suppressing the extent to which the two of them have been estranged from each other for some time.
Julia agrees to give Michael the three weeks he has requested in order to decide whether she wants to stay with him or move on. She recalls how, as teenagers, they grew close in the small West Virginia town where they were raised, both having grown up in dysfunctional families, both scarred in their own unique ways from the pain inflicted upon them by their imperfect parents. Those early experiences were, in part, what drew them together. Their relationship was built upon the trust they felt for each other that was born out of an inability to trust or rely upon family members who let them down and abandoned them, literally and emotionally. When Julia first becomes aware of Michael, he tells her that he has always been right behind her, referring to his assigned seat in their high school classes . . . and, perhaps, the fact that he has been drawn to her for some time.
Still . . . Julia has always held back, reserved a part of herself and her assets as a safety mechanism. In particular, she was unwilling to incur debt with Michael in order to found and grow his business, keeping her own business accounts separate, even to the point of entering into a prenuptual agreement. In light of Michael’s determination to give all of his assets to charitable causes, it is indeed ironic that Julia ponders the enforceability of that agreement and resents Michael’s plan to disburse his wealth, to which she plainly feels entitled. Her desire to “have her cake and eat it too” makes her a flawed, but very authentic protagonist.
It becomes clear, as Julia considers the events of the past several years and realizes that some of her assumptions about Michael’s conduct were not accurate, that both Michael and Julia lost their footing as the demands of their careers increased. They also lost sight of the reasons they came together, and Michael seems desperate to rekindle their relationship, even as Julia struggles with her resentment and anger. She has been hurt many times by Michael, but not confronted him with her feelings, allowing grudges to fester and threaten their marriage. But Michael is persistent and, as Julia studies his behavior, she wonders what is really fueling his determination. Gradually, in spite of herself, she sees glimpses of the young man she fell in love with back in West Virginia, and the two begin ignoring their Blackberries and actually having conversations again.
Pekkanen deftly pulls readers along with Julia on her emotional journey, initially creating empathy through glimpses into the lavish and secure lifestyle the Dunhills have come to enjoy. Julia has every right to be angry, disappointed, and afraid. After all, who would want to give up a full-time maid, gardeners, drivers, and chefs? Julia particularly can’t bear the thought of losing the heated tiles in her shower or her jacuzzi tub. But through Julia’s memories and realizations, Pekkanen unveils the real Michael, the young man who rescued Julia — in so many ways — and never stopped loving her, all appearances to the contrary. Pekkanen describes her approach this way:
As Skipping a Beat opens, Julia and Michael are thrust into a crisis, and it’s unclear whether their marriage will survive. In order to move forward, they also need to look back at the decisions and moments, both big and small, that shaped their relationship. So I wove in scenes from their past to show how complicated their life together has become, and to reveal why Julia feels so conflicted. But there are two sides to every story — so even though everything is unfolding from Julia’s point of view, it’s not necessarily the complete picture. She, like the readers, discovers how much more there is to the story of her marriage.
Pekkanen’s expository technique is extremely effective. As Julia’s resistance crumbles and her anger gives way to forgiveness and healing, the reader’s understanding of the two characters’ backgrounds and foibles makes them increasingly endearing. And just as Julia cannot bring herself to turn her back on the only man she has ever loved, despite all the disappointments, loneliness, and miscommunication, Pekkanen convinces her readers that Michael and Julia truly love each other and deserve another chance at happiness. Because, after all is said and done, the foundation upon which their relationship is founded is actually still intact and next time they might be able to get it right.
Will they get the chance? Like me, you may be able to guess the ending to the Dunhills’ story, but that won’t spoil the joy of finding out if your hunches are accurate because Pekkanen proves again that she is one of the most talented new novelists writing women’s fiction today. With Michael and, especially, Julia, she has created fully developed, believable, empathetic characters about whose lives her readers want to know more and for whose futures the readers want only the best. Pekkanen has crafted a storyline that puts a new and contemporary spin on a classic theme: Does money change people and impact their relationships? Does wealth corrupt to the point that it can erode the foundation upon which a marriage is built? The result is a nuanced, emotional roller coaster that inspires readers to ponder their own relationships and the foundations upon which they are built, and contemplate whether those relationships might survive a near-death experience such as Michael’s — or any event, really — that results in such a profoundly changed outlook on life and the future.
Skipping a Beat is a beautifully powerful story about the enduring quality of love and the challenges a relationship can withstand if that relationship is founded upon genuine love, affection, and respect for one another. As with The Opposite of Me, both the story Pekkanen has told and the characters she has created will resonate with readers long after they have sniffled their way to the last page and closed the book.
Excerpt from Skipping a Beat
Chapter One
When my husband, Michael, died for the first time, I was walking across a freshly waxed marble floor in three-inch Stuart Weitzman heels, balancing a tray of cupcakes in my shaking hands.
Shaking because I’d overdosed on sugar—someone had to heroically step up and taste-test the cupcakes, after all—and not because I was worried about slipping and dropping the tray, even though these weren’t your run-of-the-mill Betty Crockers. These were molten chocolate and cayenne-pepper masterpieces, and each one was topped with a name scripted in edible gold leaf.
Decadent cupcakes as place cards for the round tables encircling the ballroom—it was the kind of touch that kept me in brisk business as a party planner. Tonight, we’d raise half a million for the Washington, D.C., Opera Company. Maybe more, if the waiters kept topping off those wine and champagne glasses like I’d instructed them.
“Julia!”
I carefully set down the tray, then spun around to see the fretful face of the assistant florist who’d called my name.
“The caterer wants to lower our centerpieces,” he wailed, agony practically oozing from his pores. I didn’t blame him. His boss, the head florist—a gruff little woman with more than a hint of a mustache—secretly scared me, too.
“No one touches the flowers,” I said, trying to sound as tough as Clint Eastwood would, should he ever become ensconced in a brawl over the proper length of calla lilies.
My cell phone rang and I reached for it, absently glancing at the caller ID. It was my husband, Michael. He’d texted me earlier to announce he was going on a business trip and would miss the birthday dinner my best friend was throwing for me later in the month. If Michael had a long-term mistress, it might be easier to compete, but his company gyrated and beckoned in his mind more enticingly than any strategically oiled Victoria’s Secret model. I’d long ago resigned myself to the fact that work had replaced me as Michael’s true love. I ignored the call and dropped the phone back into my pocket.
Later, of course, I’d realize it wasn’t Michael phoning but his personal assistant, Kate. By then, my husband had stood up from the head of the table in his company’s boardroom, opened his mouth to speak, and crashed to the carpeted floor. All in the same amount of time it took me to walk across a ballroom floor just a few miles away.
The assistant florist raced off and was instantly replaced by a white-haired, grandfatherly looking security guard from the Little Jewelry Box.
“Miss?” he said politely.
I silently thanked my oxygen facials and caramel highlights for his decision not to call me ma’am. I was about to turn thirty-five, which meant I wouldn’t be able to hide from the liver-spotted hands of ma’am-dom forever, but I’d valiantly dodge their bony grasp for as long as possible.
“Where would you like these?” the guard asked, indicating the dozen or so rectangular boxes he was carrying on a tray draped in black velvet. The boxes were wrapped in a shade of silver that exactly matched the gun nestled against his ample hip.
“On the display table just inside the front door, please,” I instructed him. “People need to see them as soon as they walk in.” People would bid tens of thousands of dollars to win a surprise bauble, if only to show everyone else that they could. The guard was probably a retired policeman, trying to earn money to supplement his pension, and I knew he’d been ordered to keep those boxes in his sight all night long.
“Can I get you anything? Maybe some coffee?” I offered.
“Better not,” he said with a wry smile. The poor guy probably wasn’t drinking anything because the jewelry store wouldn’t even let him take a bathroom break. I made a mental note to pack up a few dinners for him to bring home.
My BlackBerry vibrated just as I began placing the cupcakes around the head table and mentally debating the sticky problem of the video game guru who looked and acted like a thirteen-year-old overdue for his next dose of Ritalin. I’d sandwich him between a female U.S. senator and a co-owner of the Washington Blazes professional basketball team, I decided. They were both tall; they could talk over the techie’s head.
At that moment, a dozen executives were leaping up from their leather chairs to cluster around Michael’s limp body. They were all shouting at each other to call 911 — this crowd was used to giving orders, not taking them—and demanding that someone perform CPR.
As I stood in the middle of the ballroom, smoothing out a crease on a white linen napkin and inhaling the sweet scent of lilies, the worst news I could possibly imagine was being delivered by a baby-faced representative from the D.C. Opera Company.
“Melanie has a sore throat,” he announced somberly.
I sank into a chair with a sigh and wiggled my tired feet out of my shoes. Perfect. Melanie was the star soprano who was scheduled to sing a selection from Orfeo ed Euridice tonight. If those overflowing wineglasses didn’t get checkbooks whipped out of pockets, Melanie’s soaring, lyrical voice definitely would. I desperately needed Melanie tonight.
“Where is she?” I demanded.
“In a room at the Mayflower Hotel,” the opera rep said.
“Oh, crap! Who booked her a room?”
“Um . . . me,” he said. “Is that a prob —”
“Get her a suite,” I interrupted. “The biggest one they have.”
“Why?” he asked, his snub nose wrinkling in confusion. “How will that help her get better?”
“What was your name again?” I asked. “Patrick Riley.”
Figures; put a four-leaf clover in his lapel and he could’ve been the poster boy for Welcome to Ireland!
“And Patrick, how long have you been working for the opera company?” I asked gently.
“Three weeks,” he admitted.
“Just trust me on this.” Melanie required drama the way the rest of us needed water. If I hydrated her with a big scene now, Melanie might miraculously rally and forgo a big scene tonight.
“Send over a warm-mist humidifier,” I continued as Patrick whipped out a notebook and scribbled away, diligent as a cub reporter chasing his big break. “No, two! Get her lozenges, chamomile tea with honey, whatever you can think of. Buy out CVS. If Melanie wants a lymphatic massage, have the hotel concierge arrange it immediately. Here —” I pulled out my BlackBerry and scrolled down to the name of my private doctor.
“Call Dr. Rushman. If he can’t make it over there, have him send someone who can.”
Dr. Rushman would make it, I was sure. He’d drop whatever he was doing if he knew I needed him. He was the personal physician for the Washington Blazes basketball team.
My husband, Michael, was another one of the team’s co-owners.
“Got it,” Patrick said. He glanced down at my feet, turned bright red, and scampered away. Must’ve been my toe cleavage; it tends to have that effect on men.
I finished placing the final cupcake before checking my messages. By the time I read the frantic e-mails from Kate, who was trying to find out if Michael had any recently diagnosed illnesses like epilepsy or diabetes that we’d been keeping secret, it was already over.
While Armani-clad executives clustered around my husband, Bob the mail-room guy took one look at the scene and sped down the hallway, white envelopes scattering like confetti behind him. He sprinted to the receptionist’s desk and found the portable defibrillator my husband’s company had purchased just six months earlier. Then he raced back, ripped open Michael’s shirt, put his ear to Michael’s chest to confirm that my husband’s heart had stopped beating, and applied the sticky patches to Michael’s chest. “Analyzing …,” said the machine’s electronic voice. “Shock advisable.”
The Italian opera Orfeo ed Euridice is a love story. In it, Euridice dies and her grieving husband travels to the Underworld to try to bring her back to life. Melanie the soprano was scheduled to sing the heartbreaking aria that comes as Euridice is suspended between the twin worlds of Death and Life.
Maybe it shouldn’t have surprised me that Euridice’s aria was playing in my head as Bob the mail-room guy bent over my husband’s body, shocking Michael’s heart until it finally began beating again. Because sometimes, it seems to me as if all of the big moments in my life can be traced back to the gorgeous, timeworn stories of opera.
Four minutes and eight seconds. That’s how long my husband, Michael Dunhill, was dead.
Four minutes and eight seconds. That’s how long it took for my husband to become a complete stranger to me.
Also by Sarah Pekkanen:
By Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen:
The comment posted by Lisa McGreen was selected at random and a copy of Skipping a Beat was sent to Lisa. Thanks to all who participated!
57 Comments
[New Post] Book Review: Skipping A Beat https://www.jhsiess.com/2011/02/22/book-r…
I have not read The Opposite of Me although it is on my TBR pile.
What intrigues me most about “Skipping A Beat” is how you take so much for granted until such time when the present presents itself harshly to you. Julia’s wanting to keep things as they are & Michael wanting to right wrongs is an interesting concept.
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Thanks for the review and giveaway.
I have not read “Opposite of Me” yet but it is on my extensive wish list. I am interested in this book based on the great reviews it is getting and because I love books about the struggles of relationships and the power of love.
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I follow your blog 🙂
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Just wanted to say how touched I am by this lovely and thoughtful review – thank you!!!!
I’m a follower. I have not read The Opposite of Me. I am intrigued by the story of redemption. captainliss40(at)gmail(dot)com
I haven’t read The Opposite of Me.
I am interested in the story because of the relationship component and medical issues, which are close to home.
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I haven’t as yet read The Opposite of Me. The family dynamics and exploration of the marriage intrigues me about this new book. I would like to know how the situation plays out, and the part that good communication plays in the outcome.
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1) I have not read OPPOSITE OF ME
2) A few things intrigue me about this book:
a. I enjoy books about marital relationships
b. The life of luxury depicted
c. Event planning profession
d. How life can make a 180 degree turn
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I haven’t read Opposite to me
I want to read intrigue me because it tells us about how we take thing for granted until we are about to loose it.
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I haven’t read The Opposite of Me though I have had it on my tbr list since it was published. I’m a fraternal twin so Sarah Pekanen’s first book really intrigues me. I really like how Sarah gets deep into the intense aspects of relationships and looks at what makes them tick and how much people are willing to sacrifice for each other. Skipping a Beat sounds like an amazingly powerful and riveting story. The premise completely hooked me. I don’t want to read reviews or summaries about the rest of the story. I want to discover for myself what happens between Julia and Michael and if their marriage can withstand this major change.
Thank you for this wonderful giveaway!
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I love Sarah Pekkanen! I did read The Opposite of Me and LOVED IT! I loved it so much I even bought it for a few people so I could spread the love 😉 . What intrigues me so much about Skipping A Beat is really the basis for the whole story. What do you do when the person you married, loved and built a life with wakes up and is totally different? I can’t imagine if this happened to me and the prospect of changing everything or staying the same and not being together is terrifying! What to do, what to do! Also, I know it will be witty and touching as her last novel, so I was really good to go no matter what it was going to be about 😆 !
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1. No I haven’t read The Opposite of Me
2. It sounds interesting about how couples can move apart and become strangers and then how they try to resolve it.
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no, i haven’t read ‘the opposite of me’ yet!
i have read excellent reviews of this novel…thanks
for the opportunity to read it 🙂
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i’m a follower, too 🙂
GFC follower. Thanks for the wonderful giveaway
Two very important things. Hummm. I’m sticking to my New Year’s resolution.
I’m attempting to be practical with my spending.
Thanks for the wonderful giveaway
Book interests me as I have neighbors who are twins. Thanks
I have never read Opposite of Me and Skipping a Beat intrigues me because it is getting such great reviews and I love relationship stories!
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1. I actually have not read The Opposite of Me but I plan to as soon as I’m done with finals and boring school stuff.
2. I love how Michael decides to change his life because of life’s uncertainty. I mean, I’m not glad about his cardiac arrest or anything, but at least he’s trying to change for the better. What intrigues me the most is how Michael plans to win Julia back; it’ll be like falling in love with each other all over again!!! 😀
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I loved Sarah’s last book. I can’t wait to read this one.
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1. I have not read The Opposite of Me YET, I am planning to read this as soon as I finish my TBR pile first! I have already placed an order on Amazon so rest assured, I shall be reading that in the near future =)
2. Well, what prompted me to really want to read this is through your review. Your review was excellent. I really want to see how Julia and Michael pulls through from their struggle and how they overcome it and the outcome. I love stories about struggles during married lives, it’s so much more real and interesting! (Maybe cause I’m married haha)
Thanks for the giveaway!
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I follow under Lisa McGeen, I have read the the Opposite of Me and really enjoyed the book. I really want to see how they come through this. It has been a while since I read a book that dealt with a marriage and how they get through issues. I am looking foward to it.
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1. I haven’t read The Opposite of Me.
2. I’m intrigued by the way the author tells us about the way this couple (and family) can move through crises, and whether they become closer as a result.
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Haven’t read The Opposite of Me —- yet! Follow via GFC as Patricia. Love that it’s set in DC (my hometown) and am intrigued by the notion of giving up one way of life and choosing another —
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First-time visitor…beautiful blog.
..Stopping by from Cym Lowell’s Book Party.
Stop by my blog for a book giveaway:
LITTLE PRINCES BY CONOR GRENNAN
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Chelsey Emmelhainz of HARPER COLLINS is graciously providing FIVE copies for five lucky winners.
I loved The Opposite of Me and I love the whole premise of this book. As a psych major I am particularly interested in how life altering events, especially physically life altering events affect a person’s psyche, desires, emotions and everything else just like it seems in Michael’s case in Skipping A Beat. I can’t wait to read how the saga unfolds and what Julia does. Sarah Pekkanen has quickly become one of my favorite authors. Thanks for hosting the giveaway! cgraceh at gmail dot com Follow on friend connect as cgraceh
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I just tweeted about this great giveaway! http://twitter.com/#!/cgraceh/status/43817619882643457
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Thanks again!!
Wow! This book sounds amazing! After reading the description above, I kept putting myself in Julia’s shoes and felt immensely sorry for her. I am eager now to see what ends up happening to them and if they ever worked things out and stayed married. I have not read The Opposite of Me, but would like to.
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