Distant Lover [Hardcover]

Gloria Mallette (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2004

For thirty-seven-year-old Tandi Crawford, the past is a double-edged sword. On one side is the agonizing mystery of her mother's early death and her father's brutally cold indifference. On the other is the all-too-vivid recollection of one unforgettable summer and the unrequited teenage romance that won't let Tandi rest. The fantasy of getting together with a boy she hasn't seen in more than twenty years has pulled Tandi through many a bitterly lonely night with a husband who's too busy to notice that he's lost her.

After vowing never to live in her father's house again, Tandi finds that her failed marriage has brought her and her young son back to that very same dusty doorstep. And when Tandi's daydreams of reuniting with her long-ago boyfriend unexpectedly become an exciting and passionate reality, Tandi discovers that nothing and no one in her life is as it appears to be...


"Mallette's balanced perspective and well-rounded characters will keep fans riveted." -- Publishers Weekly

--This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In this fifth novel by Mallette (The Honey Well, etc.), 37-year-old Tandi Crawford is holding onto her marriage by her fingertips. She "couldn't say she knew the exact moment she felt her marriage was over; she just knew it didn't end all at once." Her husband, Jared, spends all his time at his busy Queens law firm, too preoccupied to notice Tandi and their 11-year-old son, Michael. This leaves Tandi bitter and depressed, not to mention hurt when she finds out Jared cheated on her. When she finally decides to leave, she and Michael move into her father's house, a place she vowed she would never live again. Her father is distant and rude; to help herself cope, she dreams of reuniting with her first love, Brent. Miraculously, he appears, but their fun in bed turns sour when Tandi realizes he's no Prince Charming. Meanwhile, Tandi is forced to confront all the unanswered questions in her life. Why is her father a crotchety, bitter old man? Is he her real father? What really happened to her mother, who disappeared years ago? Can she forgive Jared and bring their family back together? As her reality crumbles around her, Tandi is forced to acknowledge that she's made some mistakes of her own. Mallette's balanced perspective and well-rounded characters will keep fans riveted.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Tandi has always had a tumultuous relationship with her father, Sporty, who raised his children as a single parent. Although she is married to Jared, a hardworking attorney, and has an idyllic son, she feels unloved and unappreciated. She leaves her husband and retreats to the only place she can go until she is able to make it on her own--her father's house. Her brother insists that she prolong her stay after Sporty has a stroke. After he antagonizes several home-health aides, Tandi threatens to put him in a nursing home. When an older woman comes to care for him, he miraculously begins to behave better. It is this woman's secret that finally uncovers the real reasons Sporty has been so angry and unfair to Tandi. His revelation allows her to finally let go of the disappointment and anger she has while yearning for her father's approval and love. It is also the catalyst that allows her to return to Jared with renewed appreciation for his steadfastness and true feelings for her. A solid read. Lillian Lewis
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Product Details

• Hardcover: 336 pages
• Publisher: Kensington; First Edition edition (October 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 075820471X
• ISBN-13: 978-0758204714
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.2 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,645,894 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Nationally acclaimed award winning author GLORIA MALLETTE began her true literary journey by self-publishing her second novel Shades of Jade in April of 2000. By July and 13,000 sold copies later, Gloria signed on with Random House who re-released Shades of Jade in 2001. Shades of Jade made several best sellers lists, including Black Board, Essence Magazine, The Dallas Morning News, and The Washington Post/Washington is Also Reading listing.

Gloria has been featured in The New York Daily News, USAToday, ToDay's Black Woman, Upscale Magazine, and The Pocono Record. Gloria also has a featured novella, Come Tomorrow, on the USAToday website.

To her credit, Gloria now has ten published titles including the newly released SASSY; Weeping Willows Dance; and Living, Breathing Lies winner of the National Best Book 2007 Award and the 2008 Indie Excellence Award.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An emotional journey, September 22, 2004

By 

Loretta "MsLo" (Virginia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Distant Lover (Hardcover)

DISTANT LOVER is a passionate, emotional story encompassing the perils of Tandi Crawford's efforts to live a normal adult life even though examples of normalcy was never within her grasp. Tandi grew up without the presence of a mother's love and in the presence of a father who displayed hostile indifference. Additionally, her father offered no input about the mother she never knew.

In spite of her past, Tandi strives to share a conventional life with her husband and son. But how do you trust when your life has been founded on lies, evasiveness and non-commitment? This questions looms paramount in Tandi's mind when after fifteen years of a pallid marriage, she discovers her husband is having an affair. She accepts his indiscretion, but her emotions shut down, and three years later Tandi cannot take anymore of their union. She leaves her marriage in search of her past. Although she vowed to never live in her father's house again, she finds herself and her eleven year old son back in his gloomy environment. Tandi's wants to recapture days long gone with her first love, and to finally get answers about the mother she never knew. But, her father suffers a stroke and again, she catches her husband in bed with another women - this time her best friend. Suddenly she feels totally disconnected. When she becomes privileged to some surreal family revelations, Tandi realizes nothing in her life is as she imagined and wishes she had left the past in the past. Tandi finally realizes she is the master of her fate.

DISTANT LOVER is the sixth published work by Gloria Mallette, and with it comes the realization for me that she is indeed a story teller possessing the gift of sharing life's dramas in a profound way. She writes a sympathetic story of secrets, betrayal and forgiveness and weaves this complex family tale with a definitive flair. Captivating, suspenseful, and solidly written, this one gives a different look at redemption and an in-depth look at emotional fallout when consequences are manifested.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The past is not always what it seems, May 14, 2005

By 

Dawn Chambray (Michigan, United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Distant Lover (Hardcover)

You don't know what you got til it's gone or until you try someone else. Didn't curiosity kill the cat? Tandi was a curious soul who just had to know. She had to know how it feels to be with her ex-love and she had to know the surroundings of her birth. But when she finds them both out boy is she in for a shocker! I think she should have left well enough alone, but things between her and her husband may have not improved if she didn't do what she did. That's a plus. Sometimes you have to rattles the chains to get some action. This was my first read by Gloria Mallette and it was truly a good one. Full of suspense, and the ending was not a typical one which makes it stand out.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A recommended read, November 27, 2004

By 

keepnitrealreaders (World Wide Web) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Distant Lover (Hardcover)

Distant Lover is the story of Tandi Crawford, a thirty-seven year old married mother of one, who must come to grips were her issues in order to move forward.

After being married for over ten years, Tandi finds herself feeling unloved and unwanted. Is her marriage irreparable? Is a divorce the answer? Or maybe she can find what she's looking for in her first love - a man she's been thinking of more and more with the decline of her marriage.

In addition to her marital problems, Tandi has a strained relationship with her father Sporty, a bitter man who never gave her the love and attention she needed growing up. Why is their relationship so hostile? And why won't he tell her and her brother anything about their mother that died several years earlier?

Readers find themselves pulled into Tandi's world, feeling her pain, as she travels the road of self-discovery. Ms. Mallette delivers a captivating novel.

Reviewed by
Savvy Sista Sophia