Woman Betrayed, A

by Barbara Delinsky

A classic novel from an exceptional storyteller, A Woman Betrayed, first published in 1991, is a stunning tale of troubling secrets that can hide beneath the placid surface of a seemingly good marriage—and the courage that's needed to move on.

Laura Frye has been happily married to her husband, Jeff, for twenty years. She has everything she ever strong, enduring, romantic love; two wonderful kids; even her own successful catering business. But her picture-perfect world shatters into a thousand pieces when Jeff mysteriously disappears.

Laura is certain the man she married would never leave his family voluntarily. But as the days go by, she learns there was much more to her husband than she had ever suspected. As Jeff's many secrets come to light, Laura is left to wonder how well she really knew him—or if she knew him at all. In the wake of emotional disaster—with all she cherished in ruins around her—she will have to reach deep inside herself for the strength and will to hold her family together and somehow reclaim her life.

Genres: Romance, Fiction, Mystery, Contemporary, Chick Lit, Contemporary Romance, Relationships

480 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 15, 1991

About the author

I was born and raised in suburban Boston. My mother’s death, when I was eight, was the defining event of a childhood that was otherwise ordinary. I took piano lessons and flute lessons. I took ballroom dancing lessons. I went to summer camp through my fifteenth year (in Maine, which explains the setting of so many of my stories), then spent my sixteenth summer learning to type and to drive (two skills that have served me better than all of my other high school courses combined). I earned a B.A. in Psychology at Tufts University and an M.A. in Sociology at Boston College. The motivation behind the M.A. was sheer greed. My husband was just starting law school. We needed the money.

Following graduate school, I worked as a researcher with the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, and as a photographer and reporter for the Belmont Herald. I did the newspaper work after my first son was born. Since I was heavily into taking pictures of him, I worked for the paper to support that habit. Initially, I wrote only in a secondary capacity, to provide copy for the pictures I took. In time, I realized that I was better at writing than photography. I used both skills doing volunteer work for hospital groups, and have served on the Board of Directors of the Friends of the Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center and on the MGH’s Women’s Cancer Advisory Board.

I became an actual writer by fluke. My twins were four when, by chance, I happened on a newspaper article profiling three female writers. Intrigued, I spent three months researching, plotting, and writing my own book - and it sold.

My niche? I write about the emotional crises that we face in our lives. Readers identify with my characters. They know them. They are them. I'm an everyday woman writing about everyday people facing not-so-everyday challenges.

My novels are character-driven studies of marriage, parenthood, sibling rivalry, and friendship, and I’ve been blessed in having readers who buy them eagerly enough to put them on the major bestseller lists. One of my latest, Sweet Salt Air, came out in 2013.  Blueprints, my second novel with St. Martin’s Press, became my 22nd New York Times bestselling novel soon after its release in June 2015.  Making Up, my work in progress, will be published in 2018.

2018? Yikes. I didn’t think I’d live that long. I thought I’d die of breast cancer back in the 1900's, like my mom. But I didn’t. I was diagnosed nearly twenty years ago, had surgery and treatment, and here I am, stronger than ever and loving having authored yet another book, this one the non-fiction Uplift: Secrets From the Sisterhood of Breast Cancer Survivors. First published in 2001, Uplift is a handbook of practical tips and upbeat anecdotes that I compiled with the help of 350 breast cancer survivors, their families and friends. These survivors just ... blew me away! They gave me the book that I wish I’d had way back when I was diagnosed. There is no medical information here, nothing frightening, simply practical advice from friends who’ve had breast cancer. The 10th Anniversary Volume of Uplift is now in print. And the money I’ve made on the book? Every cent has gone to my charitable foundation, which funds an ongoing research fellowship at Massachusetts General Hospital.

Connect with me on Facebook: facebook.com/bdelinsky
Look for my photos on Instagram: instagram.com/barbaradelinsky

Reviews

[Chris · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's been a while since I've picked up a Delinsky book, and this one was annoying. Why I kept going through this book, I don't know. I wanted to grab Jeff by the throat. Really? He doesn't like that his wife cooks, cleans, has a career, plans vacations, takes care of the kids? Poor baby. So, he feels like such a loser that he has to steal money and take off on his wife and kids. She tries to spin a sympathy story around Jeff that does not work. The characters were all shallow and nothing special. There are some Delinsky books that stay with you, always, this is not one.

[Connie · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great book. This woman is living the dream life that we all long for...Happy marriage of 20 years, 2 wonderful children, both husband & wife only successfull business & then bam!!! Her whole world is turned upside down, inside out & just completely out of control! When she learns to let go of that control she's used to having she is able to find calm, peace & love once again.

[Judy Churchill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Her CPA husband doesn’t come home from work one night, then the IRS shows up with allegations of tax fraud. What else can happen to wife and business owner Laura? This is a well developed plot with credible characters. I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

[Ceeceereads · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was on offer on iBooks, the title piqued my interest so I took a chance on something a bit different to what I would normally read. Unfortunately it didn’t pay off and I found the book repetitive, slow and uninteresting. DNF.

[Jodi Koroluk · Rating 1 out of 5]

It doesn't even deserve a star but it was the only book at the cottage and got me by

[Julie Barrett · Rating 4 out of 5]

a Woman Betrayed by Barbara Delinsky
She has a family: husband and 2 kids. She caters food for parties. He's late and he's not called.
Laura had others do the actual catering as she was attending the museum show.
This was so unlike Jeff. Deborah, the teen is also upset he's not showed up. Lyida, the mother in law who Laura
takes care of, takes to doctor appts, grocery shops, etc has not seen him.
Daphne is her best friend over the years and she has no idea where he is.
The story also follows Jeff, he's run away from his job of a CPA with his Porsche and 50k and is in a cabin with the bare essentials.
The book also follows Christian and his friend who they've been with 16 years when she dies from a disease. It's been 3 years now and he was building in VT at one time, now in Australia.
Scott is in college but he'll be home Friday as Laura Fry and Daphne fill out the missing person report.
Together they think of all the possible scenarios as to what could've happened til the investigator Taylor Jones from the IRS contacts them and tells him he's wanted for money fraud.
They freeze the bank accounts and she has no money of her own, she can't pay bills nor pay her employees.
Things just get worse with rape charges and Christian returns to the US and a mistress.
I can't even fathom going through all this...

[Lori Anderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Laura is betrayed. Lots of moving parts woven together. Husband disappears, turns out he committed tax fraud. He's in hiding, everything falls apart while he's gone--son is accused of rape, wife's business loses business, son and daughter aren't talking to each other. Husband's brother shows up to take care of them. Best friend lawyer gets the son's charges dismissed, gets involved with the FBI agent on the case (conflict of interest). Husband's mother dies. Turns out she had and affair with the husband before he left and didn't tell the FBI agent. The FBI agent had wanted to marry her, but got angry she kept a secret and left. Husband calls, then meets brother and Laura at the cemetery. He leaves, then his car is found later half submerged in the river. They all assume he died. Laura suspects her friend had an affair with the husband, and Laura admits it and leaves town for a fresh start--goes to Boston, and maybe the FBI agent will take her back. Husband's brother asks Laura to marry him. At the end, you find out the husband is alive and taking care of the vulnerable girl he met while in his place of hiding. He had made them all think he died in attempt to provide closure to them all.

[Jodi · Rating 2 out of 5]

So this book has been in my closet for years and years and years. Too many to count. It was just one of those books I thought I would read someday, so I made myself take it on vacation with me recently so that I couldn’t put it down and choose another book in my closet instead. The publishing for this addition is 2008, but then I realized the book was originally written in 1991. More than 30 years ago. First of all, that’s scary enough to think that, but that’s not my point. My point is that it is so outdated. Women’s roles in marriage, there was a rape issue that came up that I do not believe would be written the same way in today’s world. I only liked one character in the whole book. It was all pretty easy to figure out, but mostly it was the outdated thoughts that made it icky to me. I can’t believe the ending. I can’t believe the bad guy got away with everything. Definitely early 90s fluff.

[Vicki O. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like Barbara Delinsky's books but have not read all yet. A Woman Betrayed was published in 1991. Had I read this when it was new, I would have been around the age of the main character. I can relate to the time period and the less lives of the women. I liked this book, the way it takes us through the trauma and recovery of betrayal. The treatment by the legal system, the news outlets, and friends is very realistic. My family went through something similar. I enjoyed the evolving relationships.

I read this in 2021, 30 years after the story takes place. I thought about how the story would change with our modern technology. To a reader today who isn't familiar with life before cell phones, it may seem unrealistic but it is a good story. If you decide to read this book, put yourself back a few years and don't judge it by modern times.

[Brenda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Betrayed but Rewarded

This book almost lost me in the beginning. It’s the first book I’ve read by Barbara Delinksy. This book is definitely one of the best books I’ve ever read. I highly recommend this one because it’s really good. I couldn’t put it down once it got going!!! So good 😊

[Twobchelm · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such a good read , delving into places and feelings you never expected. It touched on so many family issues and feelings and connected you to the characters beautifully . It was a page turner for me !

[Heidi · Rating 2 out of 5]

dated and a bit sexist.. I usually like this author, but as one of her earlier woks it clearly showed that she got better with her newer books.

[Sheila · Rating 3 out of 5]

Laura Frye has it all; perfect house, husband, kids and career. But looks can be deceiving. One night her husband Jeff doesnt come home. Immediately she thinks the worst and calls the hospitals and police. That is until the FBI shows up to investigate Jeff for filing tax returns on dead people. Laura comes to find out that her perfect husband was a crook and has left her and her children to fend for themselves. Her perfect kids are falling apart in light of a rape charge against her son and her daughter trying to find someone who has time for her. Her perfect career, her pride and joy "Cherries Restaurant" is loosing business due to the publicity and to top it all off, her brother in law and former lover is back. Laura finds out the hard way that being perfect and competent is too much for some to handle.

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

loved this book
one of my favorites - recommended to many people
read years ago and still remember everything in it

[Laura Anderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good read

This book had mystery, relationship, as well as an awakening of truth in perspective. The main character went through genuine soul searching and was able to face herself and work through hardship to emerge a new person. The kind of story I love to read.

[Jill · Rating 2 out of 5]

Nope. Nope. Nope. This story is too contrived and the reason the main character leaves is just not believable. This could have been so much better.

[Rhonda L. Sutton · Rating 4 out of 5]

a woman betrayed

An amazing book couldn’t put it down. Intrigued at every turn makes you wonder what people close to you hide ??????

[Babbs D · Rating 5 out of 5]

Better than I thought

Laura was in denial. She did know her husband, her friends or herself. One betray after another and the whole time she refuse to take off the blinders and see what was happening around her. When finally she begins to peeled back the fabricated marriage she had imagined the truth was right there in plain sight. She didn’t love her husband and forced a life on him he didn’t want or like.
Jeff was a punk bit**. Rather than man up he allowed his wife to lead him thru life by a nose ring building up resentment until he commits the ultimate betrayal that shatters his entire network of family and friends.
The two main characters dysfunction and supporting characters bring to life a story line that twist and turn so much you lose track of who’s doing what to whom. The book will keep your attention until the last sentence.
This book I recommend

[Linda Timm · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good. Kept interest throughout. Jeff disappears, leaving Laura and two kids. Turns out Laura had loved his brother, Christian before meeting Jeff. She married Jeff because he wanted to settle down, Christian . Jeff felt overpowered by Laura's success at everything. He got involved in tax evasion issues and also had an affair with Laura's best friend Daphne. Laura's world crumbles...her son gets falsely accused of rape. The IRS freezes all their accounts, her business suffers because of all the publicity. In the end all comes out. Christian comes back, Daphne falls in love with Tack (IRS person) Jeff finds Glorie (special needs gal) and enjoys that she needs him. He ends up sending his porsche over a cliff to fake his death so all can go on living their new happiness.

[Jeanette · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would really rate this book 2 1/2 stars. I really was irritated with some of the characters even at Laura, the main protagonist at times. Of all the characters, I liked Daphne the best. She at least seemed human and with her imperfections, human. Jeff irritated me immensely. To just up and leave? Of course what he had done criminally could explain that. But we are to believe that what he did was acceptable and he could just leave his family, most importantly his children? A Family Betrayed would have been a better title. The book was written well enough that I stayed engaged. I just didn’t like all the drama which seemed over the top and then everything was just swept up into a tidy little package at the end.

[Barbara Dover · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting story with a lot of subplots. The main plot, however, was the pairing off into male/female relationships. Unfortunately all of the main female characters who were characterized as strong with minds of their own felt incomplete without a man in their lives (Lydia, Laura, Daphne,) or were mean and bullying (Maddie.) And the main male characters were either weak and insecure (Jeff,) mean bullies (Duggin and Gary,) or supposedly looking for strong women but not averse to spending time with “good-time girls” (Taylor and Christian.) The novel was written in 1991, though, so that explains the stereotypical relationships. It would be interesting to see how these same characters would be written today.

[Debbie · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are some authors who very clearly improve over time, and this author is a shining example. Somewhere along the way, she dropped the awkward silly sex scenes, and the covert (mostly) sexism. When I got this book, I did not check the year it was written so when I started it, I checked and had a bit of a long sigh since it was written in 1991. So it was definitely dated, no cell phones, computers, no “me too” movement—still some awkwardness, but that is not to say that it was bad. It held my attention. It was an interesting scenario, focused around what a family does when the dad/ husband disappears. I do like this author, but definitely her later books are better.

[Deane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Laura and Jeff Frye have been married 20 years....he is a CPA and a partner in a firm, she has a very successful catering business and restaurant. They have two children, one in university, the other in high school....they own a beautiful home in an expensive neighbourhood, he has a new Porsche, she has a Jeep. Perfection....

But one night Jeff doesn't come home from work....he is always prompt ....Laura is frantic. Jeff disappears without a trace and then it is one family, financial, emotional problem one after another.
I liked the way everything was tied up neatly in the end...a lot of happiness, a lot of sadness.

[Sherry · Rating 5 out of 5]

I Love Books By Barbara Delinsky

I've read several books by Ms. Delinsky and have loved all of them. "A Woman Betrayed" did not change my feelings about her novels. She is exceptional at showing her readers the real feelings and emotions of ordinary people & their relationships. Normally, I don't like the feeling of sensing where some of the storyline is heading, since it can make a reader feel like they really don't need to continue on with the book. but Ms. Delinsky is so artful in bringing you right along with the characters/ storyline. that you don't want to put it down. Please take the time to not only read "A Woman Betrayed", but any of her other wonderful stories.

[Suzanne · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was sort of like watching a snail race; if things were moving any slower they'd be standing still. None of the characters was very likeable. I read in another review that the original publication date for this book was 1991. While I think that can explain some of the outdated ideas and behaviors, I found it interesting that Laura was bright enough and talented enough to create and run a business while raising children and (supposedly) flawlessly manage a home and the lives of everyone in the family but she wasn't smart enough or sensitive enough to have a clue about any of the problems in that family/home/life.
Not one of her better efforts.

[Brett Bickham · Rating 5 out of 5]

A different kind of book than I normally read but so glad I did! A real page turner. I love how Barbara developed multiply characters in a way that I felt I knew them yet wanted to know more about them. A great story line with unlimited hypotheticals. We have all been blindsided and know how devastating that can be. Which is worse, the betrayal of a spouse or lifelong friend? Very well written with the use of narrative and dialog. I love strong woman that survive tragedy. Unlike most books I read, this book had a weak man. If ever I wanted to start fresh, with a do-over in life, I would never choose the path that this weak man chose. Great book!

[Cookie E. · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Woman Betrayed is an interesting story about a woman whose husband disappears and upends her life. Before the disappearance, Laura believed her life with Jeff to be a happy one. His disappearance requires Laura to review things she thought she knew, including her marriage. The book is sometimes an uncomfortable read, but I am always intrigued by stories that make the reader wonder how well we really know those closest to us.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book. I'd never read any of her books before. Her storylines were interesting, her style was easy to read, and I looked forward to what came next. Then I got mad a little at how some parts wrapped up at the end, but I feel like I often do with books. Overall, probably 4.5 stars, and now I'm going to read another Delinsky book!

[Alexis · Rating 2 out of 5]

Really really couldn’t get into this book. Judging by the plot I really thought I’d love it, but unfortunately that wasn’t the case. The start was very slow and the story ending up unfolding in a really predictable way. A husband lies to his wife and he eventually gets caught. I know this is a terrible way of putting it but this is really how it read to me.

[Lori Stowell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good Story

When I saw the title I wasn't that thrilled and also the length of the book but I was happily surprised on what a good story it was. Some of the things could of been omitted like the part about her son and I skimmed through a lot especially through the hospital part and also near the end but otherwise was very good read.