Lies of the Heart: A Novel

As her husband's killer stands trial, a woman must come to terms with her marriage's hidden fault lines... Katie Burelli is living a wife's worst nightmare. Her husband, Nick, a speech therapist, has been killed, shot at point-blank range by Jerry, one of his developmentally disabled patients. Now, she sits in the courtroom, playing and replaying the events that led up to the murder. As the trial progresses and Katie searches her own recollections for answers, she begins to confront the truth about her marriage and her own responsibility for its dissolution. In chapters alternating between the past and present, "Lies of the Heart" unravels the truth behind the mourning widow's grief. Katie -- long overshadowed by her beautiful, successful sister -- pinned her emotional well-being on Nick, whose unpredictable rampages only fueled Katie's destructive insecurities. As the cracks in their relationship began to appear, both welcomed Jerry into their family, hoping that by fixing him they could fix themselves. A powerful debut novel and a rich tale of psychological suspense, "Lies of the Heart" masterfully dissects a marriage and explores the path of self-discovery that can sometimes be found only in grief.

Boyajian's psychologically astute debut combines courtroom drama with a heartbreaking portrait of a wife's grief. Katie Burrelli's husband, Nick, a speech pathologist for the developmentally disabled, is shot to death at his job. The accused? One of his patients, Jerry LaPlante, who lived with Nick and Katie. As the trial proceeds, Katie's obsessive devotion to both men comes to light, revealing a deeply vulnerable soul blinded by love. -- Andrew Abrahams in People magazine, May 3, 2010