The Power House Wives

Book excerpt: Power House Inc., the largest employer in suburban Fairbrook, downsizes, throwing hundreds of employees out of work. The story focuses on four women, their lives suddenly turned upside down by the lay-offs, face the loss of their homes. Charlotte is the ex-wife of the PowerHouse CEO who now wants to cut off his financial support and force her to sell the home that had been in her family for generations. It seems he'll stop at nothing to get his way. Laurel has moved nine times during her twenty-one year marriage and has finally settled permanently, or so she thought, into the first house she has ever owned. But her husband is so defeated by his job loss, he is too immobilized to look for work, and they may lose their house. Zora's husband doesn't tell her he lost his job and she continues her lavish lifestyle until they're nearly broke. Robin, a high school teacher expecting her first child, has given the school district her notice. When her husband's job goes up in smoke, she tries to get her job back, only to find her position has been eliminated due to the economic downturn. Meanwhile her husband can't hold a job, and it looks as if they'll lose their new home. Each of these women realizes she will have to act if she is to save her home. And the odds against all of them are great. In facing these challenges, each finds qualities in themselves they never knew they had.