Madeline's Miracles by Warren Adler is a psychological suspense thriller involving a scamming psychic gaining uncanny control over a desperate family, originally published in 1989 by Lynx Books, and optioned for a movie which was never made, according to the blurb.
This is offered free for a limited time courtesy of the author himself @
his website in return for your name and email, after which you will be redirected to a download page with DRM-free ePub and Mobi option.
Adler's been bringing out his backlist in a big way over the past few years, and his books seem quite reasonably priced and couponable at Kobo, Sony, and Fictionwise (and probably eligible for that new Diesel loyalty reward program thing).
Description
A cautionary tale about a powerful psychic who takes control of a family.
When a commercial artist, her stockbroker husband and their twin daughters move to Los Angeles, they unwittingly fall prey to a woman who convinces them that she is a psychic and can foresee their future. By persuading them that she holds the key to their success and can protect them from the dangers that threaten them, she gradually takes full control over their careers, their parenting, even their sex lives, until they become her willing accomplices.
This chilling tale rises to a tense crescendo as the psychic dissects and manipulates the family's beliefs and paralyzes their will to protect themselves. This classic story of brainwashing offers a cautionary tale for anyone who has lost the ability to question an illogical certainty.
Optioned for the movies by Goldie Hawn's company but never made.