Ask a Book Question: The Twenty-first in a Series (A Rose by Any Other Name)

Hey folks. I’m back from the honeymoon, sunburned and with my energy replenished. My inbox is full and I have much to write about so stay tuned. To start, here’s a mysterious book question I received from Vicki:

Looking for a book. Think it was called Rose Manor? Fiction, About a woman that is married to a police officer that beats her and she runs away and hides. She changes her name and he sets out to find her to kill her. She goes to a shelter that helps her get a job and a new home and identity. She buys a painting that comes alive, and she finds that out because there are crickets that come out of the painting. There is also a woman in the painting that moves around. The lady in the book also gets a job reading books to be put on tape. Does anyone know what this book is? Please help.

Well, your description sounded familiar to me, but a title search turned up nothing. Then it hit me. Only Stephen King would combine violence and the supernatural in the way you describe. You almost had the title; it’s King’s 1995 best seller, Rose Madder.