Out Of The Shadow: An Analysis of an Affair

Fredericka Heller is an artist living in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Her first novel, Out of the Shadow, is based on her personal experience in Jungian dream therapy. Set in Santa Fe, the book is filled with local color as well as experiences in astrology, synchronicity and past lives, making the esoteric both credible and amusing. Out of the Shadow is the story of an artist, Jan, who falls in love with a composer, Neil. Gradually the romance fades and when her lover leaves with a younger woman, Jan is devastated. In an effort to comprehend the affair, she consults Byron, a psychic healer and Jungian therapist. During an adventurous trip to California, events in Jan's past flash through her mind - her childhood with an eccentric mother, her life in New York as a young artist and past relationships. The interior drama is the compelling aspect of the story. Byron's uncanny insights into her dreams, as well as an understanding of events in her early life, lead her to a new perception of her self and the relationship. Although Out of the Shadow is primarily a woman's book, it deals with relationships and psychology that should appeal to a wide audience. Written from a layman's point of view, it reflects how therapy brings to light startling revelations from the unconscious and probes relationships that often mystify us.