ADDICTED TO ADULTERY: How We Saved Our Marriage, How You Can Save Yours

A cautionary, sudsy tale of the destruction of a career and the near demise of a marriage because of ""another woman."" At age 41, Richard Brzeczek was committed to a mental institution. The day before, he had lost his bid for election as Illinois state's attorney; he had been fired by the corporate law firm he had recently joined; his mistress had informed him she was moving to the West Coast; and he had been served with divorce papers from his beloved wife of nearly 20 years. Richard had been on the skids ever since becoming an adulterer three years before. He was then Chicago's youngest-ever police superintendent, a rising political star, a cop with a law-school degree lionized by the media, a ""loving family man."" His downfall began with an affair with an airline attendant he met on a flight to New York, where he was appearing on Good Morning America. Bruised by guilt, he became verbally abusive to wife Liz, neglected his four children, and turned to drink. His recovery was prompted by the specter of losing his wife and family. With the help of AA, he sobered up and broke with his mistress. Today, he's a lawyer in private practice, and he and Liz run a support group for families being destroyed by adultery. Limned by free-lancer De Vita in a perfervid, clich‚-ridden style (""Something had to change. Their life had to change. Liz felt she couldn't go on much longer""), this emotional saga should appeal to soap-opera addicts.