A book I used to love but don't anymore is Maggy's Child by Karen Robards.
Lyle and Maggy Forrest and their son David, 11, seem to be a stable, wealthy Kentucky family, but Lyle is physically abusive and Maggy is trapped by a web of secrets and by her love for her son. Then after 12 years, Nick King, Maggy's protector when they were children in the Louisville projects and David's real father, reappears as a prosperous nightclub owner. Although unaware of David's patrimony, King wants Maggy back and to do so he is "looking for dirt" about Lyle. There turns out to be plenty. Blackmail, the DEA and other elements follow along with a large cast of secondary characters like Tia Gloria who thinks she's psychic; Nick's half-brother Link, who has a shady past; and a huge, nasty parrot named Horatio who plays a vital (though incredible) role in the denouement.
I first read this book when I was in my early twenties and loved it. In fact I still have a copy on my shelves. I would re-read it every once in a while. The last time I read it, I didn't like it as much. I'm not quite sure why. Maybe my taste in reading has changed, or perhaps Robards' writing has changed, as I still read her novels. Mainly, I think that the last time I read this book, I suddenly found the main characters to be too immature.
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