Customer Reviews

Four Wives

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I should have listened to the reviewer who wrote "meh" as the title of her review. Instead I went with the other reviewer. I agree, "meh" On the surface it seems as if it's a great book with lots of interesting characters. It is not. Toward the end of the book I seriously cared very little for any of them. I wouldn't waste my time.

Four Wives is not a bad book, but it's a pretty forgettable one. Wendy Walker is an OK writer, but the characters she gives us are not interesting enough to hold the reader's attention for 300-plus pages. What begins as an interesting look into the lives of four frustrated housewives eventually loses its appeal, and the end is quite disappointing.

One caveat: I'm probably not the target reader for this novel, as I find the idea of living in the suburbs preferable only to jail -- and not by much. Perhaps if you live in the suburbs, or are planning to do so at some point, you might enjoy Four Wives more than I did.

Life complicates marriage and a woman's self-esteem. That's the truth. The problem with reading these types of novels is that we want the characters to be real, yet not so real that we lose the escapism of a good story because they remind us too much of our own less-than-storybook real lives. Wendy Walker does this well in Four Wives . These are women that could be your friends, your sisters. They support each other in the way that only women can -- with childcare help, a listening ear, or a good vanilla latte.

Love is a former child prodigy suffering with the invisible woman/Mommy syndrome.

Gayle is old money in the midst of the new money in her area, but she knows that money can't buy happiness, as she turns to prescription pills to help her cope.

Marie is a part-time working mother and resents the Stepford wives and is quickly realizing that she can't stand the suburbs.

Janie is impossibly beautiful (impossible because she's surgically enhanced and spends more time in the gym than most of us have to spare), and though she might appear to have it all, she's not happy.

It's a diverse group, and while none are completely likable, I found myself liking almost all of them -- just as we do our own friends and family -- warts and all.

This book is a quick read. I am sure someone can write something more interesting about the housewives of New Canaan. I had high hopes for this book. It was a quick read, and held my interest but overall nothing extraordinary happened in the book and I was hoping for more twists and turns.

I read "Social Lives" and loved it. This book I found about as interesting as golf. I'll leave it at that.

Four Wives by Wendy Walker is a good read for a book club or circle of friends. Walker introduces us to four wives who come from different backgrounds that live in Hunting Ridge. Love, Janie, Marie and Gayle come together to plan a charitable event, and during the planning stages, a little bit about their lives are revealed. Hunting Ridge may not be the same after all...

In suburbia the four married women meet while working on a public health benefit. Each has relationship issues involving their respective families. Housewife Janie Kirk is cheating on her spouse; lawyer Marie Passeti struggles with her work, her family and a hot intern she desires; affluent Gayle Beck uses prescription drugs to cope with her abusive husband; and a doctor's spouse and mother Love Welsh receives a letter from her estranged father that shakes her current existence.

As the women become better acquainted with one another; they become aware of each other's personal issues that send the quartet individually to relook their own problems with a wiser perspective. Especially hitting home to the remaining trio is Love's agony over whether she wants to have a second chance with her father; as his note of reconciliation brings back a past she prefers to forget.

This look at life in suburbia is an interesting tale that rotates viewpoints between the FOUR WIVES so that the audience gets to understand what specifically disturbs each of them beyond the obvious stereotyping of the women and their husbands. As each of them learn more about the other three, they also comprehend more about themselves. However, the ending does not fit the tone of the well-written story line that throughout Wendy Walker elucidates how complex relationships truly are implying resolutions are filled with opportunity costs not necessarily happy ones.

Harriet Klausner

Loved it! It was a page turner, quick read and accurate portrayal of the trade-offs some women face in wealthy suburbian towns.

Wendy Walker introduces us to 4 different types of woman from different social backgrounds who are working together on a special event. She does a great job illustrating the dynamics between the women and their respective relationships with their spouses and children.

As someone who lives near "Hunting Ridge" it is a real insider look at these seemingly "perfect" families.

Item arrived in perfect condition & in no time at all. Would order from them again!

Sensational novel! I laughed, I cried, and can only sing its praises...Ms. Walker looks at life's trials and tribulations with rapier wit and real pathos...I couldn't stop reading it and was sad when I finished it. This is a great read!