Customer Reviews

An Independent Wife

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(10)
1 star:		(37)

 

 

All I can say -- I was SO ANGRY while reading this book that I had to stop 3 different times before finishing it & the book is a really thin book.

The independent wife is basically an abused wife; she put up with a man who dominated & humiliated her with his overbearing Male Chauvanist Pig routine. He walked out on a marriage after she had a miscarriage, told that when she was woman enough to handle him, to call... yada yada yada. This woman brought herself up from the bootstraps only to encounter this JERK 7 years later as her boss.

Once he learned her identity, the stalking, harrassing, dominating behaviour began again. This time, she tried to run but he blocked her from leaving, got her fired from her job, confiscated her furniture & moved her into his apartment without so much as a 'by your leave'...

All I can say was -- what romance? I wanted to fight Rhydon (the husband)& beat him with a baseball bat. What a jerk? Who could love that?

Go read SON OF THE MORNING or KILL AND TELL -- don't waste your time with this one, please!

I've really enjoyed many of Linda Howard's more recent books--particulary the passionate style--so lately, I've been going back and reading some of her older work. Most of it, I loved. But, this one was disappointing in the extreme (from any author!). Quite simply, the story is misogynistic, disturbing, and literally sickening. Rhy is not "the alpha male" (as one reviewer dubbed him); he is completely cruel to Sallie over and over again throughout the story. He continues to be cruel, and never gets redeemed. Did anyone notice that every sexual contact Rhy initiates comes with a violent adverb (he yanks her harshly, brutally takes her mouth, etc. etc. - i swear they are everywhere, but quite honestly i blocked most of them out, thank God!). At one point, Howard even writes that Rhy grabs Sallie's wrist so hard he can feel the bones shifting... what?? It would take a miracle of writing to redeem that anyway, but the truly disturbing part, is that the book doesn't even try to ... it is overwhelmingly uncritical of Rhy's abusive behavior. This is why I am convinced that this story was marketed incorrectly. The only thing that makes sense to me, is that Howard wrote this as a story about an abusive relationship (which it truly is, and if you read it, you'll see that's undeniable), and the only way it got published was as a paperback romance, or something like that. Do not read this book unless you want to (A) be depressed at the kind of abuse and degradation (verbal AND physical on both counts) that some women endure; (B) be depressed that there are actually men like Rhy out there who relish in dominating a woman in every aspect of her life (sex, home, work, and even hobbies - he steals the manuscript she's been writing on the side, reads it, then immediately insults her when she tells him he invaded her privacy: "stop spatting at me, you little cat!" Is it just me, or is that awful and nauseating??); or finally (C) be made so furious you don't know where to turn, that you have to write a long, winding amazon review like this one. Your Choice. Zero stars, horrifyingly awful, unbelievably bad.

I love Linda Howard's books. I've kept every copy of one I've come across - even this one completely despite myself because it's awful! Rhy is a stalker - and Sallie's mad to go anyhwere near him unarmed. The most positive thing I can think to say about this one is that clearly Ms Howard was practicing with variations of alpha male characters, and from the stone age Rhy's clearly living in, the wonderful Black Niall, Gray Roulliard and John Medina have evolved.

I know it was the 80's, but this became seriously painful to read. It needs a disclaimer like the ones Sandra Brown includes on her reissues of early works - something like "this book was written in a time when it was considered romanatic for men to harass women into exhaustion, admit having married them only because they felt sorry for the poor dears, bully them into leaving the work they enjoy, and stay at home where they belong - but only once the man figures out that's where he'd like to be too"

Not sure why this is listed as a Calhoun Woman novel - the heroine is Sallie Jerome! I utterly adore alpha males, and read this book when it came out 22 years ago. My how attitudes change! Strange, to think this was accepted male-female dynamics just two decades ago. I am sure the readers in their mid-twenties who did not grown up in the 70's and 80s, and are use to women being independent will wonder where Howard is coming from with this book. As a child who grew up with the "expected" house-mum, who stayed home to raise the kids and be a house maker, where a wife working was an INSULT to a man, I have seen women make great strides in being a strong figure that can take care of herself. So go into this book knowing that attitudes of the 80's were different. Remember this is a period where Coulter wrote about her heroine being whipped with a riding crop because she DARED follow him to his mistresses home and threw a shoe at him.

Sallie Jerome is a hotshot reporter for a big NYC magazine. She loved the travel, loved the danger she often finds herself in, but now she has a more immediate danger: her estranged husband Rydon Baines. Rys married her almost 9 years ago - out of pity, we learn. She was 18, he 28. He was the nephew of the woman next door. After her parents die, and then his aunt dies, too, Sarah (Sallie)is in a mental depression. Rys quickly courts her, marries her. Rys is a hotshot reporter, working for big news organization and he, too, was often sent into dangerous situations. An insecure Sarah did not like this and demanded he change his job to where he was home every night. Rys likes dropping in between assignments, having his laundry done, and having a hot time in the sack before he cuts out again. When Sarah became pregnant, he accused her of trying to trap him into staying at home. He was not there when she went into early labor, he was not there when she delivered a still birth, he was not there when she buried their son. When he finally comes home, he offers her little support (though he now claims he wanted the son, too), and they get into a row over his leaving again, he departs with a final shot saying he was leaving permanently and when she decides she is "woman enough for him" look him up. He sends monthly support checks.

Sarah starts out using his money to educate herself. She gets a college education, and comes out of the shell of the shy retiring woman. She is now called Sallie, and she has taken that education and put it to good use. Once she got her first job, she sent Rys checks back saying she no longer needed his support. So it has been seven years since she has seen the man face to face, though she has kept up with his fame on the evening news.

So Sallie is horrified to learn Rys is giving up investigative reporting and has bought the magazine where Sallie works. Rys shows up with a gorgeous model in tow. Sallie tries to hide out form Rys, but he finally forces a showdown. She presumes he will want a divorce, but Rys says there will be no divorce. He tells her she is trapped. He will fix it she cannot work anywhere else, that he wants her as his wife again and get used to it. Rys at times physically hurts Sallie - nothing major, just pulling the braid (saw this devise used in Jayne Ann's Stephanie James re-release of Stormy Challenge, so it's just not Howard's book but the TIMES that saw this caveman routine as ok), he left bruises on her wrists. Sorry, today he would be considered a bully. Worse, while claiming he wants his marriage, he still keeps is model around as a thorn to Sallie's side to make her jealous.

Sigh, it just dated. Read it to see Howard's early talent, or don't read it at all because this type of brutishness just won't play for today's reader.

She was a talent then, she is a talent now. Something the dynamics of a situation don't date well. That is this case.

Linda Howard is one of my favorite authors, so I bought this book in spite of the bad reviews. While an interesting comment on what was selling in the romance genre in the early 1980's, this book screamed the message JEALOUSY IS NOT LOVE (without meaning to, I'm sure).

The fact that the hero is controlling, jealous and manipulative, and the fact that the heroine thinks this was normal and loving, illustrate the need for intense therapy for both parties -- not a continuation of the "romance".

I also wanted the heroine to BE independent, get a spine, leave this jerk in the dust, and get a restraining order against him.

A book on abnormal behavior? Maybe. A romance? No way.

I truly wish Ms. Howard had re-worked this book, not just re-published it, as it cheapens her considerable talent.

When plain Sarah Jerome catches the attention of the gorgeous and confident Rhy Baines, she doesn't think life could get any better. After a few dates, Rhy proposes marriage and the previously lonely and needy Sarah latches on to the delights of married life. You know what they say, marry in haste, repent at lesiure. In this case, 7 years of leisure. Sarah was unable to deal with Rhy's potentially dangerous job as a foreign correspondent. For a year their marriage became moments of ecstasy followed by long periods of separation and fear. After having lost her family, Sarah is unable to cope and eventually drives Rhy away. He walks out on her with the parting shot, "when you think you're woman enough for me, give me a call."

He's arrogant, unyielding, uncompromising and a wee bit of a bastard. But Sarah could also be described as weak, emotional, needy, clingy, and a pushover. Determined to better herself and to become a woman worthy enough of someone like Rhy Baines she strives to better herself. She starts to take college classes and gets a job. With her first paycheck comes the awe of financial freedom and the realization that yes, little Sarah Jerome can stand on her own two feet. She slowly but surely creates a new, independent life for herself but in doing so, she realizes that she and Rhy weren't all that different after all. A chance encounter sets her onto the path of being a reporter and she soon starts to crave the thrill of chasing a hot story. 7 years pass and suddenly Rhydon Baines walks back into her life. Their reunion is explosive and Rhy lets her know that while he may have walked out on her 7 years ago, he has never forgotten her and he all but demands that they start up where they left off. The new and improved Sallie Jerome has no intentions of letting her estranged husband back into her life but unfortunately, as her new boss, Rhy has ways to hound her into submission. His power and connections cuts off the possibilities of divorce or changing jobs. He systematically strips her of her friends, her job, her sense of freedom and purpose and to top it all off, he even steals all her personal possessions. It's quite stalkerific. While he never physically abuses Sallie, though he does grab her roughly a few times, he does put her through the emotional wringer. When's she's been beaten down to as low as she can get, he's waiting to swoop in and tuck her away, so that when he comes homes from a hard day on the job, he has his little wife there to play with.

While Sallie is definitely adrift at that moment, she's never down for the count. She steadfastly refuses to be his little homemaker and instead gloms onto writing and soon loses herself in the thrill of writing a book of which Rhy is both supportive and helpful. He just refused to see her in a job where she might be physically harmed. It's all looking quite rosy when Rhy's past arm candy steps in and plays upon all of the old Sarah's fears and doubts and in a rush of tears, Sallie once again escapes the hold Rhy has over her. It's up to Sarah/Sallie to come to terms with herself and to finally become woman enough to fight for Rhydon Bains and it's up to Rhydon Bains to become man enough to open up his heart and let the woman he's always loved finally know it.

Alright. I'm going out on a limb here but I have to be honest. I really really liked this book. I did. It's totally unPC and at times Rhy's highhandedness made me want to punch him, but I have to say that I enjoyed his character. He certainly kept me on my toes. He was a little rough with Sallie/Sarah but despite everything, I still really, really liked this book.

The main reason is that despite his arrogance, his rude take charge attitude and his excessive high handedness, I knew that he absolutely, positively, one hundred percent adored her. I'm bypassing the years that they spent apart on the principle that Sarah was too young to understand him for what he was and on the principle that Rhy was also too young to understand what a treasure he had in Sarah. And I'm blaming them both for their refusal to meet each other half way. Normally I hate stories that have long separations but in this instance it was definitely for the best and I felt like there was actual growth. When Rhy walks back into the new and improved Sallie's life, the sparks start flying all over the place. This story, while not told in first person, was done entirely from Sallie's point of view. We never get any of Rhy's thoughts (until the end and it was a beautiful groveling scene) but in my eyes there was enough glimpses into the actual man behind the implacable mask that I was able to enjoy this story.

While I really enjoyed this story, I am not blind to it's faults. Rhy was too quick to ride roughshod over Sallie's life and Sallie was too quick to let him. It's the standard ol moment in Romanceland when the heroine is spitting mad and is about to let the hero have it with both barrels when all he has to do is gather her up in his arms and kiss the fury right out of her. *eyeroll* This book is chock full of moments like that. Plus, despite Sally's new confidence she's real quick to let the old fears and doubts creep back in and of course the current arm candy in Rhy's life is quick to take advantage of it.

When Sallie hit rock bottom and stopped fighting Rhy I felt for her. I really did. But I also know that once she had a good cry about it, she rallied back pretty quickly. She finds writing to be an excellent replacement for her exciting job as a foreign correspondent and Rhy is both supportive and helpful with her new life.

So while it does need to be said that this type of behavior should not be encouraged and should in fact be severely punished if ever your husband tries to tell you what to do, this is fiction, so I don't have to apologize. I'm going to say it loud and proud. I really liked this story. *blows raspberry*

This is absolutely the worst romance novel that I have ever read. Despite the usual high quality writing and editing that I have come to expect from Linda Howard, this is horrible. The male lead, Rhy, is far beyond the alpha male - he is just mean. Sallie/Sarah is so completely victimized by him that she cannot think her way out of a paper bag. It is incomprehensible that they make each other so angry but `cannot help' but give in to their "love." This is the type of writing that leads women to think that being stalked and abused is something normal - that they have `asked for it.' Linda Howard should be mortified to have written this book, and Mira should be ashamed for continuing to publish it. I know that I am disappointed and angry to have purchased and read it.

I give it one star because it is not possible to give it zero - or less.

The book was terrible, horrible, hate inspiring, etc. Rhy is a total jerk and loser and Sally for being a supposedly self-reliant and intelligent reporter can't tell that her ex-husband (I won't even honor him with recognition) is walking all over her. When he was through with her I wouldn't be surprised if she had cleat marks down her back. Then when she finally leaves him she just convinces herself to fight for him. As if there were anything worth fighting over. All in all I felt like ripping up the book at about page 20 maybe earlier, but I have to much respect for books in general to do that so I'll just forget about it.

I have been meaning to write a review since I read this book about a month ago. I completely agree with the many people who have skewered this pathectic attempt at romance. The relationship between the two main characters is dysfunctional at best and the characters are pathectic and annoying. The HERO is the exact same jerk that the heroine usually dumps for something better. The nicest thing I can say about the book is that it's relatively short. I wish I could give it no stars.

I was ready to write a diatribe on abusive relationships, and I'm very grateful that others recognized the same thing.

Abuse is a serious issue for women the world over. For a fantastic and credible writer like Linda Howard to write a novel like this is scary. Abuse couched as romance is dangerous.

This book should be renamed to The Dependent Wife. Rhy deserted sally, then years later resurfaces only to move sally out of her house, fire her from the job she loves, threaten physical violence to her and her friend, steal her first draft of a dear-to-heart novel, and THEN she moves in with him for 6 months!?!?!?

What I don't understand is when she finally moves out and he finds her why didn't he drag her by the hair and force her to return to Europe with him. All of a sudden he realizes he can't control her? Why? The repentant attitude came out of nowhere.

I have to be honest - this book made me so mad I wanted to be violent. A number of times I wished God would transpose me into a character in the novel so I could've slapped Sally myself. Especially those moments when she recognized his violent behavior and then dismisses them as normal.

I read romances for fantasy. Unbelievable love stories. If I wanted a dose of reality especially on abuse, I'd help out at shelter.