The Minister's Wife [Mass Market Paperback]

Delia Parr (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1998

Desperate to rise above the scandal of her birth, Emilee became the minister's wife, not for love, but for redemption. Now a model of virtue and respectability, she is dedicated to serving those who once shunned her. Only too late does she discover she has fallen in love with another man--and only faith and determination not to be her mother's daughter stand between her and the greatest temptation of her life.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In small-town America in the early 19th century, being the illegitimate daughter of a scandalous woman is a hard mark to overcome. But Emilee Clarke decides to become the most righteous of women?the minister's wife. What she hadn't counted on in her scheme was an abusive husband or a nascent love for the former minister's prodigal son. Jared Burke has returned to upstate New York in order to be reconciled with his mother. He is welcomed back into the community and many a single woman sets her cap for him, but he falls for a married woman, Emilee. Despite their passion, they keep the relationship platonic?at least until Emilee's husband tries to kill her. Now the marriage vows that Emilee thought would free her from her past keep Jared powerless to offer her a new future?unless he is willing to destroy Emilee's reputation, her identity and maybe her soul. Part inspirational romance, part Peyton Place, Parr's (The Ivory Duchess) latest is brimming with forbidden temptation, old scandals, dark secrets, darker betrayals and the power of faith. Though the plotting is well crafted and the ending a surprise, the pacing is sluggish, the tone morose and the characters so fainthearted that it is hard to sympathize.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Returning to his rural upstate New York community after an absence of 17 years, Jared Burke, son of the town's beloved late pastor, intends to raise roses and look after his mother. The last thing he expects to do is fall in love, not only with a married woman, but one who is definitely off limits?Emilee Greene, the vulnerable, abused wife of his father's clerical successor. A pair of troubled protagonists who have their separate, but similar, ghosts to lay to rest, nicely handled sexual tension, and several well-depicted secondary characters (a spiteful, gossip-mongering church member is especially memorable) add appeal to a generally well-written story that, unfortunately, suffers from too much unproductive, introspective angst and too little plot. While the story's small-town atmosphere will attract readers who like their historicals gentle and laced with Americana, the mild sex, religious subject matter, and theme of forgiveness may also recommend it to readers of Christian inspirationals. Parr (The Ivory Duchess, St. Martin, 1997) has written a number of well-received romances and lives in New Jersey.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press (September 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312966504
• ISBN-13: 978-0312966508
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,972,879 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Powerful, Dynamic Read!, July 17, 1998

By 

Vicki Hinze (Florida, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Minister's Wife (Mass Market Paperback)

Ms. Parr has long since been on my favorite author list, but with THE MINISTER'S WIFE, she's given her readers an extraordinary gift.

I was skeptical. A married woman falling in love with another man? Was this a woman I could respect and admire?

She was. The woman--and the man she grows to love--were honorable. Exactly the kind of people most aspire to be.

With her deft skills at creating emotion-churning characters with integrity and self-respect, Ms. Parr succeeded. I loved everything about this book! It remained true to its historical setting, the social mores and customs, and the mind-set of the society portrayed. An excellent, excellent read that will more than satisfy Ms. Parr's many established fans and will have new ones flocking to her books, begging for more!

5.0 out of 5 stars Romance That Is True to Its Setting, March 14, 2010

By 

V. WELCH (Virginia Beach, VA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Minister's Wife (Mass Market Paperback)

I was in the local library looking for historical romance. My teenage daughter pulled "The Minister's Wife" off the shelf and said, "How about this one?" Ho hum, I thought, as it didn't look particularly exciting.

Nevertheless I went home and started reading. Wow! I really enjoyed this read. What did I like? 1) Believable characters. I'm tired of reading historicals in which the heroine embraces all the liberal progressiveness of contemporary women. While we all want strong heroines, strong heroines that mouth and/or act 21st century political correctness are just so obviously contrived. 2) I liked the subtle sexual pull of the romance, which started at the beginning and carried the reader through clear to the end, 3) I liked the fact that the heroine was true to herself, 4) I liked the notion of honor AND love, not just love for the sake of a love story, and 5) finally, but by all means not in the least, I liked the fact that Ms. Parr doesn't take us under the covers with the main characters. I want my hero and heroine to desire each other physically (and desire each other A LOT), but I really don't care to make it a three-some. I am now working on my second Delia Parr book, and it's already looking to be a gripping read.

5.0 out of 5 stars The best ever Delia Parr novel!, July 29, 1998

By 

Jerry Jones ([e-mail]) (Black Mountain, North Carolina) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Minister's Wife (Mass Market Paperback)

Always a champion of the nineteenth century American woman, who had few champions in her own time, Ms. Parr delivers a powerful tale of one woman's courage and honor in the face of the ultimate deception. And her hero grows roses-- you're going to love him! The best part of this book, however, is the ending. Don't peek!