Thy Neighbor's Wife [Paperback]

Georgia Beers (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 2003

"[W]ell-written and contains compelling and believable conflict and angst. This is a fine follow-up to Beers' previous book, Turning The Page." ~Midwest Book Review

Alex Foster's life is exactly as she wants it. She's quit her job as an English teacher and has decided to hole up in her newly acquired lake house for the summer to try her hand at writing a novel. She has close friends; she has her dog; she plays volleyball. She is content.

Jennifer Wainwright is a young, wealthy suburbanite who's life is exactly as she expected it would be. She's married to her high school sweetheart who is about to inherit his father's law firm. She has friends. And she has the whole summer to work on decorating the new house on the lake she and her husband have just purchased as their summer home. She is content.

A chance meeting over a runaway pooch is the start of a journey for each woman. Over the course of one unbelievable summer set on the beautiful shores of Canandaigua Lake in upstate New York, these two women will teach one another, learn from one another, question their own beliefs and expectations, and unwittingly fall in love.

--This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 196 pages
• Publisher: Regal Crest Enterprises, LLC (August 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1932300155
• ISBN-13: 978-1932300154
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.4 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #585,004 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

116 of 122 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Compelling and Believable December 5, 2003

By Lori L. Lake

Format:Paperback

Young, attractive Jennifer Wainwright, married to her high school sweetheart, Eric, is a happy woman. She and Eric have just purchased a summer retreat in upstate New York, and they are doing so well financially that Jennifer doesn't even need to work. She's living every heterosexual woman's dream. Perhaps the only fly in the ointment is her shrewish mother-in-law and all the expectations of Eric's and her parents. But even they can be ignored when she considers the wondrous layout of the new home and starts thinking of ways to decorate it. The day she and Eric move in, Jennifer becomes acquainted with the next door neighbor, Alex Foster, who is a slightly mysterious novelist with a not-so-mysteriously broken heart. Jennifer, too, has secret aches of her own, and with Eric off at the law office in the city so much, she starts leaning on Alex for companionship, joins her volleyball league, and gets to know Alex's friends. It's only a matter of time before problems bloom for Eric and Jennifer, and the inevitable happens. When it does, the lives of everyone involved threaten to blow apart.

There aren't any new twists on the straight-woman-falls-in-love-with-a-woman plot, but this story is well-written and contains compelling and believable conflict and angst. This is a fine follow-up to Beers' previous book, Turning The Page. ~Lori L. Lake, Midwest Book Review

26 of 26 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars An Excellent read that isn't what you expect April 10, 2006

By E. B. MULLIGAN VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

This is a romance but I found it more a story of the coming to awareness by both main characters.

I was hesitant to read this novel as infidelity is a big turn off for me but both women take the main character's marriage commitment seriously.

The married person, Jennifer, is something of a enabler, trying to please those around her which isn't hard to do until the summer when she and her husband buy a new home. She and her husband spend very little time together and have always been best friends but you couldn't call them lovers. They have followed the path that their families and friends expected from them. The marriage is falling apart well before Jennifer meets Alex with neither husband nor wife wanting to confront and address the issues that have created a sterile yet pleasant marriage that is becoming an unhappy place very quickly.

We don't get a handle on Alex until later in the novel. She is quite different from Jennifer in that she has actively distanced herself from every relationship in fear that greater hurt awaits her. So she never makes an emotional commitment, even to someone who loves her dearly.

Both characters are wonderfully likeable and honorable so you are delighted that they both reach awareness that their actions (or inactions) in the past have caused them to be in a place that is not fulfilling and they take the steps necessary to change for the better.

I especially liked the subsidiary characters and found the husband and the close friends very believable. I enjoyed the authors first novel `Turning The Page' very much and look forward to her next novel to be published in July 2006.

This from the Publisher's website - Alex Foster's life is exactly as she wants it. She's quit her job as an English teacher and has decided to hole up in her newly acquired lake house for the summer to try her hand at writing a novel. She has close friends; she has her dog; she plays volleyball. She is content.

Jennifer Wainwright is a young, wealthy suburbanite who's life is exactly as she expected it would be. She's married to her high school sweetheart who is about to inherit his father's law firm. She has friends. And she has the whole summer to work on decorating the new house on the lake she and her husband have just purchased as their summer home. She is content.

A chance meeting over a runaway pooch is the start of a journey for each woman. Over the course of one unbelievable summer set on the beautiful shores of Canandaigua Lake in upstate New York, these two women will teach one another, learn from one another, question their own beliefs and expectations, and unwittingly fall in love.

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Three Cheers for New Neighbors... April 24, 2005

By K. Johnson VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

I readily agree with most of the other Amazon reviewers of this book -- the plot is not original and the reader knows what will happen on the next page. However, this book has something special that makes it very different than others in this genre -- the author. This is the first Georgia Beers book I've read and I'm delighted to say I have 'Turning the Page' on my 'to read' bookshelf. Her writing is fantastic. Beers gives life to her characters and scenes, making the reader feel like an eavesdropper.

Alex lives in a cabin given to her by an aunt. She's a former schoolteacher who is trying to write a novel. One afternoon her dog gets loose and, as a result, she meets her new neighbor Jennifer. Jennifer is married to a man she's known most of her life. They come from wealthy families that have high expectations of them both. Alex has given up on love. Jennifer, who went through a lesbian "phase" in college, finds herself undeniably attracted to Alex. Both women respect Jennifer's marriage vows, making both of them even more unhappy. However, the most unlikely of people (Jennifer's husband)puts things into perspective for all of them.

I could not put this one down. Forget the recipe, it's the author that makes this one special. She has a gift and I hope she keeps turning out the books for a very long time.