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Marrying the Mistress Paperback – June 1, 2001
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“A pleasure to read.” —The Washington Post
“Despite its title, Marrying the Mistress is no mere sexy romp detailing the lurid details of a juicy affair. Instead, Joanna Trollope offers a domestic drama that gives us an insider’s view of what happens to a family when the respected head of the household—60-year-old judge Guy Stockdale—announces he is leaving his wife of 40 years to marry his much younger mistress, Merrion. From his teenage grandson who thinks it’s cool that Gramps can still snag a hot young babe to his feisty daughter-in-law who sets up a secret meeting to check out the Other Woman, this is a nuanced tale that manages to be both familiar and surprising. What makes the situation complex—and the book beach-bag worthy—is that Merrion is far from the stereotypical villain/slut/husband stealer. She is intelligent, independent, successful and impossible not to like. Reading Marrying the Mistress is like spying on the neighbors that everyone on the street is gossiping about—without the guilt.” —Salon.com
“A modern-day Austen.” —Library Journal (starred review)
“Masterful storyelling and memorable characters…a wise and gently truthful take on a highly charged subject.” —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“This novel should easily vault onto the bestseller lists.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“[Marrying the Mistress] must be the popular British writer’s most daring novel, as well as one of her most interesting…bracing and original…Trollope at her most challenging and thought-provoking.” —The Cleveland Plain Dealer
“Entertaining…great beach reading.” —USA Today
“A novel rich in accurate, piercing detail of domestic life and populated with strongly developed, realistic characters…absorbing and excellent.” —Booklist
“Splendidly nuanced.” —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“A great beach or vacation read.” —The Baltimore Sun
“Trollope again displays her extraordinary gift for representing the intricacies of familial relationships and the vicissitudes of domestic life…None of the themes here—betrayal and anger, the lovers’ age difference, the grasping mother, the daughter-in-law’s resentment—are terribly unusual, but Trollope’s proven ability to present them intelligently, as moral and emotional tangles faced by thinking, interesting people, satisfyingly combines the universally recognizable and the intellectually engaging.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“Essential.” —Library Journal (starred review)
- Print length327 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherPenguin Publishing Group
- Publication dateJune 1, 2001
- Dimensions5.13 x 0.88 x 8 inches
- ISBN-100425179648
- ISBN-13978-0425179642
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Editorial Reviews
Review
[Trollope's] most daring novel, as well as her most interesting...bracing and original...challenging and thought-provoking. -- The Cleveland Plain Dealer
About the Author
From The Washington Post
Product details
- Publisher : Penguin Publishing Group; First Edition (June 1, 2001)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 327 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0425179648
- ISBN-13 : 978-0425179642
- Item Weight : 9.6 ounces
- Dimensions : 5.13 x 0.88 x 8 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #2,087,313 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #1,873 in Comedic Dramas & Plays
- #8,225 in Humorous Erotica (Books)
- #16,591 in Family Saga Fiction
- Customer Reviews:
About the author

Joanna Trollope has been writing fiction for more than 30 years. Some of her best known works include The Rector's Wife (her first #1 bestseller), A Village Affair, Other People's Children, and Marrying the Mistress. She was awarded the OBE in the 1996 Queen's Birthday Honors List for services to literature. She lives in England.
Customer reviews
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Customers find the characters sympathetic, even those with flaws. They describe the romance as thoughtful and engaging.
AI-generated from the text of customer reviews
Customers find the characters sympathetic, even those with flaws.
"...and surprising love story here, told with authenticity that keeps her characters true, and fully believable...." Read more
"...The character are all sympathetic even thoose with character defects." Read more
"...It is a wonderful read, unconventional, and insightful with well-drawn characters." Read more
Customers enjoy the book's romance. They find it thought-provoking and engaging, with a true love story told with authenticity. The book is described as an easy, fun read that keeps their interest.
"Joanna Trollope delivers a wonderful, true and surprising love story here, told with authenticity that keeps her characters true, and fully..." Read more
"...They keep my interest." Read more
"I LOVE Joanna Trollope's novels! They are fun, easy reads!" Read more
Top reviews from the United States
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In spite of the subject matter, Trollope manages to make the husband and the mistress most likeable characters.
This story kept me intrigued by the varying changes in the relationships.
attention to detail (as in the way an animal or child is responded to and may be thinking) is 'right on'. I have enjoyed everything I have read of hers.
Top reviews from other countries
5.0 out of 5 stars Just as good on a second reading.
4.0 out of 5 stars Incredibly thought provoking...
I assumed I was just going to read about a married man and and his relationship with his mistress, soon-to-be-wife; but not at all... We look very closely at the effect his actions have on the dynamics of his eldest son's marriage and family life, as well as the eccentric, gay younger son's view.
The main premise of the story is about a man who decides to leave his wife of over forty years to marry his mistress of 7 years. What follows is the ensuing fall out and the intricate web of family relationships which suffer in the aftermath. It shows how fragile family relationships can be and how some mothers manipulate their own children for their own ends.
Even though I’ll admit the people are not particularly likeable, Trollope’s insight into the machinations of the human spirit is outstanding. After all, a Much older man with young woman usually means the man needs to feel young again, but not Guy Stockdale; and Merrion doesn’t fit the stereotype either, she seems to feel happier with an older man as they claim theirs is a 'marriage of minds'.
The ending, though, is not what I was expecting. Quite sad really. Once again, a fascinating observation of the complexities of the human mind - a story well told and incredibly thought provoking.
4.0 out of 5 stars Not one of her best.
Some bits about the third generation were boring for me and I tended to skip them! 3 Stars .




