Bibliofreakblog

Hidden Wives by Claire Avery

This book is riveting.  For reals.  In fact, the pace could have been slowed down a bit, particularly the last few chapters.  But as it was, I found myself totally engrossed.  

Sara and Rachel are half sisters.  Rachel is from their father’s legal marriage to his first wife, while Sara is a product of his polygamist marriage to his second wife.  They have two more “mothers” beyond that, one of whom is only a few years older than them.

Sara is smart and curious.  She loves books and dreams of being a teacher.  But that won’t happen, because she is engaged to marry her uncle.  Rachel is stunningly beautiful and completely devoted to The Blood of the Lamb, the fundamentalist society they live in in Utah.  Recently she has been told that 16 different men in the community have had “testimonies” from God that they should take her as a wife.  The Prophet and leader of the community says that she is very special, and he must pray on it further, but Sara suspects he wants her for himself.

Enter Luke.  Luke, along with his father and mother, has recently moved to the Blood of the Lamb society.  His father, a contractor, has agreed bring all of his business to the community, and thus become a real up-and-comer.  But Luke thinks it is all bullshit.  

Which, of course, you know, it is.

Rachel falls for Luke, and he for her.  She is determined to save him from Hell.  But Sara and Luke are more concerned about the here and now.  They want to take Rachel away before she and Sara become teenaged brides.  But how can they convinced brainwashed Rachel to leave?  Time is of the essence, especially when dangers lurk within their own family as well as with other members of the community?  Maybe Sara’s new friend, a black teenager (who the rest of the community would regard as literally a product of Satan because of his black skin) can help.

The only thing, besides the pacing of the book, that I found irritating was Luke and Rachel’s attraction to each other.  The only think Luke can ever say is that she’s beautiful.  Which is exactly why all of the other men of the communities have claimed they have received testimonies from God that they should be sealed in marriage together for all of eternity.  Even though Sara isn’t as pretty, I would think that she’d be a better match as she’s more on the same wavelength as Luke.  Some plot devices can be forgiven, but due to the “undefinable attraction” syndrome that seems to be plaguing so much of paranormal lit, and because the polygamists want her for her looks as well, I found it particularly irksome.

Is this the best polygamy book out there?  I don’t know.  But it is a fascinating read, and a peak into a culture sealed off from the rest of American life.  

Yo FTC!  I received this book for review from TLC Book Tours.  For more information, please visit their Hidden Wives tour page.
Buy Hidden Wives on Amazon

If you like this book/author, you might like:

(my reviews in blue)

The Rapture of Canaan by Sheri Reynolds
The Wives of Henry Oades by Joanna Moran
The 19th Wife by David Ebershoff
Half Broke Horses: A True-Life Novel by Jeanette Walls
Favorite Wife: Escape from Polygamy by Susan Ray Schmidt
Stolen Innocence: My Story of Growing Up in a Polygamous Sect, Becoming a Teenage Bride, and Breaking Free of Warren Jeffs by Lisa Pulitzer 
The Red Tent by Anita Diamant  
Escape by Carolyn Jessop
Daughters Of Zion: A Family’s Conversion To Polygamy by Kim Taylor 
The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
The Heretic’s Daughter by Kathleen Kent
Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith by Jon Krakauer
Mariette in Ecstasy by Ron Hansen
Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks
 

Other works by Claire Avery:

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