Replacement Wife
by Rowena Wiseman
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BLURB:
Luisa has fallen madly in
love with sculptor Jarvis, so she comes up with a plan to find a new wife for
her husband Luke so she can exit stage left. She wants to screen potential
stepmothers for her 8-year-old son Max and has strict criteria: the woman must
be a single mother; have no more than two children; she can't be authoritarian;
she must be creative, nurturing and not much prettier than Luisa.
After a few carefully
orchestrated meetings with different women that fail to raise a spark, Luke
finally connects with a potential replacement wife. However, Luisa isn't
prepared for the fact that Luke's interest in the other woman makes him a
better man and a more attractive husband. After suffering for years in a
half-dead marriage, Luisa starts to remember what it was about Luke that she
originally fell in love with. But is it too late?
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My Review:
I have chosen this book attracted from the cover and was not disappointed, although it is not as I expected. It was an interesting and pleasant reading but it is not light, is very realistic, sometimes sad.
Louisa's tired of her marriage to Luke. Her husband became a boring man, no social life, his only interest is his job, their son and movies, only those reviewed well by his trusted reviewers. When she meets again Jarvis falls in love madly. She's convinced that he is her soul mate and realizes she must finish her marriage to live her new love freely. But she does not want to be the one that ruins their family. She really wants to find a replacement for her husband, so the fault will be only of Luke. Finally found the right woman but her idea will turn against her
Louisa is a complicated character, it's hard to get in sympathy with her. At times is superficial, childish, irresponsible, often she performs actions really silly. It 's sad to think that both partners become again active and full of life only when they meet another person.
It 's a story well plotted and very original, beautifully written, with a style simple but brilliant.
Highly recommended.
I received an advanced reader copy from the author in exchange for an honest review.
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EXCERPT:
It was my brother
Chris’s fortieth birthday party, and I was in the kitchen helping my
sister-in-law prepare salads. I was chopping spring onions when I saw Jarvis
walk through the back gate. He’d grown a beard, so at first I wasn’t sure it
was him. I asked Melissa, ‘Is that Jarvis?’
‘Yeah. He’s
finally coming along to something,’ she responded. I watched through the window
as Jarvis greeted my brother with a hefty handshake and a six-pack of ciders.
It must have been at least a dozen years since I’d seen him, but it appeared
now that my long-ago crush had left a tiny cavity in my heart. Distracted, I
turned my attention to grating carrots for the Ottolenghi sweetcorn slaw, but
ended up grazing my knuckle.
An hour later,
after we’d eaten, I was sitting on the back deck. My best friend, Hattie, had
just left when Jarvis walked up and sat beside me.
‘Hey there,’ he
said, cautiously.
‘Hey.’
Greetings dealt
with, an awkward silence fell.
‘I always
wondered what had happened to you,’ I said at last. ‘I haven’t seen you for
years.’ My voice felt trapped in my throat.
‘I’ve been
around. It seems I prefer my own company to most people. I was curious about
you, though. Your brother said you’re married now.’
I pointed out my
husband, Luke, and my son, Max, who were over by the shed. Luke was standing
with his arms crossed, watching Max hurl water balloons at his cousin Thomas.
‘I always took
you as a free spirit,’ Jarvis said, smoothing a crease in his pants. ‘I thought
it would’ve been hard for you to settle down.’
Gathering words
seemed to be like catching fairy dust in the air. ‘What’s that Coelho quote?
“If you think adventure is dangerous, try routine. It is lethal.”’ I had a
strange urge to show him that I wasn’t living in domestic bliss, that my window
was open to the fragrance of adventure.
He smiled, his
mouth betraying his serious, thoughtful eyes. His plain blue shirt was buttoned
all the way up to his neck, his beard was obsessively neat, and his chunky
black-framed glasses reminded me that he read more than the sports section of
the newspaper. With my nerves expanding in my chest, making breathing
difficult, I cursed myself for being a mouth-breather. My words came out as
though they were colliding with a road train. ‘What are you doing now?’ I
finally managed.
‘I’m a sculptor.
Well, working at an abattoir pays the bills. But sculpting’s my thing. I’m
working on a major piece to enter in the McClelland Sculpture Award. Fourth
time lucky, perhaps. I’m thinking maybe it’s my artist’s statement that’s
letting me down: I can get carried away with my writing sometimes.’
‘I could help
you, if you like,’ I said, skidding over my own enthusiasm. ‘I’m an editor.
Words are my thing.’
‘Really? That
would be great.’
‘You can email it
to me.’ I reached into my handbag to get out my purse, but pulled out Max’s
cricket box instead. ‘Oh, this is Max’s . . . He played cricket this morning; I
don’t always carry dick-protectors in my bag. Joys of being a mother — you end
up with all sorts of crap in your handbag. It used to be sultanas or Matchbox
cars—Ah, now I’m rambling . . .’ Jarvis’s laugh was as confident as steel.
Eventually, I
found my purse and took out my business card. My hands were trembling just
slightly as I handed Jarvis my card.
‘Luisa, let’s go.
Max is all wet,’ I looked up to see Luke’s face staring down at me impatiently.
‘It’s only water,
he’ll dry off,’ I said, my neck feeling flushed.
‘He’s soaked,’
Luke said. Then he leaned in and said, ‘Thomas is a bully. Let’s go, he’s not
being nice to Max.’ I knew the real reason Luke wanted to go was that he
expired at social functions somewhere between two and three hours. He’d make
any excuse to get back to the comfort of his own home; to a TV programme he
liked, his feet on the coffee table, and four squares of Cadbury Dairy Milk
chocolate at hand.
‘I’ll email you,’
Jarvis said, half waiting to be introduced. But Luke was in a hurry, and didn’t
care to meet whomever I was talking to. No doubt he was already imagining his
feet up on the coffee table.
‘Nice to see you,’
I said to Jarvis, gathering my handbag up off the ground before trailing after
my husband pathetically. I left the party forgetting my salad bowl, but
carrying a new seed of pleasure in my otherwise routine life.
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AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Rowena's blog Out of Print Writing, about
writing and publishing in the digital revolution, has been selected for the
National Library of Australia's archive program PANDORA
http://www.outofprintwriting.blogspot.com.au/.
She works in the visual arts sector and
lives on the Mornington Peninsula, Victoria.
http://outofprintwriting.blogspot.com.au/
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GIVEAWAY INFORMATION and RAFFLECOPTER CODE
Rowena will be awarding an eCopy of Replacement Wife
to 3 randomly drawn winners via rafflecopter during the tour.
Thanks so much for your insightful review of The Replacement Wife - I really appreciate you reading and reviewing my novel and for hosting me on your blog!
RispondiEliminaBest wishes
Rowena