Amanda
In this supernatural gothic tale, Hazel Russon, a young woman living in 19th century Utah, is coerced into a polygamous marriage with a man who has more red flags than a Soviet military parade.
Author Linda Hamilton knows her Gothic tropes—pious heroine, sinister man, dark secrets, creepy house, uncanny phenomena—and executes them well. Hazel is both sympathetic and intelligent, and it was easy to get swept up in her story.
My only real complaint about the book is that I didn't feel the supernatural element was particularly strong. It's present and important to the story, but I felt it got lost behind the more mundane horrors Hazel and her sister wives had to endure.
I don't see The Fourth Wife ever becoming a classic of its genre, but it is a marvelous way to while away an afternoon.
Received via NetGalley.
In this supernatural gothic tale, Hazel Russon, a young woman living in 19th century Utah, is coerced into a polygamous marriage with a man who has more red flags than a Soviet military parade.
Author Linda Hamilton knows her Gothic tropes—pious heroine, sinister man, dark secrets, creepy house, uncanny phenomena—and executes them well. Hazel is both sympathetic and intelligent, and it was easy to get swept up in her story.
My only real complaint about the book is that I didn't feel the supernatural element was particularly strong. It's present and important to the story, but I felt it got lost behind the more mundane horrors Hazel and her sister wives had to endure.
I don't see The Fourth Wife ever becoming a classic of its genre, but it is a marvelous way to while away an afternoon.
Received via NetGalley.