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The Wife of Reilly - Book Reviews |
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Book Reviews -
Women's Fiction
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Written by Jennifer Thompson
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 The
Wife of Reilly, by Jennifer Coburn
Prudence: The quality or state of being prudent; wisdom in
the way of caution and provision; discretion; carefulness; hence,
also, economy; frugality.
Synonyms: Wisdom; forecast; providence; considerateness;
judiciousness; discretion; caution; circumspection; judgment.
Could there be a more ironically named character than Prudence
Malone, the woman who agreed to marry an ex-boyfriend during
a college reunion weekend while still married to her current
husband? The woman who placed a
singles
ad on behalf of her husband and posed as his sister, trying to
line up potential new wives for him? The woman who moved all
evidence of her husband to the art gallery downstairs while her
boyfriend came for a visit? She might be crafty, she might be
clever, but prudent? I don't think so!
The
Wife of Reilly was a fun read. While it had some
of the elements of chick lit I've come to expect (wacky friends,
lots
of money, stylish characters) it surprised me in one big way:
I wasn't actually rooting for any of them. Once I realized that
I didn't find anyone in the love triangle all that sympathetic,
the book took on a whole new juiciness for me as I waited to
see who was going to get hurt the worst first. Ah, what
a delight!
I read this over a three-night period, staying up late each night
reading "just one more page, just one more chapter" until it
was past midnight and I had to force myself to put the book down.
The plot is preposterous, but the feelings and themes are so
real that even if I couldn't ever picture myself trying
to find my current husband a new wife, I could put myself into
Prudence's place and ponder what I might have done, given the
same set of circumstances.
Catty, witty and creative, The
Wife of Reilly is surprising and
entertaining, and a wonderful addition to the genre of chick lit.
Copyright 2004
This review is available for reprint.
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