The Sister Wife

Title: THE SISTER WIFE

Author: Diane Noble

Publisher: Avon Inspired

June 2010

ISBN: 978-0061962226

Genre: Historical/Mormon

What if the man you loved told you God wanted him to take another wife? What if that woman was your best friend?

Set in the heart of the earliest days of a new nineteenth-century sect known as the Saints, The Sister Wife is a riveting account of two women forced into a practice they don't understand, bound by their devotion to Prophet Joseph Smith. When Mary Rose marries Gabriel, neither of them could foresee how quickly the community would turn to the practice of plural marriage. Devastated when Gabe is faced with an order from the Prophet to marry her best friend, Bronwyn, Mary Rose tries to have the faith to carry through with the marriage. But can she really be married to the same man as her very best friend? Can Mary Rose and Bronwyn face betraying both their husband and their God to do what they feel is right?

THE SISTER WIFE is the first book in the Brides of Gabriel series by Ms. Noble. I hurt for Mary Rose in the opening scenes of this book, heavy with child and watching her husband go off and marry another woman—because he was ordered to by the Prophet. Gabriel made noises about being devoted to only Mary Rose and loving her only, but to my reader’s mind, he was willing enough to take another wife and even to consummate the marriage, by basically threatening his wife with excommunication.

I didn’t like that it started out the way it did, and then jumped back in time to the back story of the characters meeting, falling in love, joining the church, etc. Especially since it took most of the book to make it back to the starting point.

I don’t know that much about Mormons, I don’t know if this is still practiced or not. But it hurt my heart. I could feel Mary Rose’s pain—which is a sign of good writing. Fans of Diane Noble, Mormon fiction, or historical might enjoy THE SISTER WIFE. $8.00 kindle, $5.20 paperback. 352 pages.