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May 28, 2008 9:54 AM

BOOK REVIEW: The Accidental Wife by Rowan Coleman

Rowan Coleman is one of those writers where you think, how does she do that? At least I do anyway. The Accidental Wife is Rowan's sixth full length novel since her first was published in 2002 plus she has written a novella and writes the Ruby Parker series for teens (which, by the way, I adore).

The Accidental Wife, a story of friendship and betrayal, is written through the eyes of two women. Each think they may have the wrong life. Catherine, soon to be divorced with two children in a dead end job wonders if she would be happier if she had married her first boyfriend, Marc. Alison, Catherine's former best friend, is actually married to Marc with three children and wondering if she would have had a better life if she had married her school girl crush, Jimmy. Who also happens to be Catherine's soon to be ex husband.

When Alison and Marc move back to the town they ran away from when Alison was sixteen and find Catherine and Jimmy are still there they find out the answers to their questions.

I really enjoyed The Baby Group which was Rowan's last novel so I had high expectations for this one. First off I would say this is not as action packed as The Baby Group. It is gripping but in a more quiet and understated way. Rowan's writing is colourful adding depth to the dialogue - which there is quite a lot of, because after Alison steals Catherine's boyfriend she has a lot of explaining to do.

Rowan obviously knew her characters very well and this comes across. We uncover the layers that make up Alison and Catherine and I changed my perception of both throughout the novel as I discovered more about them.

I do have a criticism and I thought this of The Baby Group too (and the title of that book, but that's another story). It is the book cover. The story inside is a lot more sophisticated and in depth than the pastel cover implies. If I were just browsing the book shop I don't think I would have picked this up. Which would have been a real shame as it is a great read.

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try Switchcraft by Mary Castillo

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Posted by Helen Redfern on May 28, 2008 in British Authors, Modern Fiction, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release | Permalink

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