The Secret Lives of Fortunate Wives
By Sarah Strohmeyer
Center Point Large Print, (2006)
ISBN: 1-5854-7738-9
Genre: Fiction
Reviewed by Laura Hortz Stanton - August 3, 2006
The Secret Lives of Fortunate Wives is what Desperate Housewives would be if it was set in the affluent town of Hunting Hills, Ohio. The author, Sarah Strohmeyer, has penned a novel that takes a satirical look at what life is like for a small group of wealthy women in this idealistic Ohio town. The women, most of whom have known each other since childhood, are thin, stylish, and appear to live in the lap of luxury. However, as is normally the case, things are not quite as they appear and the imperfections in their marriages and self-perceptions are revealed.
While the novel centers around several of the wives, Claire Stark is the linchpin that holds this story together. Claire was a hard nosed reporter in Prague when she met stunning John Harding. The two had a whirlwind romance and married only twenty-eight days after they met. Deeply in love, Claire agreed to move back to Hunting Hills with her new husband and discovered herself in a world very different from her own. A rather unstylish, average sized woman, Claire was plunged head first into a world where the women live by rules such as, "Always proclaim everything terrific." Needless to say, the new transplant sticks out like a sore thumb.
The novel follows Claire through her challenges of fitting in and making friends in Hunting Hills. However, about half way through the book, scandals begin to rock the quiet town and Claire is one of the few women with the skills and the gumption to help her fellow wives and, in some small way, change Hunting Hills.
The Secret Lives of Fortunate Wives is no great work of literature, but is a quick, and sometimes clever, story that is a fun beach read. Don't expect to finish the book feeling more enlightened than when you began, but it's a nice break from your Tolstoy or James Joyce.
Sarah Strohmeyer is also the author of the Bubbles series of mysteries that include, Bubbles in Trouble, Bubbles A Broad, Bubbles Betrothed, Bubbled Unbound, and Bubbles Ablaze.
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