One husband, three wives - what could possibly go wrong? Rachel, Emily and Tina live on a remote property in Utah with their husband, Blake Nelson, in a plural, Mormon marriage. Blake goes out fishing one day and doesn’t return. His body is discovered with certain injuries and the police suspect murder. Naturally the wives become suspects as clearly one of them must have killed him, after all who else could it have been? But which one?
What follows is a superbly crafted story with many layers. Every time you think you are close to the answer another layer is peeled away. The story is told from the POV of the three women and you get to know them quite well. You think. They are all three very unreliable narrators! Rachel,is the first wife - a devout Mormon, very modest and ‘nice’. But Rachel’s story, for she grew up in a cult, is really quite dark. Emily - the second ‘sister-wife’ is a seemingly naive teenager (19 years old) who, having been raised as a strict Catholic, has some adjusting to do in the Mormon religion. And Tina - the third sister-wife is a former drug addict and prostitute from Las Vegas who met Blake in rehab where he volunteered. The women don’t exactly like each other and tensions simmer.
So while the women are all being subjected to police scrutiny, they are also suspicious of each other. Who can they trust? You get the picture! While this was not a fast paced, nail biting thriller it WAS a very character driven drama, mystery, thriller. There weren’t that many characters so we dived deep into the stories of the three women. What I thought the author did particularly well was to give them each a very distinctive ‘voice’ which came across as very authentic. There was never any doubt as to which of the wives was narrating. I became quite fond of all three of them as the book progressed.
I really enjoyed the book. When characters are so well portrayed I can really savour this sort of slow burn mystery. The book was little longer than average but I was still gripped and read it in one day. I have no hesitation in recommending this to fans of character driven drama and mysteries. Heck I mainly read thrillers and I still loved this. Thanks to Netgalley, Sourcebooks Landmark, and Cate Quinn for providing me with a copy to review. My opinions are my own.
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Mrs A Hunt
A great read
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 11 February 2021Verified Purchase
E.M. Powell
Gripping Read!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 26 March 2021Verified Purchase
Gripping Read!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 26 March 2021
Fans of historical thrillers will likely be no strangers to the excellent novels of C.S. Quinn. But for those who are not familiar with her work, her new contemporary thriller Black Widows– which she has written as Cate Quinn –will come as one heck of an introduction.Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 26 March 2021
While she may shifted genre, Quinn’s storytelling is gripping as ever. Set in Utah, polygamist Blake Nelson has built a homestead in a corner of the state’s wilderness, where he lives with his three wives Rachel, Emily and Tina. His beliefs mean he is prepping for the end times but those catch up on him rather quicker than he might have been anticipating. He’s found horribly murdered and the only suspects are the women. All three proclaim their innocence, even as each throws suspicion on the other.
The story unfolds in a triple first-person narrative from Rachel, Emily and Tina. To sustain this over the length of the novel is no mean feat and Quinn pulls it off superbly. The reader is left guessing until the very end and is led down several blind alleys along the way.
A feature of Quinn’s historical fiction is her attention to in-depth research which brings great richness and depth to the story and adds to its credibility. She brings that strength to this contemporary novel. It shines a light into the dark corners of religious beliefs that oppress as well as the power dynamics that leave so many innocent victims in their wake. Even with such difficult subject matter however, her writing is never gratuitous but rather reflects the deep horror that we should all feel at such vile and sustained abuse of vulnerable.
If you’re looking for an engrossing, original page-turner that will keep you hooked until the last page, then this is it. Highly recommended.
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Bristol Book Blogger 📚📖📓
Five huge stars!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 6 March 2021Verified Purchase
Lolly130612
Wonderful!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 12 February 2021Verified Purchase
Kindle Customer Mary M.
Forget about sleep while you read this book
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 18 March 2021Verified Purchase
