Did you love Gillian Flynn’s “Gone Girl?” Then, you’ll probably revel in Tarryn Fisher’s “The Wives” (Graydon House Press, $27.99).
In her latest novel, Fisher constructs not just an original story, centered on a woman named Thursday, but also comes up with an equally original plot twist.
Thursday’s life is very structured. Home is a condo in Seattle. Work is a nursing job at a hospital.
Her husband Seth is away from home more often than not, in part because his business is based in Portland.
There’s another reason, too: Two of his other wives live in Portland.
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Surprisingly, Thursday seems to be OK with that.
When she was younger, she never would have imagined herself part of a polygamist marriage. But her views on marriage have evolved. Life, along with love and relationships, turned out to be a little more complicated than Thursday’s youthful notions of them.
And she makes a case for her marriage, whether others agree with it or not.
She is an attentive and dutiful wife. While wearing the perfect dress, she cooks the perfect meal, pairs it with the perfect wine and serves it with the perfect smile for whom she sees as the perfect husband. There are no takeout dinners or casual nights in their household.
As a rule, Thursday tries to keep her fellow wives out of her marriage. She pretends not to bother even knowing their names, playfully referring to them as Monday and Tuesday. But Monday and Tuesday are ever-present in Thursday’s mind. Do they cook for Seth as she does? Make love to him with such relish? She views herself as the dominant wife in Seth’s life.
But Thursday’s perfectly ordered life falters when she stumbles on physical evidence of the other wives. Eventually, with names and addresses in hand, she lets curiosity get the best of her and begins to investigate.
First, she meets Hannah, aka Monday, and makes some unsettling discoveries. Hannah has telltale bruises that indicate Hannah’s husband might be abusive. But Seth is also Thursday’s husband. It doesn’t make sense. The veneer on Thursday’s perfect marriage begins to crack.
She begins to question Seth. And we readers begin to question everything.
It’s at this point that the story truly takes off, though, to describe how would be a disservice to the reader and to the carefully calculated story the author has crafted.
Fisher’s pacing mirrors the psychological and emotional state of Thursday’s evolution. At first, it strikes the assured and steadfast tone of the protagonist. But, as Thursday’s world unravels, Fisher’s writing takes on a more fraught and furtive tone.
As with “Gone Girl,” readers will either love the ending — or hate it.
But they certainly won’t be bored getting there. Fisher’s story builds to an emotional and psychological crescendo that will keep you on your toes through the final page.
Read more at USA Today.
