Husbands & Lovers
Books | Fiction / Women
4.5
Beatriz Williams
Two women—separated by decades and continents, and united by an exotic family heirloom—reclaim secrets and lost loves in this sweeping novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The Summer Wives. “My favorite kind of page-turner—unputdownable!”—Martha Hall Kelly, author of The Golden DovesNew England, 2022. Three years ago, single mother Mallory Dunne received the telephone call every parent dreads—her ten-year-old son, Sam, had been airlifted from summer camp with acute poisoning from a toxic death cap mushroom, leaving him fighting for his life. Now, searching for the donor kidney that will give her son a chance for a normal life, Mallory’s forced to confront two harrowing secrets from her past: her mother’s adoption from an infamous Irish orphanage in 1952, and her own all-consuming summer romance fourteen years earlier with her childhood best friend, Monk Adams— one of the world’s most beloved singer-songwriters—a fairy tale cut short by a devastating betrayal. Cairo, 1951. After suffering tragedy beyond comprehension in the war, Hungarian refugee Hannah Ainsworth has forged a respectable new life for herself—marriage to a wealthy British diplomat with a coveted posting in glamorous Cairo. But a fateful encounter with the enigmatic manager of a hotel bristling with spies leads to a passionate affair that will reawaken Hannah’s longing for everything she once lost. As revolution simmers in the Egyptian streets, a pregnant Hannah finds herself snared in a game of intrigue between two men . . . and an act of sacrifice that will echo down the generations. Timeless and bittersweet, Husbands & Lovers takes readers on an unforgettable journey of heartbreak and redemption, from the revolutionary fires of midcentury Egypt to the moneyed beaches of contemporary New England. Acclaimed author Beatriz Williams has written a poignant and beautifully voiced novel of deeply human characters entangled by morally complex issues—of privilege, class, and the female experience—inside worlds brought shimmeringly to life.
Historical Fiction
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More Details:
Author
Beatriz Williams
Pages
368
Publisher
Random House Publishing Group
Published Date
2024-06-25
ISBN
0593724224 9780593724224
Community ReviewsSee all
"I feel like something was missing at the end"
C C
Caitlin Canavan
"Don't judge a book by its cover; this book is not what you'd expect.<br/><br/>Husbands & Lovers by Beatriz Williams is a lot of things: a historical romance set in Cairo and a contemporary romance set in New England, told in multiple POVs and shifting timelines.<br/><br/>Williams' writing is beautiful, and the book had me hooked right from the prologue! Williams is masterful at weaving different plot points so that all the pieces fall right into place at the end. This is, no doubt, one of the reasons that it's one of the July 2024 BOTM picks.<br/><br/>With that being said, if you are 1) not into historical fiction, and 2) not the biggest fan of multiple POVs or multiple timelines, then this book would not be the one for you. I did find myself getting a little overwhelmed trying to keep track of all the characters and stories happening in the different timelines, sometimes to the point where I would find myself caring less about one timeline than the other. This happened multiple times when one timeline would end on a cliff-hanger, and then the next chapter would switch back to the other timeline. I understand that this is a device to keep me invested in the story, but it sometimes got to be too frustrating.<br/><br/>I also felt like the romances felt a little rushed in the beginning. It just seemed like both parties just suddenly wanted each other, and then boom, they're an item. But I guess the author couldn't spend too much time building up the romances since there are a lot of different plot points to cover in the book.<br/><br/>A <i>lot</i> happens in this book, and it would be very beneficial to check all the trigger warnings before picking it up (some off the top of my head are sexual assault and war-related violence).<br/><br/>All in all, Williams is a great storyteller, so once you get invested in the characters, you'll want to keep reading until the end.<br/><br/>Special thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for sharing this digital ARC with me in exchange for my honest thoughts.<br/><br/>Husbands & Lovers is available now wherever books are sold."
A S
Amber Smith
"More like 4.5 ⭐️!!"
Kelci Peterson
"This book made me cry, scream explatives, gasp audibly, say "awww" so many times, and smile as big as I possibly could. This book tore my heart apart bit by bit and then ripped it out of my chest and then turned around and stitched it back up and laid it on a really comfortable pillow. <br/><br/>Please be warned that there are trigger warnings in this book, namely child death, world war II trauma, a tinge of anti-Semitism, and rape. But if you can get past the topsy-turvy, gut-punching parts of this book, you can find the solace and happiness in the way that things just all seem to turn out okay. If you can handle all of that, then I highly highly recommend it. <br/><br/>I would also say that you need to pay attention. There are three to four timelines to keep track of at any given time. Read closely and carefully.<br/><br/>I Loved this book!<br/><br/>"I think every day about how we’re all here because of a series of little miracles we know nothing about."<br/><br/>"It's important to know where you came from...it's a part of you. But it doesn't have to define you. They give you the paper and ink, but you write the story yourself.""
Jess
