Amy Sackville

While honeymooning on the Orkney Islands, a barren place of extraordinary beauty, with his new wife, a woman 40 years his junior, a literature professor becomes consumed by his mysterious bride who distracts him from his life's work - a book about enchantment-narratives in literature.

Orkney

Stephanie Joseph

** spoiler alert **
           A solid so-so. I was going to pan it but changed my mind as I finished the book.
(I have a theory about the ending, read the full review below ⬇️)

TLDR; it’s a good read if you have the patience to get through it. Personally though, I don’t think I’ll read it again. :/

Rating: 3/5

My review: First of all, I couldn’t get past the mundane, almost monotonous days (chapters). Initially it was poetic and almost dreamlike. But then it began to be repetitive to a point where I got frustrated with his obsession. I skipped a few chapters to get ahead. 🤷🏽‍♀️

Secondly, I couldn’t digest the whole 40 year gap. Richard lives in his head throughout the book. And it’s clear that he remembers things wrong. I can’t shake the feeling that he’s forced himself on his “little wife” rather than the other way around. There’s a part that says she has a headache but relents….🤢
Besides that, it’s beyond creepy how he’s always watching her like a hawk from his window. Little kids I understand, wife I don’t get.

Thirdly, the reason why I gave this book a so-so is because of the author’s writing. The POV of the creepy husband is spot on. 

And lastly, for my theory about the ending. Based on the mysterious disappearance of his wife, either one of the below 3 could’ve happened:
1. She really was a selkie and found her home. (And lived happily ever after) 
2. She ran away in the middle of the night because she understood that life with Richard would be hard. He’s a creepy stalker and would never leave her alone
3. Richard could’ve killed her and not know it since he lived in his head a lot. He could’ve mixed up reality with fantasy.

Orkney

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