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    The Senator's Wife: A Richard & Judy pick, from the bestselling author of Monogamy
    Unavailable
    The Senator's Wife: A Richard & Judy pick, from the bestselling author of Monogamy
    Unavailable
    The Senator's Wife: A Richard & Judy pick, from the bestselling author of Monogamy
    Ebook399 pages6 hours

    The Senator's Wife: A Richard & Judy pick, from the bestselling author of Monogamy

    By Sue Miller

    3.5/5

    ()

    Unavailable in your country

    Unavailable in your country

    About this ebook

    'Tasteful, elegant, sensuous' Boston Globe
    'Incredible ... Perfect book-club material' Easy Living
    'Addictive' Eve
    'Complex, rich, haunting' Woman & Home

    Maybe some people just like to keep things private. Secret, I guess you'd say    .

    Love came late to Meri, but in a rush: she met Nathan at thirty-six, he moved in a month later, and they married a month after that. Now they are moving to New England and a house of their own - a new life that Meri is not sure she even wants. She loves her husband, but feels there may be trouble ahead.

    Nathan, however, is boyishly excited that their next-door neighbour is the eminent Senator Tom Naughton, a political hero of his, now in his seventies. The Senator is nowhere to be seen, but Meri strikes up an unexpected friendship with his wife, the elegant Delia, sensing that she has much to learn from her - about marriage, love and motherhood.

    But soon she comes close to a terrible breach of trust that could ruin everything. Even the most public marriages have their secrets...



    What readers say about The Senator's Wife:

    'I love this book ... captivating'

    'Subtle, rich and oh so close to home'

    'I couldn't put this book down'

    'Very gracious, warm and funny'

    'Excellent and perceptive storytelling of the highest order'

    'These characters are alive, they are real'

    'This is an exquisite book, with many twists and turns and moments of pure beauty and poignancy.'

    'This book is still haunting me, several weeks later ... I didn't want it to end'
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBloomsbury Publishing
    Release dateJun 26, 2014
    ISBN9781408857656
    Unavailable
    The Senator's Wife: A Richard & Judy pick, from the bestselling author of Monogamy
    Author

    Sue Miller

    Sue Miller is associate professor in music at Leeds Beckett University and bandleader of Charanga del Norte, and she has several books on music to her name. These books include Cuban Flute Style: Interpretation and Improvisation, which is the predecessor to the current volume.

    Read more from Sue Miller

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    Reviews for The Senator's Wife

    3.5/5

    464 ratings45 reviews

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    • 4/5
      Great insight by the author into the lives of the two women who were the main characters - about marriage and infidelity and having children and being betrayed.
    • 4/5
      Newly married Meri and older Delia become neighbors sharing a duplex. As Meri struggles with her marriage, pregnancy and new baby she turns to older, experienced Delia for help and validation. When Delia is gets word of her husband's, the former senator, serious stroke she is surprised by her own willingness to become his caregiver. His infidelity had caused them to live separate lives for many years. So both of our main characters deal with the burden of caregiving and come to vastly different terms with it. Shaky Meri finds her confidence and classy Delia runs away. Kind of chick lit, but an enjoyable read.
    • 1/5
      Started interestingly enough but I could NOT believe the ending. It's as though the author was in some kind of hurry and needed to end the novel any which way. I could not believe that that could have been the completion of the novel, I thought to myself there must be more but sadly no. What an incredulous and disappointing end to a novel that travelled along at such a nice leisurely pace. Sadly I will not pick up another Sue Miller novel....just my thoughts anyway.
    • 2/5
      Should be titled The Senator's Wife and Her Neighbour. More intelligence than chick lit, but not great. The Senator is very unfaithful, and even though she doesn't live with him anymore, she still loves him and essentially they have a lifelong love affair. Until he's had a stroke and she takes him back in. Not too give away too much, but she finally clues in. The neighbours: the author makes it look like they're going to break up, too, but in the epilogue they're still together. I guess the book is about learning to live and love in marriage? I don't know. There are just too many narrative details that are totally irrelevant to the story that are probably supposed to make it real, but just weigh the story down.
    • 2/5
      I've never read Sue Miller, so I don't know if this book is representative of her work. If it is, I won't read her again. The title character is Delia Naughton, married to a Kennedy-esque philanderer until she finally boots him out, allowing him in and out of her life both for politics and for love. Much of the book is from the viewpoint of her young neighbor Meri, an unhappy new mother who develops a fascination/obsession with Delia and her husband Tom.For the sake of avoiding spoilers, I can't say much about the denouement except that it is, in my opinion, icky, and just very odd. And I will break my usual rule and make the annoying comment that I found the characters unlikable. For all that this is "women's fiction," it read to me like an ode to the Male-Identified Woman, and I can't identify with that at all.
    • 4/5
      Serious, complex, well written
    • 3/5
      rabck from dvg; Mostly about Delia - the Senator's wife, although I didn't understand why part of the story was about Meri also until the end. Delia has been married for years to former senator Tom Naughton. They live apart because of Tom's chronic infidelity, but yet Delia never divorces him. When it's convenient for her, she arranges a get-away for them together, and they act like long lost lovers. When Tom, late in life, has a stroke, Delia brings him into her house to care for him, only to discover that despite his body being maimed by the stroke, he still has his wits and a roving eye.
    • 4/5
      I like all Sue Miller's books and this is no exception. I thought it was a great picture of "this kind" of marriage which doesn't seem to be all that out of the ordinary these days. I really could understand and sympathize with Delia, how she lived her life and remained in love with her charming but totally self-centered, narcissistic husband who was not unlike many of the men found in politics and elsewhere. I found Meri an annoying, self-centered, sneaky and sullen character with a lot of problems -- she was undoubtedly supposed to be this way, but I wish she had been held a bit more responsible in some way.
    • 4/5
      I loved this and want to reread it. I missed the book club discussion but I some hated it.
    • 4/5
      I am going to talk a bit about plot - spoilers ahead.***I found this book very readable. I haven't read any Sue Miller before and was pleased with how engaging the story was from the very start.I liked having two characters to follow - two women at different parts of their life. I found the slow unfolding of all the details of their life really satisfying. That is - until the last 1/3 or so of the book. It sort of fell apart for me in that I stopped liking Meri - the younger of the two protagonists. Her relentless negative views on pregnancy and motherhood were really grating to me.As for Delia - I felt like her character who had so much going for her - so much direction - became an unrecognizable mess towards the end of the book. I felt like the transformation for both was too abrupt to be believable and really ruined the flow of the narrative for me.As for the end end of the novel. I thought it was just too bizarre and contrived for the book - I also thought that it was really strange not to follow up with Delia after "the event" (what I will call it- to soften the spoilage) and that it left me with a feeling of being unbalanced that I didn't get to know about her life after "the event".Anyway - I really liked this book up until all of a sudden I didn't.
    • 2/5
      In alternating chapters we learn about the lives of two women – Delia Naughton, the wife of a charming Washington senator, and Meri, one half of the young couple moving in next door. In Miller’s careful way she reveals intimate thoughts and feelings about these two disparate, but ultimately entwined lives. We learn about Delia’s very bumpy marriage, her husband’s infidelities, her struggle to come to terms with the aftereffects, and the quiet predictable life she’s created for herself in New England and Paris. We learn about Meri’s insecurities about marriage and motherhood and how these affect her self-esteem. We learn how Meri begins to insinuate herself into the private details of Delia’s life. After a long estrangement Delia is once again needed by the senator and she is thrilled to be reunited, even as her daughter chastises her for letting herself be used. And finally, we learn how Meri’s needs and the senator’s irrepressible yearnings conspire to drive Delia to the brink.How are we supposed to feel about these two women? Can we like or admire them for the choices they’ve made. I think that would be hard. In the final chapter we learn that Meri is able to continue on with a productive and, mostly, happy life, while Delia, in order to escape the hurt and humiliation, has had to leave her beloved home and, for the last time, abandon her beloved senator. How is the reader supposed to feel about this?
    • 5/5
      I really enjoyed this book - I finished it in just a few days. The story was simple, yet very uncomfortable at times. I look forward to reading more of Miller's books.
    • 3/5
      It took me longer than usual to finish this book...but it was nice to savor it and let it soak in. I didn't love it and I didn't hate it, I just liked it. It's a story of two women's lives and how one man changed them both, though that's not clear until the end. Interesting read...
    • 4/5
      This book was very well written but the end made me sooooo angry! I've since talked with others who felt the same way. This book would make for a great book club discussion.
    • 3/5
      Intriguing, but I really did not like the character of Meri. I found her selfish, sabotaging, and greedy. A slow read for me.
    • 2/5
      I prefer to care about the main characters in the books I read...tends to make them more enjoyable. The young wife and mother in this book was pathetically shallow and self centered. She seemed extremely self absorbed, deceitful and nearly without any redeeming qualities. And somehow she gets a happily ever after ending after muddling in her neighbor's relationship. I found the book hugely disappointing and it will probably keep me from picking up another Sue Miller title.
    • 1/5
      Characters too self absorbed, kept reading hoping for some development (or better still maturity) but it never happened (for me at least). Do not waste time on this.....
    • 4/5
      This was on my to be read list for several years so I was thrilled to run across a copy. I mainly read thriller/mystery but every once in a while something other than will pique my interest. Though Miller does a great job of moving through current and past and between characters, I do think this suffered a bit due to the current political climate. It was too much of a down memory lane story. My chief complaint would be that in the end Nathan came out as a total moron instead of the deservedly haf wit moron he was.
    • 2/5
      The characters did not interest me very much so I didn't finish it.
    • 3/5
      The Senator's Wife has a good deal of tension, in that the reader wants to know more about the mysterious relationship between the suave senator who charms the public and young women in Washington, and the devoted wife who keeps the home fires burning in rural New England. The spying neighbours are our entree into the mystery. Why did the wife 9old for the most part of the action) defend and put up with repeated infidelities? Bill Clinton is cited, as is Charlotte Bronte's Edward Rochester, another roue brought low by fate, only to be partially reinstated in the end. My chief gripe with this novel is the use of the phrase 'made a face,' an enactment narrative term used to excess; every major character at some time 'makes a face,' but we are never told what kind of face. This is lazy and unacceptable shorthand. Compare if you will Nicholas Drayton in A Guide to the Birds of East Africa, where he describes the referee of the contest (See my review of the Guide) who, catching the eye of another club member, 'turned down the corners of his mouth and raised his eyebrows in worried apprehension.' Now that's 'making a face' for you.
    • 3/5
      story of lives in a duplex house. Interesting tale woven together with a few twists and turns.
    • 4/5
      I remember picking this up in the bookshop a couple of years ago - it was all over the place as a Richard & Judy choice I think - and putting it back down again without buying it. This time I spotted it going cheap in a book clearance shop and did buy it because I'd really enjoyed reading The Lake Shore Limited a few months ago. The story is told from two points of view. One of these is the viewpoint of the senator's wife herself, Delia, but the main one is that of Meri, who moves into the house next door to her as a newlywed trying to find her niche in both a new place and her new role of wife. I like the changing viewpoints and the changes in time - much of the "present day" story takes place in the 1990s with sections going back to earlier in Delia's life. I was surprised to read other reviews where people said they didn't like the characters or the writing as I liked both very much. I didn't always like the characters actions but I thought everything fit together well and everything was in character. I guess I like the way Miller incorporates so much everyday ordinariness into the story - the overall story is anything but ordinary but it is built up of regular components. I can see why this is considered to be a real "book group" book - there is plenty to talk about in the portrayal of the relationships. The only part I thought was lacking was any real fleshing out of Meri's husband Nathan who seemed for the most part to be a generic "ambitious young academic in New England". Maybe that was deliberate. I won't go into the ending as I don't want to spoil it for anyone. Only that I thought something of the sort was inevitable and I thought it was pretty well signposted and since it wasn't really a surprise to me it didn't really shock me. I'm not sure if it was supposed to. All in all, a really interesting read, and really very good. I liked it but didn't find it as deep and complicated, or as satisfying, as The Lake Shore Limited. I'll definitely be reading more of Miller's books before too long.
    • 3/5
      Not sure my opinion on this book. Another book I read during my recovery. Might need to read this one again as I wasn't sure the point or the reason. However, judging from the views on amazon.com, I'm not the only one.
    • 4/5
      I'm not totally sure how I feel about this one. It was a little bit slow reading at times, with bursts of interesting bits that kept me going. I guess what I like is the big picture of the story. It makes you think. This would be a great book club book because the differing opinions about the characters would fly!I had a lot of misconceptions about the players. I thought I knew who was going to do whom wrong, then their personalities switched on me and the story ended up surprising me. I felt kind of heartbroken at the end for everyone except Meri. I think she got off too easily for all her years of sneaky and cowardly behavior. I realize people can make regrettable mistakes and not be unlikable or unforgivable forevermore, but the little I got to know Meri, I had a hard time finding compassion for her. I don't know how she did it, but the author even got me feeling sorry for the smarmy senator, even though he justly reaped what he sowed. Definitely thought provoking.
    • 3/5
      A perfectly readable and enjoyable book, but it felt like 90% of it was introduction, and it only got round to the point of the story in the last few pages. Interesting though.
    • 4/5
      A book like this reminds me of what good writing is. I've read several books this summer and it's such a relief to be in the hands of an author who has the gift of being able to tell a story from varying viewpoints, and who can create flawed, complex characters who are likable. I think the two may be connected.I think this is one of her better books, and I've liked all of her books so far
    • 2/5
      Two women, a generation apart, living on either side of a lovely old duplex in New England - the younger one is trying to figure out her role as wife, mother, and person, while the older one has come to terms (she thinks) with her own life and marriage. Fairly predictable, with no huge insights, but a smooth and pleasant read nonetheless.
    • 2/5
      Unlikeable characters making unbelievable choices without plausible motivations. Very disappointing.
    • 5/5
      I was immediately drawn to the alternating stories of Delia and Meri at various points in their lives. Miller explored love, forgiveness, sacrifice and friendship through her characters. By using alternating narratives, we learn what other characters could not and what secrets are being kept and from whom. I wasn't sure if I was willing to believe that Meri would explose herself to Tom but I could see that she was extremely insecure and vulnerable at that point. By skipping ahead 16 years, we never got to see her struggle with the pain she caused to Delia and dealing with keeping her secrets.
    • 3/5
      Great writing, however the story was slow-moving. An interesting twist near the end will keep you thinking about this book for days/months to come.