Title: The Last Original Wife

Author: Dorothea Benton Frank

368 pages, Published by William Morrow

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Summary:

Leslie Anne Greene Carter is The Last Original Wife among her husband Wesley’s wildly successful Atlanta social set. His cronies have all traded in the mothers of their children they promised to love and cherish—’til death did them part—for tanned and toned young Barbie brides.

If losing the social life and close friends she adored wasn’t painful enough, a series of setbacks shake Les’s world and push her to the edge. She’s had enough of playing the good wife to a husband who thinks he’s doing her a favor by keeping her around. She’s not going to waste another minute on people she doesn’t care to know. Now, she’s going to take some time for herself—in the familiar comforts and stunning beauty of Charleston, her beloved hometown. In her brother’s stately historic home, she’s going to reclaim the carefree girl who spent lazy summers sharing steamy kisses with her first love on Sullivans Island. Along Charleston’s live oak- and palmetto-lined cobblestone streets, under the Lowcountry’s dazzling blue sky, Les will indulge herself with icy cocktails, warm laughter, divine temptation and bittersweet memories. Daring to listen to her inner voice, she will realize what she wants . . . and find the life of which she’s always dreamed.

Told in the alternating voices of Les and Wes, The Last Original Wife is classic Dorothea Benton Frank: an intoxicating tale of family, friendship, self-discovery, and love, that is as salty as a Lowcountry breeze and as invigorating as a dip in Carolina waters on a sizzling summer day.(Summary provided by William Morrow.)

My Thoughts:

The Last Original Wife by Dorothea Benton Frank is a fun, bouncy joyride from start to finish. The novel is about a couple approaching sixty named Wes and Les. Every day throughout the many years Wes and Les have been married Les has waited on her husband like his personal servant and kept herself on the strict allowance Wes has her on. She actually has to ask permission for an extra $20.00. Two of Wes’s best friends have remarried girls half their age replacing women Les is close friends with with much younger women. One of Les’s friends died and it took her husband two months to replace his late wife with his much younger personal trainer. Les is stunned to become “the last original wife” out of their group of friends. I love the concept of this book, because it’s something that scares me to death. Will I ever be the last original wife or (and I know this would never happen *knock on wood*) replaced with a 22-year-old version of myself? Nate did mention the other day that the girl working the fast food counter looked like “teenage Mandy.” Hmmm. (I’m positive it was a totally innocent comment. Back to the book.)

Les has lived her entire life for her family, and on a trip to Edinburgh it becomes clear to her that her husband could care less about her. While in Edinburgh with Wes, their friend and his young, “trophy” wife, Les falls into a manhole while they are walking back to the hotel. Wes is so busy talking to Corinne and Harold that he doesn’t realize his wife isn’t with them until they get back to the hotel. Wes finally finds Les being loaded into an ambulance, gets her situated in a hospital, and informs her he is leaving her by herself to go play golf because he’s had his tee time reserved for two years. This along with a couple of other incidents serves as a wake up  call for Les: Her marriage is in serious trouble.

What ensues is a fun novel about what happens when a woman wakes up and decides to take control of her life. It is told from both Les and Wes’s points of view. Let me tell you the chapters from Wes’s POV had my blood boiling. Wes had me going so bad that at one point I stopped reading and made a Spotify playlist (see below) to listen to when I finished the book. That is a first for me as a reader. Yes, I did an actual fist pump at a certain point in the book when Wes “got told.” FYI: “Got told” is Southern for being put in his place.

I loved Les’s relationship with her brother Harlan. Dorothea Benton Frank vividly paints a portrait of Les’s port of refuge, Charleston, South Caroline in a way that made me miss Charleston like crazy. (I grew up visiting my grandparents there every year). I also learned a lot about the Charleston Renaissance through the novel. It was a literary period in Charleston led by Josephine Pinckney. I love the way Frank can weave a historical figure throughout her novel seamlessly, and I certainly hope there is a renewed interest in the writings of Josephine Pinckney because of her efforts.

The Last Original Wife is the perfect book to add to your beach bag or airport carry-on this summer! Many thanks to TLC Book Tours for including me in their Dorothea Benton Frank read along this summer. It’s been a lot of fun! Click here to head over to TLC Book Tours to check out more stops on the tour.

FTC Disclosure: The publisher provided me with a copy of the book mentioned, and I receive a small commission on all purchases made through using the Amazon links on this site.

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