Husbands and Lovers by Beatriz Williams

5*

It’s been quite a while since I read a Beatriz Williams novel, and I’d forgotten how much I love her writing. She does such a phenomenal job of connecting stories in multiple timelines, never sacrificing characterization or plot to make the puzzle pieces fit.

In Husbands and Lovers, there is the story of Mallory Dunne, a single mother to young son, Sam (who eats a poisonous mushroom at summer camp, leaving him in need of a kidney transplant) and her sister Paige, both of whom are still grieving the accidental death of their mother less than two years prior. When Paige finds their mother’s adoption papers, it opens a new door in their search for a kidney donor. There’s also Mallory’s first love Monk Adams, a famous musician who has been kept in the dark about Sam but, through Paige’s machinations, re-enters their lives during a visit to the coastal community of Winthrop Island, MA where these former best friends fell in love.

A gold and jewel-encrusted Egyptian cobra bracelet that Mallory’s mother willed her is the artifact that ties this modern plotline to the story of Hungarian refugee Hannah Ainsworth, wife of a British diplomat more than twice her age, from World War II in Europe to post-war Egypt and the civil unrest caused by British colonization and the establishment of the Israeli state. She suffered unspeakable tragedy during the war, and when she began an affair with the mysterious hotel manager, Lucien Beck, who other wives suspected was a spy, it was her opportunity to regain some of what she’d lost.

This beautiful novel is full of heartbreak, love, and redemption. Williams’ female characters are flawed and make morally dubious decisions with the best of intentions, but you can’t help hoping that they get the second chance they both seek and fear.

Now I need to go back and read the two previous titles that are connected to this one. Highly recommended!

I received a complimentary ARC of this book from Ballantine Books through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.