I really enjoyed this novel about two women in post-war Australia: one, Edith, happy to be a home bird, the other, Frankie, desperate to escape. Unfortunately, they each have the ‘wrong’ husband; so the solution is that Edith becomes Frankie’s secret wife, cleaning her house to Frankie’s controlling husband’s OCD-level standards.
While Frankie creates a business empire, Edith keeps both their homes spick and span.
Edith has a traumatic past. One way of making her life comprehensible is to link what’s happening on the world stage with her own personal story: a disaster such as the assassination of JFK heralds a new calamity in her own life; while the appointment of India’s first female prime minister must be a sign that housewives should be able fulfil their destinies.
For this older reader, this historical backdrop meant a fun trip down memory lane and a lot of “I remember that!”
I found it hard to believe that the author is male – sorry to be sexist. He captures so amazingly well the frustrations of women who had gone out to work in the war and learnt valued skills, only now to rein in their ambitions and be happy to be homemakers – a dilemma so well described in Betty Friedan’s pioneering ‘The Feminine Mystique’. The second wave of feminism is starting to build, sweeping Edith and Frankie along with it and challenging their life choices.

What a wonderful story of friendship among women as our society and our views are evolving. Edith and Frankie are embracing life in different ways and draw strength and guidance from each other. Look forward to reading more from Mark Lamprell. #goodreads

Wow! This was a really memorable read. Definitely outside my usual reading choice I’m glad I took a chance on it. For me it was a complex look at women’s roles through the decades. The expectations, disappointments, achievements and importance of friendship. I got quite teary more than once and really enjoyed it.

The Secret Wife is the third novel by Australian author, Mark Lamprell. It’s 1961, and Edith Devine is happily married to Charlie, mother of teenaged Margaret and Susan, and content to spend her days in her new, (non-quite-intentionally) gun-metal-grey, house in a new subdivision, a devoted Catholic and a dedicated homemaker. So why is she, several times a week, sneaking into the house across the road to clean and prepare meals?

As soon as Edie saw the buttercup-yellow house (amid a street of pastels) she wanted to know the owner. When she meets beautiful, loud Francesca Heyman, she is desperate to impress. Introverted Edie is sure she’s failed, but Frankie is just as fascinated: they click.

Edie never actually realises that Frankie shares her crush: “Nobody could express pleasure and disapproval in the same smile quite as gloriously as Edith. Frankie ached to see that smile. When they first met, she thought Edith a funny fish, oddly clever, endearingly forthright. She had not the slightest idea of the impact the lady across the road would make upon her. Frankie could not place the moment that Edith had hooked her heart, but that was what happened—what must have happened. Because at some point Frankie lost herself.”

Police Senior Sergeant Ralph Heyman, though, is a bit controlling, Edie observes. When Frankie is about to dismiss a modelling job offer, something she’s desperate to do, Edie offers to do Frankie’s housekeeping so that she will pass Ralph’s weekly white glove test. As for his odometer check, Frankie has a clever way around that…

So Frankie models and Edie cleans. Some days they have close calls and Frankie is quick and inventive, but Edie worries about the fallout if (or more likely, when) Ralph discovers the deceit.

What a quirky, but lovable protagonist Edie is! From a young age, she has observed: “Normally a momentous event in her life would be foreshadowed by a momentous event in the larger world” although on one occasion she worries it might be the reverse. Her back story is told whenever Frankie needs a distraction: a life that includes grief and loss, a brush with a paedophile, and several failed pregnancies, all offset by the unfailing love and support of the wonderful Charlie.

Is Edie the foil for the flamboyant Frankie, or is it the other way around? The remaining cast includes two young women questioning their parents’ values, a cross-dressing teen, and nosy neighbours. There are secret driving lessons, a handsome young priest, a suicide attempt, and a falling out, all against the backdrop of the swinging sixties and the space race.

With well-placed popular cultural references and world events, Lamprell easily evokes his era and the social mindset of that time. And with minimal effort, readers of a certain vintage will have instantly formed an image in their minds of the setting: the street, the house, the décor, the fashion and the food. The story is occasionally a bit far-fetched, often hilarious but sometimes lump-in-the-throat tearful, so have the tissues ready, especially for the final chapters. This is Lamprell’s best yet.
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and Text Publishing.

The Secret Wife takes us back to the 1960's when women lacked the autonomy that we have today. This was an enjoyable read as Frankie and Edith figure out how to get what they want despite the men in their life. Thanks to NetGalley for an advance copy of this story in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book! I have a fondness for stories with strong female friendships. I also have a long-standing interest in the 1960s so this book was right up my alley! I rated it 4 stars because parts of this story seemed a bit unrealistic.

Thank you to #NetGalley and #TextPublishing for the opportunity to review this ARC of #TheSecretWife in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

The Secret Wife was a quick read with enjoyable aspects. I really enjoyed how the story was set in Australia and also the time period where it was set was very intriguing. I feel like the author really nailed the 60’s language well. Personally, I didn’t really connect with the characters and the ending seemed a little out of left field but overall I enjoyed this novel.

I definitely knew I wanted to read this book just from the cover. Overall I ended up with some mixed feelings on it, but lean more towards enjoying it, While I didn’t really connect with either character, I felt like it really showed life for women in the 60’s. It’s a rather quick read, and I think if you enjoy modern history, you’ll like this.

Happy Publishing Day to Mark Lamprell and The Secret Wife.

Set in the 1960s, we meet two wives who have moved into a new planned community. Edith, conservative wife and mother lives in the slate Grey house, while Frankie, a beautiful mother with some secrets moves into the flashy bright yellow house across the street. On a street of pastel houses, Edith and Frankie become fast friends.

This is a bit of a story of women’s rights told on the backdrop of world events that marked people’s lives in the 1960s - such as Vietnam, the Kennedy’s, Martin Luther King Junior and the moon landing. Frankie, an aspiring model and business tycoon goes behind her controlling husband’s back with the help of Edith, who is happy to keep both women’s households running and passing the white glove test.

While I enjoyed the timeline, I struggled for a bit to place the geography (Australia) and I also struggled a bit with Edith’s character. Who was she and what did she need? Or is that the story? How did the ladies grow up in one era and raise their children in the next… this seems to me an ongoing problem. The world is changing around us and to ensure our kids are not left behind, we must lead and encourage them to be what is next, not what was.

Thank you to NetGalley and Text Publishing for an E-ARC in exchange for my honest review. This book was a solid 4 for me because I love the 1960s and still sort of struggle with the age old question of how can I live my best life and encourage my daughter the same.

I liked that this book had a nostalgic feel to it and gave you an insight into how life in the 60's was for women.

Such a wonderful book. Utterly unique, exquisitely crafted and quietly powerful. I loved it and want everyone to read this novel.

Ooh such a good interesting read this book was, enjoyed it and would recommend it, it kept me glued to it until the end x

A look at suburban life in 1960s Australia particularly looking at the changing roles of women and attitudes towards women. Two families move to a newly built houses in a suburban street, Catholics Edith and husband Charlie and two daughters move into a battleship grey painted house and across the road, Frankie, husband Ralph and two sons move into a bright yellow house. Edith is shy but instantly decides she wants to be friends with the woman who has painted her house such a noticeable colour. And the two women do become close friends.
I was initially drawn to this book by the cover but the story hooked me. Edith can correlate all the major events in her own life with major world events and of course the sixties are full of events, space exploration, assassinations etc and these line up with the happenings in her life. A great storyteller she tells Frankie about her childhood, her mother, meeting her husband… but Frankie is a more closed character, her husband is controlling and old fashioned (the white glove test!). She’s beautiful and is approached to become a model, somehow she and Edith manage to keep Frankie’s expanding career a secret from her husband. It’s well written and I raced through the second half of the book, an excellent read!

I wanted to love this book. The beginning was hopeful and I was thrilled to dig in with Edith. However, I ended up getting bogged down in the language of the book which is atypical for me. It made it hard for me to focus on the plot.

This ARC was provided to me via Kindle, Text Publishing and by #NetGalley. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

Delightfully whimsical yet deep, it’s a powerful look into what the past was like for many.

I have very mixed feelings on this book. The premise itself is what intrigued me in the first place, but it didn't really go anywhere. I didn't identify with, or like too much, either of the main characters. I dislike when authors are overly descriptive about chores. And yet, I finished this book in less than a day and am still thinking about it 5 days later.
I can't decide if I would recommend this to others- mixed feelings and such.

Thank you to NetGalley and Text Publishing for the ARC!

Thank You for the earc of this book!

What an amazing book. Keep in mind, this book is set in the sixties for anyone born way after that (me) reserve judgement until you've finished the book. I loved the writing of this book, I would sometimes get lost in the words and just fell deeper into the story.

Having not been born in the sixties, I feel like this book gave a clear picture of what women went through during that time. For me, a lot of the situations never felt far fetched or like I couldn't picture it happening. My only wish is that the ending was little bit different, because that part left a sour note in my mouth—however, I can understand why it was written the way it was written.

Absolutely loved this book
Thank you for the opportunity to read it
I love a historical fiction and especially how women used to be treated in the 60s, where they weren't "allowed" to do certain things and needed "permission" from their husband.
There were times when it was unbelievable in the book, but it's a story at the end of day and I enjoyed this parts.

Hello to the Sixties! This book brings it back with the news reports in a quirky sort of way.

It begins in 1961 with Edith and Charlie moving into a new subdivision. Their new house has been painted a battle-grey color and Edith doesn’t care for it but it’s too late to make changes. It’s so typical in those days as people would just go along with no objections.

Edith is the housewife that cleans and cooks while wearing an apron not to mess up her beautiful clothes. She is married to the perfect husband, Charlie, with two daughters. She listens to the radio and correlates news reports to highlights in her life. Her father died when the Hindenburg exploded. Her sister died the same day that Amelia Earhart became the first woman to fly across the Atlantic. Gandhi was assassinated when her second daughter was born. I had to pause when she talked about news related to the atomic bombs which I remember with “duck and cover” exercises. “Anyone who survives will be breathing poisonous gases and eating poisonous food and they’ll die a horrible slow death.”

Across the street is picture-perfect Frankie in the perky yellow house. Edith bakes a few cakes and after each being a disaster, she ends up buying one to take to her new friend who looks like a model. She is married to Ralph who is the opposite of Charlie. He treats his wife more like an employee with the white-glove test. They have two boys about the same ages as they girls across the street.

The story of the two women is part believable but a lot of it is far-fetched. However, the book is cleverly written with the changes that occurred during the sixties. It made me go back to the memories from that time: when sandwiches were wrapped in wax paper, when there was a distinct difference between Catholics and Protestants, when my grandma was upset that I was wearing a two-piece bathing suit, when my older sister was more upset when I came home with birth control pills and when the world stopped with the assassination with JFK. It may be more interesting to those that lived through this time period as we can all relate to the daily news of the Vietnam war, women’s rights, racial prejudice and the music we still listen to. It was a time when the world was changing at a fast pace. I believe it would make a lively discussion. The ending was a little odd but it was a good reflection of what happened in these times.

My thanks to Mark Lamprell, Text Publishing and NetGalley for allowing me to read this advanced copy with the expected release date of March 29, 2022.

Author Lamprell kept a very tight focus on the plot, constraining the POV to Edith's narrow world. This means that much is left unexplained about the other characters, the lifestyle and milieu of 1960s Australia, and anything happening outside of the world news or Edith's home. While I can understand and appreciate this choice, I found it oddly disenfranchising and never really got into the story. Edith was a hard character to like and those around her even less so. Worse, I had a hard time understanding what the author's viewpoint was and what he was trying to say.

Story: In 1960s Australia, Edith is a good Catholic woman who married the perfect man and can match key moments in her life with big events in the world. When her family moves to a new suburb, she becomes curious about the woman in the big yellow house near hers. Frankie is stunning, outspoken, and free of all the inhibitions that constrain Edith. As the two become fast friends, they begin to enable each other to be more than just the definition of what their husbands have made them.

The story takes place over ten years, following Edith as she helps Frankie create a career away from her domineering and patriarchal husband. I believe this takes place in Sydney but we aren't really given much information since nearly the entire book takes place inside Edith or Frankie's house. There aren't a lot of 1960s references other than Edith constantly making note of the news and how it relates to her own life. Because of this, the book feels both claustrophobic and mundane, with much of the book being about Edith cleaning things. The other half of the book is Edith reacting (rarely acting) and then internally monologuing about it.

Frankie is probably the most interesting character but we learn preciously little about her since Edith is too shy and submissive to really push for information. Edith's entire world is enabling Frankie so Frankie's huge and sudden success in creating her own business is rather unbelievable. Edith is almost never around any of it - her world is cleaning and cooking two houses and dealing with her late teen daughters' and their embracing of 1960s idealism.

There are so many choices the author made that I know must be for a reason but honestly the messages are so conflicting and confusing as to be muddy. From the revelation at the end from one character to the tragedy of another, it just felt messy and random. Perhaps that is what the author intended: life is messy.

If you are interested in a book about cleaning, cooking, Catholicism, and a very odd friendship, this works. But I found I was missing the most important character: 1960s Australia. Reviewed from an advance reader copy provided by the publisher.