Mallory is a mother who needs a kidney for her son and must face Monk, the man she used to love, to get it. Hannah is a recovering Hungarian refugee from WWII, married to a man she does not love, who falls for a spy in a revolutionary Egypt. The two women are connected, not just by blood, but by their complicated hearts.

This intergenerational novel is told with multiple timelines, not just between Mallory and Hannah's stories but also Mallory's life in the present and her life in the past, when she and Monk fell in love when they were college students. Mallory, Hannah, Monk, and Lucien are each interesting characters with unique motivations and desires, and it was fascinating to watch them unfold. Mallory is the most developed of all the characters, and was equal parts lovable, funny, and relatable. Her love story with Monk was SO sweet and doesn't fall into the cliche traps of many romances. I also enjoyed Williams' writing style--it's poignant and sharp without being too wordy; emotional without being sappy.

However, the real downside of this book was the multiple timelines. I think they can be really tricky, and because Williams chose to include two timelines for Mallory and only one for Hannah, we really didn't get to know as much about Hannah. I loved Hannah's story so much--both her time in Egypt and the bits and pieces we learned about her background in Hungary during the war. However, I felt like her story was cut short in many places to make more room for Mallory. I would have preferred more room for her in this novel. The connection between the two women also felt a little forced. While it was a good novel, it almost felt like two novels combined into one. Both stories were so interesting they could have been two separate novels!

I’ll read everything she writes and love it. This was no exception. And the cover is so great, as always

I loved, loved, loved this book! Beatriz Williams has become one of my favorite authors. She tells a story so well her character development is phenomenal. Another book I could not put down! #HusbandsLovers #NetGalley

Swoon-worthy!
Two timelines, a few strong women, and a couple of love triangles...this was a delightful book.
Beatriz Williams is a genius when it comes to dialogue and moving the plot forward through conversation.
Despite not being a fan of romance, and this book being full of it, I loved it.

Another wonderful book by Beatriz Williams, the way her stories capture you from the first chapter, and this book was no different. I am still thinking about Mallory and Hannah's stories and I hope there is a follow-up book.

I liked the second chance at love parts of the book. Thanks for the review copy. I like the two different time periods

Husbands & Lovers is now officially my favorite Beatriz Williams book! I’ve loved her work since A Hundred Summers and this one blows them all out of the water. I would read a chapter and immediately devour more so I could get to where it left off! This is the perfect book to get you out of a reading slump.

I do want to note TW: rape.

Wow. One of my favorites of the year, cart blanche.

We open to Mallory. She is a single mom who learns her son has ingested a poisonous mushroom that is causing his organs to shut down. We learn that his kidneys are damaged. At 13, he is on dialysis and transplant list. But, because dad is out of the picture, a wider net is cast to the extended family for potential donors.

We have an alternate timeline with Hannah in 1950s Cairo. She is the wife to an Englishman diplomat. She has been through it. Survived the war and the loss of her children and the love of her life. Her current marriage completely loveless. Hannah begins an affair with a compelling hotel manager while Egypt is in tumultuous political crisis.

The two timelines converge when Mallory is forced to forge a relationship with her ex--the superhot and famous singer Monk Adams. He genuinely seems like a nice guy, and every one in her life doesn't understand why she has shut him out of her son's life.

What we see is a beautiful then/now timeline. This timeline considers Mallory's past, her family's generational past, and her current stressors as a single mom of a medically compromised child. Williams does an excellent job weaving together the timelines seamlessly. These characters continue to live in my mind!

Thank you to NetGalley and Balantine Books/RandomHouse for an advanced reader copy in exchange for a fair, unbiased review. Husbands and Lovers will debut June 25, 2024.

I recently read Husbands & Lovers by Beatriz Williams. This novel is scheduled to be released in June 2024, and it is worth the wait. Once again, this author takes us to New England beaches and exotic locales. The stages are set from pyramid to gilded age mansion and we have a front row seat as the lives of more of her strong women characters love those in their lives and fight for their loved ones and beliefs, in some cases no matter the dangers. As the back stories are revealed, often with a few surprises, we root for them and keep reading, hoping for happy endings along with them.

The pacing was good and the players well-composed. Returning Williams fans will not be disappointed, and first timers will be searching for more of her titles.

I just finished reading Beatriz Williams, latest novel, "Husbands & Lovers" and wow, that may be one of my favorite books to be coming out in 2024. Williams is masterful crafting stories and relationships, and both present day and past. The story, the story talks about how love can be such a powerful force in our lives, and what we do for the people that we love and how our decisions, and what we think is in the best interest for them, is dictated by the strength of our love. I love the characters in this book. I can picture them. I almost never want this to be made into a movie because I can see them so clearly in my mind. I love the places in this book. I smelt the coast of Winthrop Island. I felt the heat of Egypt.  I heard Monk singing.  I felt the tension at points in this book, to my bones. One of my favorite things about soap operas-- and I will never think of soap operas in a bad sense. If you know me, you know, I still love General Hospital. -- One of the most beautiful part of the soaps is how they go from one storyline to the next and how you don’t necessarily want to leave the first storyline that you’re in because you’re so invested and you just want to know what happens next, but the next storyline is so important as well and you also want to know what’s going on there and his book does that.  I technically has three storylines- it has present day, it has about 15 years ago, nine years ago I can’t do math and about 50 to 80 years ago again not strong on the math but I just wanted to know how each of these was going to turn out and none of them disappointed I wish I could read this book again for the first time this will be an @youranniereads 2024  BOTY nominee pre-order  your copy today. 
Thank you NetGalley, Random House, Ballantine and Beatriz Williams for the early copy

Husbands and Lovers is my first novel written by Beatriz Williams. I devoured all 384 pages in a couple of days. The book was pretty unputdownable! It is full of history, mystery, and romance.

The novel follows two women over three different time periods. Mallory's story is set mostly in 2008 and 2022. She is a single mom in 2022 to a 13 year-old son on dialysis. In trying to help her nephew find a kidney match, Mallory's sister, Paige, sends off her DNA setting the stage for all kinds of drama to unfold. The second setting is mostly during the Egyptian Revolution in the 1950's and follows Hannah. Hannah, like Mallory, is a remarkable woman living in a man's world. These women's stories will be linked through a family heirloom that was once owned by Hannah and is eventually bequeathed to Mallory.

Overall I enjoyed this book and I will be adding her backlist novels to my TBR. Thanks to Netgalley and Ballentine Books for this incredible ARC.

This is my second book by this author, and I really liked it. I fully intend to read others by her - someday. Like the other one I read, Husbands and Lovers is both immensely readable while also being easily put-down-able. I found myself not hugely invested in the story, but not so much that I at anytime wanted to dnf it. You know how sometimes you fly through a book in a day, give it a good review and then days later you can’t remember what it was about? This ain’t that. Maybe because I took so long to read it or maybe because ultimately it’s just by a better writer, I will remember the themes of family, trust, and forgiveness that were woven throughout, just as I do the other book of hers I’ve read.

Thanks to NetGalley for the arc.

I really liked this book! I'm a big fan of books that span various generations and periods of time. I loved how this story came together from the present, to a summer 14 years before and to the grandmother they didn't even know they had in Egypt.

The story wraps up nicely and I really liked all of the characters. I highly recommend this book!

10 out of 10 for Husbands & Lovers! I knew going into it that I admired Beatriz Williams and this story only helped grow that even more. I loved the way she wove together the two storylines and time periods, developing the characters and plots. The only part that seemed a little far fetched to me was when Mallory and Paige jumped on a plane to Ireland on a whim and we only got a chapter of them being there. Would have loved to dive into that trip a little more. Overall, great read! 4.5 stars!

My absolute favorite by Beatriz Williams since Along the Infinite Sea. The alternating story lines were captivating and I mourned having to leave each one upon ending a chapter.

This book follows two timelines, Hannah in 1951 located in Cairo and Mallory in 2022 with a 13 year old son and then to flashbacks to her in college. Her son needs a kidney transplant due to eating a poison mushroom and he's never met his father, who is now a famous singer. Both timelines are compelling and it's easy to get pulled into the book. A great read!

I could not put this book down. My new favorite Beatriz Williams novel. A sweeping tale of love and family. I could not recommend this book more! What a treasure! Thanks to NetGalley for the early read!

Big thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for the advanced readers copy of this terrific book!

Mallory receives a dreadful phone call while her 10-year-old son is at sleep away camp. He ingested a poisonous mushroom and now needs a kidney transplant. While searching for a donor, she learns secrets about her family and Mallory along with her sister, Paige, try to uncover the truth. Mallory must also face the reality of her current situation when a summer romance from fourteen years ago comes back into her life.

I love Beatriz Williams’ writing and can appreciate the amount of research she spent on this book. I loved the juxtaposition of Hannah and Mallory’s stories and the strength they each have for the love of their children. I wish the book didn’t end!!

cross posted on @booksabbiereads

Super fantastic current fiction mixed with historical of two intertwining stories. I was enraptured and was cheering for the strong women in this novel.

Beatriz Williams has to be one of the better historical fiction writers out there these days. Her stories never fail to completely transport me. Often, after I finish them, I feel like I have surfaced from being under water and have to suck in lungfuls of air to just reorient myself. This was brilliant.