The most appealing thing a book can be is under 300 pages. And while that wasn't boring, it was like.I'd prefer if someone else were telling me this? Or maybe if I was having a different conversation.īottom line: I could say something about the clear and straightforward writing style, or how this somehow felt both too long and too short, or probably a bunch of other stuff, but what it comes down to is I'm nosy.

This is the literary equivalent of a friend of a friend telling you a two-hour story about people you don't know. You'd think that should make a difference, because who wants juicy details about the lives of people they don't know or take interest in? I mean, yes, this book supplied me with a sort of figurative IV of drama, a constant drip of tea that offered me restorative health benefits, a steady stream of scandal the likes of which I want every single conversation I have to take inspiration from.īut I didn't care much about the characters.

I was never bored while reading this, but as soon as I finished I wondered how I was not constantly bored. For readers of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Candice Carty-Williams, His Only Wife is the story of an indomitable and relatable heroine that illuminates what it means to be a woman in a rapidly changing world. But it is Accra that eventually wins Afi’s heart and gives her a life of independence that she never could have imagined for herself.Ī brilliant scholar and a fierce advocate for women’s rights, author Peace Adzo Medie infuses her debut novel with intelligence and humor. It turns out that he is in love with another woman, whom his family disapproves of Afi is supposed to win him back on their behalf. He sends a stand-in to his own wedding, and only weeks after Afi is married and installed in a plush apartment in the capital city of Accra does she meet her new husband. She acquiesces, but soon realizes that Elikem is not quite the catch he seemed.

Then one day she is offered a life-changing opportunity-a proposal of marriage from the wealthy family of Elikem Ganyo, a man she doesn’t truly know. She lives in a small town in Ghana with her widowed mother, spending much of her time in her uncle Pious’s house with his many wives and children.

“Elikem married me in absentia he did not come to our wedding.”Īfi Tekple is a young seamstress whose life is narrowing rapidly.

Peace adzo medie