The Rebel Wife Audiobook

" This book was written in riddles. I felt bad for Gus but I didn't like her. "

" I really liked this dark historical novel that is get in the South during reconstruction. It is written from the perspective of a Southern lady who came from a family with a "good name" but finds herself destitute in a post-war nightmare after her husband dies. It is as much about the former slaves still working for her who are trying to find a place as "free" people when the Klan threatens their every move. This book seems almost haunted and made me feel trapped/claustrophobic thinking about what the characters were going through during that hot and disease-ridden summer. That may not be a good recommendation but it is a book that will leave a lasting impression. "

" The story is driven by an unlikable character and it's hard to like the narrator because she seems so naive. But then she is a victim of her time, the antebellum south. The black characters are smart and savvy and the whites are ignorant and greedy. There seems to be no inbetween. I thought the book did well going back and forth from present to past. Some of the writing was very good. It was more of a two and a half star. It was easy to lose patience with the story, but I did not dislike it. I would read this author again. But what was that deadly fever? "

" This was OK- was hoping for it to be so much better. Slow start- took me awhile to get into it, then the story got much better. "

" It started off great, got a little slow in the middle, but picked up in the last few chapters. A nice, easy read. :-) "

" The prose is beautiful. Evocative. Atmospheric. And I can tell what Polites is trying to achieve; Southern Gothic is a potent and powerful genre....but terribly elusive. Unfortunately, the plot...story....whatever you want to call it, is weak. "

" I did not care for the way this book was written. Nothing was very believable and the characters were just flat moving in a story that took too long to tell. "

" Maybe I had high hopes for this book but it really didn't resonate with me. "

" This was very similar to "The Kitchen House" although if I was to read again, I would start with this book then move to "The Kitchen House". "

" 3.5/5 I listened to this one and the reader was amazing. In this instance, the reader made the book much more enjoyable than it would have been to read it. "

" Mostly good, but the ending was a bit abrupt and veering into soap opera territory. Overall a good book about the issues facing the South after the war is lost. "

" The first half is slow and at times a little frustrating, but the final 100 pages are quite good. "

" I really enjoyed this story of a young widow in Reconstruction Era Alabama. So many secrets, so slowly revealed. Interesting that the male author created such a believable and compelling heroine. Pretty impressive for a debut novel--would definitely read more of his books. "

" The worst book I've read this year. The characters are stereotypes, and the pace just plods. The author focusd on the post-Civil War South, but there are better books, better written novels, that cover this period. Not recommended. "