She is firmly at home writing suspense-filled scenes, whether they take place among Maori captives or in a California courthouse. She also writes convincingly about the close friendships between women. The bond between women forms the core of this novel—a page-turner that readers will mourn finishing. How did you come to write The Wives of Henry Oades? What in particular about the abstract drew you in?
Well, I considered my own marriage. The greatest challenge was knowing Henry. I came away with a mix of responses. I like and respect him. Others will surely feel differently. Tell us about the earth closet and where that idea came from. I laugh thinking about that scene. Nancy is particularly horrified.
The love of writing came from both parents. We walked down Polk Street where Dr.
Henry has been promoted to a senior position in New Zealand. Reluctantly in Margaret's case, excitedly in Henry's, they and their two children embark on this journey. Over the next couple of years readers are familiarised with them as a lovely, affectionate couple, good parents now with twin baby girls, and supportive of each other.
One day while Henry is away Maori's kidnap the family and burn the house to the ground leaving the charred remains of one adult female. On his return Henry is distraught and does everything in his power to find his family. People think he has lost his mind but he simply wont give up until eventually he is forced to accept their demise and a funeral is held for his beloved Meg Margaret. Unable to go on in his normal life Henry takes a ship to California where he begins a new, largely solitary, life as a dairy farmer. Eventually, some six years down the track, he remarries.
Nancy is a young widow with a new born, her husband lost in a house fire. Her pain resonates with Henry and his protective side shines through.
Not by a long shot, but to me, it's average. That would be telling. More than a half century ago, my father, a law professor, came across an abstract on the Oades case and showed it to my mother, who was attempting to write short fiction in her nonexistent spare time. The story was clearly used to explain her appearance. In that means 6 weeks on a crowded ship. It gave me pause to think about things a different way and it certainly stirred my emotions. After all, this is a fictional account so some effort at character development even if it wasn't supported by primary sources would have made for a much more enjoyable read.
After the shortest time he proposes and they are married a week later. Around this time in New Zealand, Margaret and children escape their captors and make their way to America fuelled by thoughts of their long anticipated family reunion. Imagine the shock and disappointment upon meeting Nancy Oades and her new baby. Hence, the plural "wives" in the title. Both wives very much alive and feeling entitled to their role as Henry's wife. What does he do? What should he do? Which of the two wives is most deserving of the title Mrs Henry Oades?
The book forced me to consider these and many other questions and proved great fodder for thought. In todays age it may be different but the 's and early 's there were plenty of societal norms and attitudes at play and what is already a moral dilemma became even murkier. Several courts of law later, imprisonment, threats and actual acts of violence against them, the matter was eventually resolved. That would be telling. As I said earlier I'm not convinced I was satisfied with the ending but couldn't rightly say what a more suitable outcome would have been.
I enjoyed this book and in hindsight perhaps a fraction more now I've had time to reflect upon it. I'm looking forward to my irl book club discussion tonight. View all 4 comments. Feb 21, Rose rated it really liked it Shelves: It's a good selection for a woman's book club--with discussions about what the two wives should have done, did they make the best possible choices, the social mores they were constrained by, the husband's love for each woman, in turn, and his children.
This book has a gripping premise, fascinating characters, --and it's all based on a true story! View all 12 comments. Dec 28, April rated it liked it Shelves: I feel as though it's quite easy to take some tribe most Americans, myself included, have never heard of and turn them into savage captors. I mean, isn't it ingrained in us to just accept what authors write as fact, especially when writing a book "based on a true story. These are people painted to be savage compared to their counterparts, the civilized English settler.
The M I feel as though it's quite easy to take some tribe most Americans, myself included, have never heard of and turn them into savage captors. The Maori retaliate against some offense by kidnapping Margaret Oades and her children. They do not show compassion and are clearly evil.
I understand that maybe this was for the purpose of the story, we needed Margaret Oades and kin to disappear somehow, so why not borrow some native peoples for this purpose. Personally, I think we need to get past the dark-skinned other stereotype. I understand authors don't need to be politically correct and it's not the job of the author to bring about social justice, however, I just wish there was more fairness or at least more depth pertaining to the Maori within The Wives of Henry Oades.
Aside from the treatment of the Maori, this book caused me to ponder family structures. Must all families be nuclear? No, not at all and in today's society you don't really see much of that anymore. I mean there's all different types of families, single-parent families, families with two dads, extended family groups, kinship groups, etc. I think the relationship between Henry Oades, his two wives, and his children was quite interesting, if not exactly ringing true. I liked that The Wives of Henry Oades did not condemn this different way of living. However, the reaction of the wives to each other felt unreal to me.
I mean, if I was abducted by a group of people and didn't see my husband for years, come home and find he's married some other woman, you'd better expect hell to pay. I expected a larger reaction from wife number one, not oh well, let's just live as one giant family. Is this a terrible book? Not by a long shot, but to me, it's average. I think it is a great book to read if you want to generate a discussion within your book group about family units, should the government be able to tell you how to live your private life, etc.
Also, I really enjoyed the character of Nancy, it's quite refreshing to see such a strong, capable woman. Also good to see a woman who doesn't automatically love children. Way to step past gender constructs. Yes, I've read better historical fiction, but I did keep turning the pages and never had to set this book aside, so I suppose that lends some credence to it's readability. View all 3 comments. Jan 28, Tara Chevrestt rated it really liked it Shelves: I couldn't put it down. It's a story based on a real situation and trial that occured in the very early s.
Henry Oades and his wife, Margaret go from England to New Zealand with their children in tow for an accounting promotion. Well, the white folks in New Zealand anger the natives and in retaliation, the natives decide to wreak their own havoc on the white folks and as luck would have it, they choose Henry Oades's house. The natives capture Margaret and all the children a Wow.
The natives capture Margaret and all the children and burn the house down. Henry never finds them and after a few years, decides to move on and goes to America. Boy is he and wife number two, Nancy, surprised when Margarent and children show up on their door step five years later! Which wife will come out on top? Whose children will be declared "bastards? I had ONE issue tho. Henry has TWO wives and upon discovering each other, neither wife nags or questions Henry. There are no private conversations, no decisions, no discussions about the situation at all.
Margaret suddenly becomes a spineless woman and just steps aside, offers to stay in a boarding house, and even agrees to be a maid while watching Henry go to bed every night with wife number two. Um, I don't know about other women out there but if I was faced with this situation, there would be some major face slapping, hair pulling, and some four letter words and two gonads flying thru the air. I certainly wouldn't be offering to pass myself off as a long lost aunt. I found her saintliness unbelievable. View all 8 comments. Apr 05, Theobald Mary rated it it was amazing. And what an adventure it would be!
Raw courage and faith that her husband would rescue them keeps her from total despair until, one day, she and her three surviving children manage to escape. Making their way for weeks through the wilderness accompanied by smallpox and starvation , they are sustained by images of Henry and their home. They finally arrive, only to discover strangers living in their house. Henry had long ago given his family up for dead and sailed to a new life in California. By the time Margaret and the children track Henry to a farm outside San Francisco, he is married to Nancy, a young widow with a new baby who is pregnant again.
At this point, what has been an exciting story gets really interesting. But California law says bigamy is punishable by hanging. A series of arrests, violent attacks on the farm, and several trials occur as judges, juries, and self-righteous locals attempt to decide who is at fault, who has broken the law, and who will pay the price. The book is fiction, but it is based on a true story that was widely reported in newspapers of the day.
Or maybe it was all a hoax. An excellent book by an excellent writer. I highly recommend it. Sep 30, Christy rated it liked it. So now that I have had a day to think about this book there are still parts of it that are truly frusturating.
I was very enthralled throughout the first half, and incredibly disappointed with the second half. I thought that writing in general was great, but the second half of the book when I was expecting to get taken away I was just a bit disappointed. Moran spends the first half of the book describing the anguish that Maragaret and her children are going through after being taken and then onc So now that I have had a day to think about this book there are still parts of it that are truly frusturating.
Moran spends the first half of the book describing the anguish that Maragaret and her children are going through after being taken and then once they land in America it is no longer discussed.
She spent the first half of the book talking about the heartache of Henry and then in the second half when he is reunited with his wife they don't talk about it. I was not ready for the second wife just to allow the first wife to stay without true emotions, because I know if I was in their place as either the first or second wife there would be some well defined feelings to get past.
I found myself getting angry with Henry for not really discussing the situation with either wife, and for the children to just pretend on what was going on as normal. I guess overall I enjoyed the book but just felt that there was too much unfinished business. Feb 12, Kate Quinn rated it really liked it. What a love triangle this is. Kidnapping, death, birth, disease, despair, disgrace - and none of it due to anything but sheer bad luck. Based on a true legal case, this is the story of Henry Oades, an adventurous Englishman who drags his wife and children to New Zealand for a two-year business stint, only to lose them all to a Maori raid.
Grieving for the wife he presumes dead, he relocates to California, acquires a dairy farm and eventually, a new wife. Disaster strikes when his first wife turn What a love triangle this is. Disaster strikes when his first wife turns up, children in tow, triumphant at having escaped the Maori - and horrified to find her husband remarried. Social ostracism follows the trio through a vitriolic court case as they try to find some solution to the dilemma. What struck me the most was the kindness and good sense of the central trio - Henry Oades struggles to do right by both his wives, and the women have considerable sympathy for each other rather than descending into a catfight to claim their man.
Their humanity, contrasted against the narrow-mindedness of the neighbors who condemn them, wins the trio an unexpected but triumphant ending. Jun 11, Katie rated it it was ok. This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. This was actually a very interesting book: The first wife is a rock star, she is tragically amazing, old husband simply doesn't deserve her; young wife and old wife fall in love. Apr 05, Robin Nicholas rated it really liked it.
I loved the first three quarters of this book. The story starts in in London. Henry Oades has just received a big accounting promotion and is moving his family to New Zealand for years. In that means 6 weeks on a crowded ship. Once there they settle in, make friends, and enjoy their life there, with the intention of going back home at the end of the three years. Meg Oades Henry's wife and her children are kidnapped by the local Indians and finally after much searching thought dea I loved the first three quarters of this book. Meg Oades Henry's wife and her children are kidnapped by the local Indians and finally after much searching thought dead.
After about two years of mental breakdown and heartbreak, Henry takes the first ship out of there. This takes him to Berkley, California. He wants a completely different life, so takes a job as a laborer, working on a dairy farm, which he ends up inheriting. After many years of keeping to himself, not wanting to remarry, circumstances change and he meets a widow with a newborn that he wants to take care of.
At the same time, in New Zealand, Meg and her children escape and come back to their house expecting to see Henry. Once they are able they get themselves to California they find Henry and show up on his doorstep. His new wife Nancy opens the door. I know it seems like I have just told you the entire story I loved the first part.
The Wives of Henry Oades has ratings and reviews. Sharon said: The Wives of Henry Oades was a debut historical fiction by Johanna Moran. I foun. When Henry Oades accepts an accountancy post in New Zealand, his wife, Margaret, and their children follow him to exotic Wellington. But while Henry is an .
It was rich and full. For me, the story took a downturn in Berkley, as they were figuring out what to do and how to make this extended family work. The two women were forging a strong friendship, helping each other out. The problem was the people in town. You can, if you wish, select a specific area of the website to search by using the drop-down menu next to the search box. You can also narrow down your search after viewing the results. The Wives of Henry Oades is an engrossing late 19th-century tale of unwitting bigamy.
Margaret insists on a cottage on the outskirts of the squalid town of Wellington. In an act of retribution, she and her children are taken captive by a Maori tribe. He marries Nancy, who has suffered a similar loss. Meanwhile Margaret and her surviving children endure a six-year enslavement with the Maori.