The Last Original Wife by Dorothea Benton Frank

Good morning, everyone, and happy Monday! Today I'm a stop on the TLC book tour for Dorothea Benton Frank's The Last Original Wife.

In a time when all their friends seem to be divorcing and moving on, Leslie has finally grown tired of it all. Tired of being forced to spend time with women she calls "Barbies" - the new, young brides her old friends have been swapped out for - and tired of her husband's attitude, Les takes matters into her own hands and leaves. Without her, Wes is at a loss, but he can't fathom why she'd up and go after all their years together. 

This latest from Dorothea Benton Frank happens to be my first ever read by her. And it was one that I'd looked forward to with great anticipation. But I don't think it was the right title for me or the right time.

In truth, I found Les and Wes both rubbed me the wrong way from the very beginning. I wanted to like Les and did sympathize with her situation but early counseling sessions didn't quite leave me sold on her decision to leave her husband. And yet, Wes's sessions did quite clearly illustrate why Les would be fed up with him! Sure, as things got rolling everything became more clear but I honestly felt more weight was put on the fact that Les simply wanted to start over (with some money in her pocket). I hate to say that - and I'm sure I'm probably in the minority - I found the book to be kind of a downer, though.

The Last Original Wife did have its moments of charm and amusement - the cat fight at the club and Wes's babysitting in particular left me in a fit of giggles - but all in all I was left with something of a sense of hopelessness about the fate of marriages in general!

Rating: 3/5

To see more stops on the tour be sure to check out the official TLC tour page here.

For more on Dorothea Benton Frank and her work you can find her on the web here. You can also like her on Facebook.