Book Review

The Love Wife (2004)

Gish Jen
Reviewed by Jennifer Reese | Sep 17, 2004
EW's GRADE
B

Details Release Date: Sep 14, 2004; Writer: Gish Jen; Genre: Fiction; Publisher: Knopf

Carnegie and Blondie Wong have a house in the suburbs, three children, and a problem: Lan, a relative of Carnegie's, has arrived from China. Seductive, elegant, and enigmatic, Lan bewitches the kids and makes Carnegie wonder if he's ever really been happy with his easygoing Caucasian wife (who clearly never saw The Hand That Rocks the Cradle). The first half of The Love Wife crackles with mounting dramatic and sexual tension, but Jen never resolves the crisis she sets up so exquisitely. Instead, Wife unravels with extraneous characters and violent, implausible plot twists.

Originally posted Sep 17, 2004 Published in issue #784 Sep 17, 2004 Order article reprints

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