Book Review: Trad Wife

Trad Wife

by Sarah Langan

Trad Wife

By Sarah Langan

I requested this novel as an ARC because I enjoy reading about trad wives from a feminist and social critique perspective. I thought this book would have some commentary in this way, but I am not sure it did so in a satisfying way.

On the other hand, I don’t think that was the author’s purpose, as shown in the author’s note. I don’t read fictional books for commentary primarily, because characters and plot come first for me, but I do enjoy a well-developed, meaningful theme, which this book did not fully deliver. The plot and character development were also quite uneven and the last 25 percent of the book felt rushed and with a different tone compared to the rest of the book. The setting was very well done and the novel had an unnerving, eerie mood and tone throughout the book.

The protagonist Jenny was portrayed as a feminist journalist, who was still dealing with the trauma of living through a relationship with a man who had dangerous schizoaffective disorder episodes during and after covid quarantine and being parentified as a child and raising her younger sister in many ways. I wanted to love Jenny’s character and at times I related to her.

As the book begins, Jenny was a relatively successful journalist, but she always wanted to write something more meaningful, like investigative journalism, features, or long-form journalism. Her personal essay article went viral, it was very vulnerable with some controversial topics. She thinks she has finally made it as a journalist.  But then there was backlash from anti-feminist internet trolls and she was unfairly fired from the small magazine where she worked.

Then an opportunity to write a feature about Mia Wright, the trad wife and potential pyramid scheme operator at Black Swan Farm. As soon as Jenny starts researching Mia, she can tell something is wrong, because Mia seems to harm herself in small ways on purpose, for views. However, when she is invited to interview Mia on the farm for a day, and later for a week, she realizes things are much worse than she could ever have imagined. Jenny travels to a toxic town in western PA with a rich history of folklore and stories of witches and a demon-like presence called Mr. Yellow that seems to haunt Black Swan Farm.

Ultimately I felt Jenny’s character development was uneven and unpredictable throughout the book but mostly at the end.

Horror is not a genre that I often read. Many times I felt the book was leaning toward a slow-burn thriller, but the last 1/3 of the book was giving horror. Maybe that is why the book didn’t land for me, but I think it was more to do with uneven pacing and character development. Some readers who love horror novels or books about trad wives might enjoy this one. Please check the Content Warnings for this book before reading.

Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.