The Soldier's Wife - Softcover

"A penetrating study of military families and the potential conflicts between duty and love, The Soldier's Wife bears all of Trollope's trademarks: an affecting, well-constructed story; elegantly restrained prose; explorations of the ramifications of change; and, above all, characters conceived and nurtured with care. Those characters are people we know, people who might be our neighbors, ordinary people rendered with extraordinary perception and grace by an author who never fails to impress and whose journeys into the human condition always satisfy."--Richmond Times-Dispatch

"With her stories about the tensions of middle-class families, Trollope consistently picks women's-page issues. In The Soldier's Wife, she continues to explore the power balance in relationships and whether it's possible to be happy if we subjugate our desires to someone else. "--The Independent (UK)

"Written with all Trollope's customary skill and panache, this is an absorbing look at the modern military wife who no longer automatically follows the drum."--The Mail (UK)

"Trollope is on top form, hitting the zeitgeist with this perceptive and compassionate inside story of an army marriage."--Women & Home (UK)

"Nobody understands the snags and frustrations of family life better than Joanna Trollope . . . exquisite . . . a serious story that is unraveled sensitively."--Sunday Express (UK)

"A deservedly popular writer, but she isn't a frivolous one . . . a cracking read . . . compassionate, humorous, and topical."--The Spectator (UK)

The “brilliant, mesmerizing storyteller” (The Washington Post) Joanna Trollope illuminates an experience shared by millions of people:  a soldier’s return to family life causes three generations of a family to struggle with the impact of war on their relationships.

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN LOVE AND DUTY COLLIDE?

DAN RILEY IS A MAJOR IN THE BRITISH ARMY. After a six-month tour of duty in Afghanistan, he is coming home to the wife and young daughters he adores. He’s up for promotion and his ex-Army grandfather and father couldn’t be prouder. The Rileys are united in support of Dan’s passion for his career.

But are they really? His wife, Alexa, has been offered a good teaching job she can’t take because the Army may move the family at any time. Her daughter Isabel hates her boarding school—the only good educational option for Army families—and starts running away. And Dan spends all his time on the base, unable to break the strong bonds forged with his friends in battle. Soon everyone who knows the Rileys is trying to help them save their marriage, but it’s up to Alexa to decide if she can sacrifice her needs and those of her family to support Dan’s commitment to his work.

With her trademark intelligence and grace, Joanna Trollope illuminates the complexities of modern life in this story of a family striving to balance duty and ambition.