From Publishers Weekly
Finely drawn characters and complicated social intrigue make King's second novel (after Making Waves in Zion) a charming read. When Dean Lynchs ambitious preacher husband, Ben, is assigned to a pulpit in the small Florida town of Crystal Springs, Dean is resigned to the prospect of yet another church-owned house and the necessity of putting aside her own beloved music (she plays the piano and the dulcimer) in favor of the congregations choir. Orphaned as a child, the retiring Dean has spent 20 years of marriage in the shadow of her overbearing, charismatic husband, always feeling out of place. But when she befriends Augusta, a wealthy, well-born, caustic beauty whose attendance at the Crystal Springs Methodist Church would be Ben's greatest coup, Dean finds herself coming out of her shell and tangled up in secrets she is not prepared to handle. The only false note comes from the gay couple Augusta befriends, who border on stereotype. The rest of King's secondary cast, which includes a sympathetic psychic and the magnetic but sinister former preacher at Ben's church, is a captivating bunch. King has written a truly heartwarming story, a tale of turbulent emotions and the vagaries of public opinion in a small Southern town; she has a sure winner here.Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Library Journal
For 20 years, Willodean (Dean) Lynch has been molded into what her ambitious, upwardly mobile minister husband and his congregation consider to be the perfect preacher's wife. Then she meets Augusta Holderfield, a free spirit who encourages her to break loose. The more her husband and his too-pious congregants try to smother her, the more liberated Dean wants to be. Unfortunately, she learns the hard way that freedom can come at a very high price. Told in the first person and heavy on Southern atmosphere, this novel is peppered with Dean's wry observations. All aspects of institutional religious hypocrisy, intolerance, ultraconservatism, and general self-righteousness are fair game as Dean discovers who she really is. King, who is married to novelist Pat Conroy (Prince of Tides), has proven herself to be an extraordinary author in her own right. Fans of Patricia Gaffney and Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings will enjoy this extremely well-written book. Essential for libraries of all sizes. Shelley Mosley, Glendale P.L., AZ Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.


From AudioFile
Dean Lynch, wife of Reverend Benjamin Lynch, has never fit the role of what she calls "the Sunday wife." When the couple moves to a larger congregation in the Florida Panhandle, she meets a friend who encourages her to break from that traditional role. Joan Allen's smooth genteel tones provide the perfect backdrop as the story moves from the grand Mimosa Grove mansion to the rectory. Soft music provides bridges between chapters. Narrated with light humor, Southern accents, and likable characters, this story grabs one's emotions from beginning to end. G.D.W. 2003 Audie Award Finalist © AudioFile 2003, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine


From Booklist
Dean and her husband, the Reverend Ben Lynch, have arrived in Crystal Springs, Florida. Ben is ecstatic because he believes he is finally working his way up the ecclesiastical ladder with this wealthy Methodist church once ministered by his idol. Dean is hesitant, feeling her low-class roots more than ever, no thanks to Ben's constant reminders. As he sets out to ingratiate himself, she deals with such concrete matters as helping with church functions, never really fitting in until she meets Augusta Holderfield, a vivacious character who could have stepped straight out of a Truman Capote novel. The community doesn't exactly approve of Augusta, but she is the cream of society, and she takes Dean under her wing even though she doesn't belong to the church. With Ben's initial encouragement, Dean and Augusta become true friends as Augusta admires Dean for her musical abilities and encourages her to free herself from her church-wife existence and explore her own desires. Eventually, Ben and Augusta become opposing forces in Dean's life as she learns to live more fully, and have dreams of her own instead of always submitting to Ben's passive-aggressive behavior. Then, when tragedy strikes, Dean learns what is real and what she truly believes in. King, author Pat Conroy's wife, captures the redolence of the South and the trickiness of Bible-belt society in an impressive debut. Patty Engelmann
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

FROM OUR EDITORS

Until she met Augusta Holderfield, Dean Lynch was content to be a Sunday wife, the proud spouse of Reverend Benjamin Lynch. But gradually she realized that her husband was a different person than the congregation imagined, and she was at the crossroads of becoming a different person, too. Josephine Humphreys called The Sunday Wife "smart and funny and alert to the nuances of the complicated South."

FROM THE PUBLISHER

"In the tradition of Patricia Gaffney's The Saving Graces - a captivating novel about one woman's journey toward independence, and the life-changing friendship that guides her there." "Married for twenty years to the Reverend Benjamin Lynch, a handsome, ambitious minister of the prestigious Methodist church, Dean Lynch has never quite adjusted her temperament to the demands of the role of a "Sunday wife." When her husband is assigned to a larger and more demanding community in the Florida panhandle, Dean becomes fast friends with Augusta Holderfield, a woman with a secret past whose good looks and extravagant habits immediately entrance Dean - much to Ben's disgust." Augusta encourages Dean to perform publicly on her treasured dulcimer, a passion that Ben has always smirked at; and pushes her to break out of the confining strictures that Ben has laid down over the years. As their relationship evolves, Dean begins to break free from her traditional role as the preacher's wife - shocking some of the more staid members of the congregation. Just as Dean is questioning everything she has always valued, a tragedy occurs, providing the catalyst for change in ways she never could have imagined - and leading to a climactic conclusion that resonates with emotional power.

FROM THE CRITICS

Josephine Humphreys

A stunner . . . smart and funny and alert to the nuances of the complicated South.

People

Rich [and] satisfying.

Boston Globe

An intelligent, witty novel, skillfully written.

Orlando Sentinel

. . .Delivers haunting messages about the nature of love, freedom and forgiveness.

Anne Rivers Siddons