The Wives of Halcyon

About this book

As Independent Scottish booksellers, we write all of our descriptions personally, we hope you enjoy this one.

In the remote Scottish settlement of Halcyon, Aoife, Ruth and Deborah live under the control of one man, their charismatic husband Elijah. As leader of their cult, he dictates every aspect of life, shaping faith and family into something that leaves little room for refusal.

Halcyon’s façade is beginning to crack. Elijah’s behaviour grows increasingly erratic, and the loyalty of the women who love him is tested further when he announces his intention to take a fourth wife, sixteen year old Mim. The declaration shifts the balance inside the community, forcing each of them to confront what they have accepted, and what they can no longer ignore.

Deceived and isolated by the husband they share, the three women must set years of animosity aside and find a way to come together as danger mounts within the settlement. The Wives of Halcyon is a story of coercive control and motherhood, and it asks what we choose to call faith, and what we are willing to call family.