I fell in love with Heretic’s Daughter so much that I immediately started reading the prequel, even though the emotional heaviness of book one still weighed on my mind. The emotional tone of this second novel is lighter, even though the reader knows the ultimate tragic fate for Martha. The themes and storylines explored in this book are about building a relationship and new life, even if it's in a harsh world, rather than the sad end of a love and family.

Exploring Puritan life and how that society worked was the highlight of this book. Book one touched on it, of course, as it illustrated how that society’s make up contributed to the Salem witch trials and their aftermath. Yet, I felt this book got more in depth into the subject as we didn't have the accusations and court drama hanging over the proceedings.

The reader got to explore how Martha and Thomas could create a new life together, given the strictures of their positions in Puritan society and the narrow pathways for advancement provided. The intricacies of Puritan family life, the importance of the church in society, and the fear inspired by the harshness of the New World environment all contributed to create a lush background for Martha's and Thomas's relationship.

I really liked Martha and Thomas in this one. Of course, I loved Martha in Heretic’s Daughter, too. In fact, she was one of the highlights for me. Yet, in this book we get to explore her personality more in depth and see how her life circumstances and position shaped her. Her strong will and fiery tongue make her stand outside of regular society, making it necessary for her to make her own future herself.

I loved exploring Thomas more. He didn't get much characterization in book one, given that the story focused more on Sarah and Martha. The figure I got in my head from that book was of a silent, large, and strong figure who loved his family and supported them throughout the harsh circumstances they faced during the trial. All of this is evident in this prequel as well. However, we get to explore more of Thomas' past and see how those harsh events shaped his personality and outlook on life. His strength of will and ability to rebuild his life after it's torn down by outside circumstances creates a fantastic foil for Martha and a partner worthy of her.

If ever there was a relationship of equals, Thomas and Martha are it. They both respect each other not only for their outer attraction but also for each other's opinions, thoughts, and life goals. They are two individuals who life has dealt a crappy hand of cards to; yet, they both deal with life’s harshness and set out to build something for themselves anyway. To such strong personalities, I could see rubbing against each other and causing friction. Yet, Thomas and Martha respect each other enough that they support each other instead. I love them together and felt that they were a realistic couple, not something that you see all the time in historical fiction romances.

The one downside to this novel are the bits about the party from London. While they cast some light on Thomas’s past and his involvement with the English Civil War and King Charles’ execution, the way those chapters are told alternating with Martha’s and Thomas’ story make them seem like a completely separate narrative. Characters are introduced whom I forgot about immediately, not developing any connection nor caring for their fates. I felt like the author was jumping from story to story with no regard in developing the secondary set of characters from London. As a consequence, I didn't care about them one bit. To be honest, I skimmed most of those chapters rather than read every word.

Despite the secondary storyline and cast of characters that I couldn't connect with, I found this second book of Kathleen Kent’s duology an enjoyable read. To say I loved learning more about Thomas, Martha, and how they met is an understatement. Even knowing historically what will happen to them, I was held in suspense watching their relationship develop, based on mutual respect. The historical details on daily Puritan life and society was just cream on the top. This is a worthy follow up to Heretic’s Daughter, one of my favorite novels of the year 2016. If you enjoyed that book, look into this one; you won't regret it. ( )

I enjoyed this book quite a bit. Kent did an excellent job of creating realistic tension between Martha and her cousin; while it was unfair treatment, the way Patience acted towards Marth was probably quite common back then, as it is still a little common today. I liked the development of the Thomas and Martha's relationship, although I expected it to develop sooner in the plot because of the title of the book. One of my favorite scenes was probably between Martha and her father, although that subplot could have been a little more prominent than it was since that relationship shaped a large part of Martha's personality I think.

I did not really care for the kind of random diary entry in the middle of the book, it just didn't seem like the best way to give the background info that it did. I really felt like it was a more of a plot trick, and it seemed a little bit rushed in my opinion. But that was probably the only thing I didn't like about the book. ( )

I generally liked this book, but there were a few things that bothered me.

First was that every chapter switched back and forth between two stories. It all came together in the end and I knew the stories would eventually intertwine, but the frequent back and forth meant that as I got wrapped up in one of the stories, the focus would switch to the other and I would have to reorient myself to the new scene. The sensation I ended up with (for the first half of the book anyway) was that every new chapter I started almost felt like when you start a new book altogether as storylines would pick up in completely different places from where they left off. I also thought more time (at least in the beginning) should have been spent on the Martha/Thomas storyline rather than the other.

It's not really an "action-packed" story in terms of events or really inter-character development and therefore the story did feel a little slow at times.

Kent uses a lot of descriptive language, which could be very poetic, but at times I thought it took over the story. I prefer a story that's a little more focused on the characters, but as that is just my personal preference, I imagine some will give the book more stars because of this. ( )

DNF page 143

I was so bored, couldn't care less what happened to anyone and didn't understand how the stories were connected. ( )

The Traitor's Wife is not only a fantastic story, but the legend behind the story is what made me want to read it in the first place. With roots that went back to the Salem Witch Trials, Kathleen Kent pens an amazing account of how her generations before grandparents met. It is their love story and told with a tone that one only finds in books that the author is truly involved in.

Intertwined with Tom and Martha's story is the search for those who were part of the execution of King Charles I. This makes for a fascinating glance into the history of Charles and creates both excitement and an air of mystery. It created a tale that was impossible to put down and one I hated to see end. With a sneak peek to "The Heretic's Daughter" at the end of the book, I found I wanted to order it immediately to continue on to see what happens next.

With realistic characters, a great historical background and mesmerizing prose, this needs to be put on the list of everyone who lives historical fiction or just a good romance. With just a small and not very descriptive sex scene, I would keep this book out of the hands of younger teen readers, but would feel comfortable giving it to my 18 year old to read. ( )