Sea Wife is based on an interesting premise: a family going on a novel sailing trip to meet the husband's personal "crisis". A reluctant wife and two young children complete the crew - and all experience highs and lows during the trip. There are a few secrets being held which will impact them all in the end. Told in several forms - flashbacks from a journal, present day therapist/child discussions, and the wife's recollection of events makes for interesting reading and the motivation to see what happens. Not a book for my HS library collection, but a good adult read.

Sea Wife by Amity Gage is the story of a marriage, and a family, and an adventure. It is a story about depression, and the lasting repercussions of childhood trauma. It is also a story about the importance of communication. and being prepared, and the unforgiving wilderness of the sea. Told in alternating voices and overlapping timelines - Juliet provides her side of the story, and Michael’s voice is mostly revealed in his ship’s log entries - we get each spouse’s point of view as well as crucial pieces of information about what each thinks and believes and hopes for in a slow unfolding, not unlike a long, leisurely sail which eventually becomes more like a wild squall as the momentum builds. This is as much an adventure story as it is a cautionary tale, and it is written with lyrical prose and an urgency felt right from the very beginning.

A middle-class American family with two young children decides to give up their routine and live on a sailboat for a year. What could go wrong? Part wanderlust, part marriage therapy and part family drama (with a dash of murder mystery thrown in), this book is perfect for anyone who needs to be transported this year.

This was a difficult book to get into for me. Chapters were alternating between a captain's ship log and his bosons or wifes perspective. The first few chapters are a foreboding of what the reader discovers to be an unhappy ending. Halfway through a pattern develops and the story becomes easier to read. Definitely an example of strong character development, but not an uplifting tale.

This is a sea voyage to remember: the transformative journey which both pits family members against one another...and pulls them inexorably toward one another. Gorgeously written, deeply atmospheric, and richly challenging, SEA WIFE rewards the reader on every level.

This book was fantastic! I loved the premise right from the start and found the characters and setting really drew me in. A very quick read. I will be recommending this one for sure! Thank you for the advanced copy.

This book shines on every level: sentence after sentence is beautiful and precise. The characters are complicated and sympathetic, the ideas are sweeping and profound, but are never too overt. It’s a rare novel that is as accomplished in its meaning as it is in its storytelling while also succeeding wildly on the language level as well! A novel to lose yourself in and then reflect upon again and again.

Inspired by a true story, a family ditches suburban life for a year-long sailing trip. Juliet is a poet, Michael is a life insurance agent. They have two kids, Sybil age 7 and Georgie age 2. The story is told mainly through Juliet’s point of view and Michael’s as Juliet reads his Captain’s logbook from the boat trip. She takes the reader on the journey that changed her family’s life forever.

The writing was well done and the character development although scattered, was definitely there. The main characters, Juliet and Michael weren’t particularly likable as a couple, although their marriage was under a microscope in the entirety of the book. The themes of depression and postpartum depression weighed heavily on me and I don’t know if this was because the writer wrote Juliet’s character so well that you can feel the emotions leap from the page. The drama and tension of the boat journey kept me reading on and even staying up late to finish. Overall the book had very redeeming qualities. Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to read this advanced copy.

An interesting premise this one. A boat journey around the Caribbean where the husband and wife take their children and discuss their marriage and lives together
We hear the wife's narration and opinion of life and the rocky road they seem to be on and life is tricky for them all. The setting on the boat was claustrophobic and not at all relaxing. I felt I was reading scenes of that Nicole Kidman film Dead Calm come to life and was half expecting someone to come aboard.
This was a detailed analysis of a very complicated and complex marriage unravelling and it was sitting in a floating doctors chair with the talk of worries, challenges, problems and more. The husband does have his say but in the form of a sea diary of sorts. What you get at the end is an analysis of the family but there were moments where I just wanted to look out to sea.

This is absolutely fantastic. The writing, plot and characters are so perfectly written and developed. There is a delicious tension from beginning to end.