His Only Wife
Fiction
Algonquin
September 1, 2020
Hardcover
288
Purchased
Afi Tekple is a young seamstress whose life is narrowing rapidly. She lives in a small town in Ghana with her widowed mother, spending much of her time in her uncle Pious’s house with his many wives and children. Then one day she is offered a life-changing opportunity—a proposal of marriage from the wealthy family of Elikem Ganyo, a man she doesn’t truly know. She acquiesces, but soon realizes that Elikem is not quite the catch he seemed. He sends a stand-in to his own wedding, and only weeks after Afi is married and installed in a plush apartment in the capital city of Accra does she meet her new husband. It turns out that he is in love with another woman, whom his family disapproves of; Afi is supposed to win him back on their behalf. But it is Accra that eventually wins Afi’s heart and gives her a life of independence that she never could have imagined for herself.
My review:
Talk about a riveting first line:
“Elikem married me in absentia; he did not come to our wedding.”
How could you not want to keep reading? As good as the first line is, I felt the rest of the novel followed suit. I will say that this will not be a hit for everyone, as not a lot happens plot wise. This is more of a character driven novel (my favorite), and one that shows the life progression of Afi. Afi starts out with not a lot going for her in life, but her beauty is useful to Elikem's family, who do not approve of the woman he is with, and want Afi to convince him he would be better off with her. You can't help but feel for this poor girl who is essentially being used as a pawn in the family's game. She starts off so meek and mild, but gradually Afi gets her bearings and actually falls in love with Elikem. I'm going to stop there, because saying a lot more would give too much of the little plot there is away. I thought the writing was great in this, sometimes character novels can be a bit wordy, but the author did a nice job keeping it succinct and to the point. The ending was totally satisfying, although it would have been fun to follow Afi a bit longer in her life.
I seem to have read a lot of books set in Ghana recently, and most of them have been solid reads, but a bit depressing. This one has a much more upbeat tone as we watch Afi spread her wings! Definitely one for your list.
