The 19th Wife is a complex novel. It's an adult novel, for sure, though more mature teens could probably handle the content. (I'm thinking of the language. This one is far from clean.) What I loved about this one was its intensity and depth. The novel could have easily gone astray. After all, it is a novel that splits its focus in two. One story is modern day. A man--grown son--coming back to his childhood town to see his mother who has been arrested and charged with murdering his dad (or stepdad, I think it is). He's an adult who's seen and done a bit too much. Having been kicked out of his home by his father for getting caught holding hands with one of his sisters (half-sister? step-sister?), he got along the best he could. Living on the streets. Selling his body. (Though it's been years since he was reduced to that lifestyle, he's doing "better off" now and living in California.) He's angry. He's bitter. He's confused. He's rejected ...