The Runaway Wife: A Novel by Elizabeth Birkelund

by Elizabeth Birkelund

Three beautiful French sisters entrust an American hiker with the mission of rescuing their mother high in the Alps. But what if she doesn’t want to be found? Recently fired from his high-power finance job and dumped by his fiancée, Jim Olsen has come to the Swiss Alps to clear his head. At the charming Cabane des Audannes, he meets Clio, Thalia and Helene Castellane, who are on a quest of their their mother, Calliope, has fled to these mountains to escape her philandering politician husband’s most recent scandal. As snow threatens to descend upon the Alps, the women have come to bring their mother home. But the sisters are at the point of surrender; it is time for them to return to Paris. Buoyed by wine and inspired by their beauty, Jim impetuously volunteers to assume their search, but soon realizes that he is in over his head. The Alps are filled with beauty and danger, not the least of which is Calliope’s desire to stay hidden. And all the while Jim finds himself haunted by the memory of her daughters and conflicted in his desire for them.The Runaway Wife is a story of adventure, survival, and romance—and of a man’s discovery of a world outside his conventional life and a new vision of himself within it.

Genres: Fiction, Literary Fiction, Adventure, Travel, Contemporary, Adult Fiction, Audiobook

Paperback

First published July 12, 2016

About the author

Elizabeth graduated from the Hewitt School in New York City, from Brown University with honors in Comparative literature, and from the Radcliffe Publishing Program. After college, she worked for a literary agent and was a member of the editorial staff for a start-up magazine, European Travel and Life. She began her fifteen-year freelance writing career as a monthly personal finance columnist for Cosmopolitan magazine, and has written for over fifteen publications, including Glamour, Self, Working Woman, Victoria. Her first novel, The Dressmaker, was published by Henry Holt & Co. in 2006, with a paperback Picador publication in 2007. It has been published in England in two versions, in Germany and in Russia. Her novel, The Runaway Wife, will be published by Harper Collins in July. She lives in New York City.

Reviews

[TarHeelReader · Rating 3 out of 5]

The premise of this was absolutely fascinating, but the execution fell just a little flat for me. More to come once I think about it more. Thanks to Caryn, The Book Whisperer, for the book. :)

[DJ Sakata · Rating 4 out of 5]

Favorite Quotes:

Whose breathing did he hear... How amazing it was to be privy to a stranger's sleep, something that belonged solely to that person.

Sleep was not a break from life's continual sweep. In it, you were still living life, seeing things you would never see come morning, and it could age you as quickly as daytime.

Even when she wasn't moving, she vibrated like a flame dancing in the wind.

One of her dull-gray eyes was open, the other shut. As you go to death, Jim thought, perhaps there is always one eye turning back toward life.

My Review:

Upon finishing The Runaway Wife, I was in a state of indecision on how I felt about the book. I had vacillated in my opinion of the story while reading, although overall I found it thoughtfully written, insightful, and observant. I also found it somewhat exasperating, and then there is also this unsettling yet elusive quality for which I just couldn't settle on an apt descriptor without an in-depth internal analysis of my personal reading preferences. I was fascinated by the interesting and unpredictable nature of the characters, yet I was ultimately disappointed with them... but then, if I am being realistic, people disappoint each other all the time in the real world. The setting and premise were well out of my wheelhouse as the bulk of the adventure was a fool's errand taking place on the slopes of the Swiss Alps, (by a novice mountain climber) and also involved the power and facade of a philandering French politician/presidential candidate. Although, politics tend to be slimy and filled with philandering beasts in any culture... it certainly does in the current American political landscape.

After a glass, or two, of wine and considerable inner musing in a hot bubble bath with my favorite Mozart disc playing, I concluded that my main complaint would be the lack of closure to the tale, as the story ended with the characters still in flux after making major life changes. I didn't get my coveted HEA, or a sense of closure or completion.

Lesson learned - I should not be so rigidly focused on the expectation of having all the loose ends tied up for me, or in achieving a positive end result, or in having a neat and tidy sense of closure; as even with fictional characters, their life can still go on in an unclear direction - and so should mine.

[Meg - A Bookish Affair · Rating 3 out of 5]

"The Runaway Wife" is the story of Jim, a man who is down on his luck. He travels to the Swiss Alps with his friend to simply relax and find some peace of mind. It's not to be when he gets roped in to finding the mother of three women that he meets. But maybe Calliope doesn't want to be found? This book is a good one for when you want to let go of reality for a little bit and get lost.

I don't need my fiction to be reality based but if you do, this book may not be for you. The premise is a little stretched but it works well for this one. The characters were so fascinating. I especially liked Calliope. Her life is relatively charmed in the manner in which she is able to live in but that is not enough when she feels so constrained by other parts of her life. The detail is often sparse in this book and I wish that I could have gotten to know a little bit more about what made the characters tick.

This book has a very light and airy feel, like the Swiss Alps that the book is set in. The setting was fantastic and my favorite part of the book. The author does a good job of moving her characters through this gorgeous setting while showing the readers around the place. There is also some nice bits of writing throughout the book that I really liked! Overall, I would have loved more detail but enjoyed the premise of the book!

[Chana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hiking heals. Our main character is a 30-ish American man, recently dumped by both his fiancee and his job. Life hurts! He and a friend take a vacation hiking in the Alps, help our guy walk it off, leave the pain behind and get ready to begin the life struggle once again.
Maybe such a hike can never be a "normal" experience, it is too intense, but for our story we take a distinct step towards weird when three women approach our hikers and ask our guys to find their mother and bring her out of the mountains. Really? Our main character has never hiked the Alps before but, in American can-do spirit, he agrees. And down the rabbit hole we go.
We have entered the fairy tale; the Queen fleeing her ogre husband, living on a mountaintop aerie full of flowers, bee hives, owls and ancient Benedictine wine, thick and tasting of blood. The Queen is young, with a braid and a quiver of arrows on her back. She cooks fish stew and ratatouille and charms our American no end. She doesn't want to go back to the ogre, understandably, but she is sick (pneumonia, not mental). The ogre has a menacing helicopter out looking for her, and they run and skip and dodge that helicopter like mountain goats. Eventually the game is up, I won't tell you everything. But choices are made and the players resume their places on the board, for the most part, but maybe not all is lost.

[Rebecca · Rating 1 out of 5]

This single story line book filled with references (many inaccurate) was dancing on the edge of a romance novel, but there was no sex. Here are my biggest points of contention:

I realize the author was shooting for using names of the muses. Commit or go home. I respect why she didn't want to use Erato, being the origin of and sounding so similar to erotic, but when that didn't seem appropriate, there were 5 other muses (excluding the 3 already used) to chose from. She didn't need to make up a muse based on the legend of Helen of Troy with exotic French accents to make it sound... more Greek? Not sure.

Jim Olsen... photographer? Puny man who needs saving? That's all that came to mind for me, because I actually read and watch some Superman, which is super saturated in our society. I imagine the author has somehow not, since she chose that name for what was supposed to be a strong character.

Freyja was the Norse goddess of love and known for her promiscuity... maybe she loved Odin. Maybe there are stories of it, but you're digging into obscure sources to find them. She is NOT heavily associated with war. I don't even understand the significance of her inclusion other than to say that Jim was reconnecting with his Norse roots.

Which is my next point, lots of references, but not all bound together to a cohesive theme. Just a messy hodge-podge. "Hey, Greek!", "Hey, Norse!", "OMG! Owls!", "Also Shakespeare names with no significance.", "Next, let's bring up Dante's Inferno and do NOTHING with it." I could go on, but I made my point.

Now on to plot problems! I'm not filtering spoilers, so in the event my review leaves you wanting to read the book, just stop here.

We're too busy and just pretty girls who can't find our mom at her yearly hideout, you look strong and handsome, we're putting all our hopes for her survival on you, a man who sees us through our "curvaceous" [insert body parts here], who give a cursory promise to see if he runs into while he's hiking. Seems legit.

Next, his "experienced" mountain hiking friend, leaves him (not so far fetched, he insisted) but without super important supplies, like a map (because when the trail is marked you can't get a map?!), an ice pick, a compass, hand warmers, adequate food, more than the one in use band-aid etc. I didn't keep a list. This is off the top of my head. It just went on.

But than he randomly stumbled on the right guy to take him to her. He meets her where they fall down an oddly platonic relationship mixed with hyper sexual innuendo, including competing with a teenage goat herder and and being slathered in honey. But it's fine because she looks like she's in her 20s and not on the brink of 50. Want to embrace a relationship with a huge age gap while you fantasize about her daughters? Do it. Want to embrace them as platonic friends discovering each other? Do it. But don't do this weird hybrid that failed for both. It was lame.

Helicopter rescue team? Easy to ditch. Just go somewhere that smells bad, they can't handle that. It's not like they ever deal with anything gross on rescue missions. They'll just fly home and come back tomorrow.

How cold is it on this mountain? She has a fever for 2 days with pneumonia she caught from... the cold? And how is she alive and keeping bees (that struggle in temperatures below 55) and growing eggplants (which require some sort of warmth). One minute they're freezing and there's perpetual snow and ice, the next they're bathing in "cold" mountain lakes that would probably trigger hypothermia given the first statement. But then they flee and are near death in less than a day, and considering eating the owl they're so hungry. But the goat herder is living close with his family all year just fine. Was this a dangerously cold region, or not. It was not clear.

And then "rescue" and Jim's return to civilization. Desperate and fighting for his life to a good night's rest and a hearty breakfast and he's on his way. No recovery necessary. Meanwhile, medicine healed Calliope and although Jim thought she might need rest, she's up healthy and entertaining with a slight cough the following week.

Also, it'll all be okay. Her husband will save their country from socialism and she will sacrifice her self so at least one of her daughters will learn not to be like her and run away with Jim. No one dies, love (that guy you met once before you committed to wait forever for him) wins, and corporate America loses while simultaneously French socialism is crushed by a narcissistic dictator. Nice and neat!

[Glen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won this novel in a goodreads drawing.

It's something of an allegorical romance, as a guy who recently broke up with his fiance is hiking in the Alps, where he meets some good looking women who ask him to find their mother.

He goes, has his epiphany, and starts a relationship with one of the daughters.

Very blue state. If a guy like this thinks he is a master of the universe, no wonder we're so screwed up.

[Juliana Knight Lawrence · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this novel while walking on the treadmill, so it's perfect for a light read and can be finished fairly quickly. However, I didn't find the story terribly engaging and felt unsatisfied at the ending. There are beautiful passages of prose featuring descriptions of nature, but the characters themselves (and their conversations) leave a lot to be desired. I feel as though many of the issues are unresolved at the end.

[Kathi · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was recommended this book because I loved "Where'd you go Bernadette," please be advised "The Runaway Wife" is not at all like comparable.

[Ofra · Rating 1 out of 5]

Absolutely awful. Ridiculous characters and idiotic story.

[Ash Kemp · Rating 4 out of 5]

With an evocative voice and imagery sure to help you cool down during this heat wave, Birkelund's second novel, The Runaway Wife, is more than a story of a man finding someone who wants to stay out of the spotlight. It's a story of a man finding out what desire truly means, and thus what he genuinely desires. This book flew by due to its fairly small page count. I could have read another 10 volumes, it was such a pleasant experience if I'd had the time I would have re-read the book immediately upon finishing. I think billing this as chick lit seems to throw people for a loop, as the genre is too often seen as one to dismiss. Whereas, books such as The Runaway Wife are some of the most enjoyable and some of my most recommended when asked by other what they should read when they are in a slump. Maybe we should just go ahead and call this literary fiction so that others might understand how beautifully written and how compelling it could be. Birkelund has created in me a deep desire to see what she's seen and go where she's been, so I'm off to figure out how to go on my own adventure. Not just a great summer read, but a great read period!

[Lydia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a good, cute read!

[Melanie · Rating 2 out of 5]

A fast read. It was an interesting premise for a story but only an "ok" read.

[Nancy · Rating 2 out of 5]

If you’re interested in hiking and the Alps read this. If not, don’t bother.

[Cynthia Ruzicka · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beautiful Scenery book. One can visualize the little Swiss Towns in the Snowy mountains

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just as pretentious as it is poetic. Exactly the kind of book i wanted to be able to whip through on my short vacatIon this week- 3 days of pocketed reading, and i enjoyed the scenic Swiss vistas and muse-inspired female characters. As a fluent French speaker and degree holder in French language, culture, and history, i was less than impressed with some of the translations, but i did only have an ARC- the proper edition might be better. compelling, fast, romantic, and kind of a throwaway. But happy i read it!

[Griselda Alvarez · Rating 2 out of 5]

This story needed character development. The story although somewhat entertaining, I failed to understand why Jim would take on a search mission requested by three young women he had just met. The women wanted Jim to find their mother in the mountains and bring her home, when the mother had ran away to the mountains to get away from her cheating and controlling husband. I was disappointing to get to the end of this book and read that she decided to remain in the marriage and in the household even though she wasn't happy.

[Paulita Kincer · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Runaway Wife by Elizabeth Birkelund transported me to a world I've never visited, to an oasis high in the Swiss Alps where a woman can be her true self, unworried about what others think.
The book begins with Jim, an overworked financial investor who hasn't had a vacation in 8 years taking a vacation with a friend. They hike in the Swiss Alps and at a remote hut, they meet three
sisters who entice them to search for the women's lost mother. The mother was raised in the Alps, but she has never stayed gone so long. They fear for her safety with snow coming. She also happens to be the wife of a man running for the presidency in France. The press recently revealed that man had a mistress and a baby, so the wife disappeared. Every day, the man sent a helicopter into the Alps searching for his wife so he could bring her home.
Jim decides to take up the challenge, and what he finds changes his life and his dreams.
Here's an excerpt:

"The melodic singing drew closer but was interrupted by a long, drawn-out cough. Jim had not noticed her coughing yesterday. He looked out the window. She was hanging laundry -- sheets, lingerie, a long white nightgown -- on a clothesline. Her slim body weaved in and out of the laundry so that he could never see more than a part of her at any time.
...
He could not resist returning to the window for one more glimpse of Calliope's dance among the billowing sheets and clothing. She looked like a woman at sea amid the sails of a ship."

And later, the beauty of the Alps is reiterated.

"He'd heard the term Alpenglow, but this was the first time he'd witnessed it. The enormous bowl of the sky was lit from below by the amber light of the setting sun. The few snowfields nestled inside crevices in distant peaks glowed a deep mauve."

Doesn't that make you want to see it yourself? It does for me.
The entire time that the characters were hiding in the Alps, I wanted to be there to experience it myself. Very beautifully written.

As an author myself, I've been warned about the squishy middle of a book, the part that makes reader drop a novel and not pick it up again, but Birkelund does not have that problem. The middle of her book is enthralling.
The beginning of the book could have been stronger to lure readers into that middle, but I promise that if you stick with it a few chapters, you'll be rewarded.

[Alexanne · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting premise, many plot holes and unanswered questions. Too many strange and unexplained references.

The characters, which are supposedly very different from one another, were not interesting. The three sisters were introduced too quickly, with confusing dialogue between one another which makes it hard to assign personality traits to each individual. Also, speaking of the sisters, I didn't like how the author portrayed them as being strong and independent and comfortable in the mountains, yet they flirt their way into making a stranger go find their lost mother in the mountains and wait for them to return in the chalet.

Although Calliope's chalet and life in nature caught my attention, I couldn't get over the strange relationship she developed with Jim. I was constantly asking myself if they were developing romantic feelings for another or not. Still can't figure it out.

Disappointing ending. Calliope is stuck with her abusive husband. The sisters are angry at Jim when he risked his life to find their mother. No follow up on Helene and Jim. The book does not leave you with anything to reflect on, and does not leave you wanting more.

[Hallie (Hallie Reads) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This review is also posted on Book by Book.

Elizabeth Birkelund’s The Runaway Wife posed a bit of a challenge for me. Full of adventure, its premise intrigued me, and of course, its alpine setting captured my imagination, but I’m still not quite sure I actually liked it. The more I read of The Runaway Wife, the less I care about the characters - since the plot moves quickly, I never felt like I connected with any of the characters enough. Still, it’s a quick and fun read - readers in need of an easy getaway and adventure, The Runaway Wife could be a good choice for you, even if I didn’t enjoy it as much as I initially hoped.

Thanks to TLC Book Tours, I received a copy of The Runaway Wife and the opportunity to provide an honest review. I was not required to write a positive review, and all the opinions I have expressed are my own.

[Deb (Readerbuzz) Nance · Rating 4 out of 5]

No, the setting isn't France, but it's so close that you can see France just over the border. To add to the book's France factor, most of the characters are French right down to their occasional poutinesses and their love for art and beauty and minor surreptitious affairs. Giving the book a quite high Frenchiness overall.

SPOILER ALERT

The story is a bit of a stretch, but then again don't be looking for realistic fiction, folks. Three sisters, all of whom have lovely mythological names, (do you see where this little story is going?) meet up with a naive American, Jim, who spontaneously agrees to head off up the Alps in search of their missing mother, Calliope. Am I telling too much if I share that he finds her and she's French with a capital F, and just being around this amazingly alive woman revitalizes Jim and changes his life. Rescuing Calliope, who doesn't want to be rescued, from the Alps in a snowstorm is a wonderfully fun adventure.

[Liz DiBenedetto · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the book but its not my normal cup of tea.

[Rachel · Rating 2 out of 5]

A simple read

Sold as a blend between eat pray love and where'd you go Bernadette. Too choppy and not as entertaining as either of those.

[Sandie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jim Olsen has always done what was expected of him. He studied hard in college, graduated and got a great job with a great salary. He got engaged to a woman he loved. Everything was going along smoothly when the bottom fell out. His company unexpectedly fired him. His fiance decided perhaps they weren't a great match after all and left him.

Jim gets another job but won't start for a while. His friend is hiking in the Swiss Alps and asks him to join him. Since Jim hasn't taken a vacation in years since his high-pressure job didn't allow for much time off, he decides to go. The friends hike to a resort. That evening, while in the bar, they see three beautiful women who seem interested in them. Talking to the women, they discover that they are sisters and on a mission.

Their mother has left their father and is now out of touch with the entire family and they are worried about her. The sisters have to leave and won't have time to look for her. They don't want to get the authorities involved since their father is in politics and actually running for the Presidency of France. Could the two men look for her as they hike to their next destination?

Jim and his friend agree but his friend only has one day left before he has to return home. Since Jim doesn't start his new job for another week, he agrees to take on the project. Against all odds, he finds the mother, Calliope, and is surprised to find a vibrant, skillful women who doesn't consider herself lost at all. She just wants to get away from her husband and the life she was leading before. Should Jim try to talk her into returning?

Birkelund has written a story about what is really important in our lives. Should we go along to get along or should we carve out a life that satisfies our inner longings even if it isn't what others approve of? She explores the meaning of love and how much of ourselves we should give up to be in a relationship. This book is recommended for readers of literary fiction.

[Kendra · Rating 3 out of 5]

The experience of reading this book is like hiking a mountain. When you start, you’re convinced that there is going to be a beautiful view at the top. When you finally get there it’s misty and covered in clouds so you cannot see a thing and you have no choice but to head back down. You’re satisfied with the hike overall, but the summit left something to be desired. The story was very intriguing and had some great ideas, but fell short in the execution.

Jim is hiking the Alps with his friend, Ambrose, when they are approached by three women who ask them to try and find their mother on the mountain before the snow settles in. Ambrose heads home, but Jim, despite needing to be back in the states for a new job, goes on to find their mother, Calliope. There’s also a mention of a hermitess who lives high up in the mountains, which adds to the foundations.

The setting was beautiful and magical. The little chalet with the lake and surrounding garden were perfectly described. Plus the mountains added and element of drama during their journey.

I found Jim’s relationship with Calliope to be borderline inappropriate. He was fantasizing over her daughters one moment then skinny dipping with Calliope the next. I’m not sure how he’ll be able to tell Helene that he’s seen her mother naked, especially if their relationship continues to progress.

I found Jim hard to relate to, or even like as a character. I questioned almost every single one of his decisions. Why aren’t you turning back? Why are you staying still for so long? Why are you jumping into the lake with your clothes on? Why won’t you get in the freaking helicopter and save yourself? Why are you switching a train to go back instead of making your (already rebooked) flight? Why can’t you just tell them what happened? Most importantly, how do you have so much money saved up to keep rescheduling flights and then quit your job?

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was easy to read and a lot of fun, although the wife in runaway wife was a classic Mary Sue (beautiful, intelligent, talented, seductive, can do anything) and the way the author wrote about the women was a bit hypersexualized, but regardless, I still churned through this book and enjoyed it. There were some details that didn’t make sense but can ignore for the sake of the story. The relationship Jim has with the mother and her daughters was borderline creepy and couldn’t tell if it was supposed to be a romantic relationship or not. The only other thing that was out of place was a strange telephone conversation the main character has with his parents that was odd and came out of nowhere, with no backstory to it to make it make sense.

[Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book, not because of the plot (which was a bit of a reality stretch), but because it was different from any book I can recall reading. I loved the descriptions of both the immense beauty and the unforgiving harshness of the Swiss mountains, which can ultimately have the power to transform a person's life. In this book, a young American man who is going through a life crisis finds new meaning while on an unexpected "mission" to find a missing person (albeit one who prefers to stay missing). Wasn't entirely satisfied with the ending and thought it could have been developed just a bit more. It is an easy and quick read.

[Spellcheck · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute, quick, palate cleanser.

The book is not without its issues however. I had a hard time with the fact that three experience mountaineering women had to rely on an inexperienced male to go find their lost mother. I also really hated how Calliope reverts back to a fraction of herself when she is returned to her husband (against her will).

Those points aside, Birkelund does a good job putting the reader in the alps, I was wishing I was there... And would love a baby owl to boot!

[Michelle McIntyre · Rating 2 out of 5]

Stunning Descriptions of The Swiss Alps But Inauthentic

Inauthentic portions of the book lowered the score dramatically: these included Jim agreeing to look for the mom to begin with and that he did not catch hypothermia from the bizarre intramural lake plunge. Despite things that bugged me the author E. Birkelund included nice analogies and demonstrated advanced vocabulary skills. The snowy Swiss Alps hiking details were cool. No pun intended. It is a very fast read.

[Janessa Miller · Rating 2 out of 5]

While travelling for a month, my Kindle got smashed so I blindly picked this book up from a free shelf in eastern Montana for optional reading material beyond audiobooks. It provided a lighthearted afternoon read when in dire book straits, but the shaky premise and plot holes will land it right back on the next donation pile I find.

It did make me want to run to the Alps, which was probably its best quality.

[Lauren Reinhart · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a fun book. The title of the book is a bit of a spoiler, but since I didn't read the synopsis very well or because I forgot about the synopsis, the book was great. Since I was silly and didn't read the synopsis, I definitely thought the main character was trying to find his run away wife, but I am glad that wasn't the case. Main character faces a lot of physical challenges while venturing across the Alps, but also faces lots of emotions.