The Mere Wife: A Novel
Jul 2018 · Macmillan + ORM
star
5 reviews
Ebook
322
Pages
family_home
Eligible
info
About this ebook
The New York Times– bestselling author presents a modern retelling of Beowulf as two suburban moms fight to protect those they love.
To its distinguished residents, the suburban enclave of Herot Hall is a paradise. Picket fences and meticulous homes line the streets, and the community is entirely self-sustaining. But for those who live along Herot Hall's periphery, the subdivision is a fortress guarded by an intense network of gates, surveillance cameras, and motion-activated lights.
As wife of the heir to Herot Hall, Willa Herot enjoys a languid life of mommy groups, cocktail hours, and dinner parties—always with her son Dylan in tow. Meanwhile, in a cave outside town lives Gren, short for Grendel, and his mother, Dana, a former soldier who gave birth as if by chance.
To its distinguished residents, the suburban enclave of Herot Hall is a paradise. Picket fences and meticulous homes line the streets, and the community is entirely self-sustaining. But for those who live along Herot Hall's periphery, the subdivision is a fortress guarded by an intense network of gates, surveillance cameras, and motion-activated lights.
As wife of the heir to Herot Hall, Willa Herot enjoys a languid life of mommy groups, cocktail hours, and dinner parties—always with her son Dylan in tow. Meanwhile, in a cave outside town lives Gren, short for Grendel, and his mother, Dana, a former soldier who gave birth as if by chance.
Dana didn't want Gren, didn't plan Gren, and doesn't know how she got Gren. But when she returned from war, there he was. Then Gren unwittingly ventures into Herot Hall. And when runs off with Dylan, Dana's and Willa's worlds collide.
The New York Times– bestselling author presents a modern retelling of Beowulf as two suburban moms fight to protect those they love.
To its distinguished residents, the suburban enclave of Herot Hall is a paradise. Picket fences and meticulous homes line the streets, and the community is entirel...
Discover more
Ratings and reviews
5 reviews
D Bird
- Flag inappropriate
December 19, 2025
it wasn't enough to ruin this poem once but this lunatic insists on making a career out of cannibalising poetry and turning it into suburban slop. just stop! (boooo! ---throws tomato)
About the author
Maria Dahvana Headley is a #1 New York Times-bestselling author & editor. Her books include the novels Magonia, Aerie, Queen of Kings, and the memoir The Year of Yes. With Kat Howard she is the author of The End of the Sentence, and with Neil Gaiman, she is co-editor of Unnatural Creatures. Her short stories have been shortlisted for the Shirley Jackson, Nebula, and World Fantasy Awards, and her work has been supported by the MacDowell Colony and by Arte Studio Ginestrelle, where the first draft of this book was written. She was raised with a wolf and a pack of sled dogs in the high desert of rural Idaho, and now lives in Brooklyn.
Maria Dahvana Headley is a #1 New York Times-bestselling author & editor. Her books include the novels Magonia, Aerie, Queen of Kings, and the memoir The Year of Yes. With Kat Howard she is the author of The End of the Sentence, and with Neil Gaiman, she is co-editor of Unnatural Creatures. Her s...
Rate this ebook
Tell us what you think.
Reading information
Smartphones and tablets
Install the Google Play Books app for Android and iPad/iPhone. It syncs automatically with your account and allows you to read online or offline wherever you are.
Laptops and computers
You can listen to audiobooks purchased on Google Play using your computer's web browser.
eReaders and other devices
To read on e-ink devices like Kobo eReaders, you'll need to download a file and transfer it to your device. Follow the detailed Help Center instructions to transfer the files to supported eReaders.
