Lisa Emanuel on ‘The Covered Wife’: First Book Club

Each month we celebrate an Australian debut release of fiction or non-fiction in the Kill Your Darlings First Book Club. For June that debut is The Covered Wife by Lisa Emanuel, out now from Pantera Press.

Sarah is a smart, young lawyer working endless office hours when she falls head over heels for Daniel – handsome, passionate and part of the kind of large, chaotically loving family Sarah longed for as the only child of a single mother. When Daniel introduces her to a charismatic young couple, Rabbi Menachem Lev and his wife, Chani, despite herself, Sarah is drawn in by their progressive beachside synagogue. By the time the couple move to the Jamison Valley, where Menachem and Chani have established a community of believers, Sarah can’t imagine life without the friendship, purpose and love she’s discovered.

Four years on, youthful fervour has given way to something darker. A series of terrifying truths emerges that tear Sarah’s world apart, and cause her to question everything – her faith, her marriage, and her future.

First Book Club host Ellen Cregan spoke with Lisa about the book and her journey to publication.

Our theme song is Broke for Free’s ‘Something Elated’. Sound production by Lloyd Pratt.

Further reading:

Read Ellen Cregan’s review of The Covered Wife in our June Books Roundup.

Read about Lisa’s favourite books and reading habits in this month’s Shelf Reflection.

Read an extract from an early version of the novel when it was shortlisted for the KYD Unpublished Manuscript Award in 2019.

Lisa will be speaking about her book at an author event on Tuesday 13 July at Gertrude & Alice Cafe Bookstore in Sydney. Tickets available here, and include a drink, nibbles and a copy of the novel. 

The Covered Wife is available now from your local independent bookseller.

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