Don’t You Marry the Mormon Boys

Janet Kay Jensen
Bonneville Books (2007)
ISBN 9781599550756 
Reviewed by Paige Lovitt for Reader Views (9/07)

Louisa Martin and Andy McBride meet and fall in love while they are in medical school.  They come from very different backgrounds.  Andy has a Mormon background.  Louisa comes from a strict, polygamous community.  Women are considered property of their husbands there and have no rights.  Louise is expected to follow the same path when she returns home as a doctor.  The two separate because of this, but in time find each other again.  Louisa had to leave her community after her eyes were truly opened up.  She could not be silent as women are beaten by their husbands and impregnated by close relatives that they have been married off to. 

After they get married, she takes on his faith.  They are happy as they begin having a family.  Initially Andy’s father has a hard time accepting Louisa because he has handled many cases in which he had to prosecute abusive polygamous men.   Just as couples have to adjust in interracial relationships, there is also a great deal of adjustment in blending these two cultures, even though Louisa has taken on Andy’s religion, she has to deal with a great deal of prejudice and assumptions about who she is.

“Don’t You Marry the Mormon Boys” is a great story.  Janet Jensen has written a romance that incorporates drama, humor, and suspense into a great plot.  She does a great job with creating some eccentric, likeable and not-so-likable characters.  Using her knowledge of the Mormon religion, she also dispels some misperceptions that people have about Mormons and polygamy.   I think that she also does a great job of writing from the polygamist’s perspectives.  She wrote from both the good and the bad sides of what it must be like for the women that are living that lifestyle. 

I think “Don’t You Marry the Mormon Boys” will be enjoyed by women from all religions.  She is very respectful of the Mormon beliefs and I think that this would be a great gift for someone of that faith.  It would also be a great selection for a reader’s group because in addition to enjoying the well written story, the storyline will also stimulate some interesting discussions.

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