The 19th Wife


The 19th Wife is a 2008 novel by David Ebershoff. Inspired by the life of Ann Eliza Young, the novel intertwines a historical narrative with a modern-day murder mystery. A television movie adaptation aired on Lifetime on September 13, 2010, starring Matt Czuchry, Patricia Wettig, and Chyler Leigh.

Plot summary

Jordan Scott has been expelled from his fundamentalist sect in modern-day southern Utah, but returns to determine whether his mother killed his father. His mother is the 19th wife of his father. Interspersed with this murder mystery is a historical narrative about Ann Eliza Young, the 19th wife of Brigham Young, which takes place in the late 1800s.

Character list