When Professor Oliver Desmarais, a well respected college professor dies unexpectedly, his family is left to pick up the pieces. Behind he leaves a wife, Virginia, and a young daughter, Rebecca.

The year is 1970. Society was in the throes of the feminist movement. Virginia always considered herself a strong willed female, but she didn’t realize how much having Oliver to rely on made a difference in her life. Now that she is forced to find her way professionally and personally she is starting to see things differently.

One big difference is her reluctant involvement with four, outspoken and independent women on the college’s faculty. Known as the Gang of Four, Virginia always followed in Oliver’s distaste for the women. Little did she know that in the aftermath of loss, these women would become a crucial part of her rebirth. As we see Virginia struggle to find her way, we also follow Rebecca, their teenage daughter’s journey, as well as Sam, a lost student looking for connection who felt close to Oliver.

The Wrong Kind of Woman is a book about finding one’s voice amidst societal turmoil. Some would say it’s historical fiction. I would argue the issues broached in this story are still relevant today, some fifty years later.

Addressing coming of age in a new light, The Wrong Kind of Woman is a debut that will resonate with adult readers of all generations.