Mrs Greenfield the Third
She’s dying to find her husband a new wife.
His first wife divorced him. His second is terminally ill. Determined not to leave her husband untethered, Emily Greenfield sets out to find Mrs Greenfield the Third.
A novel that explores how far we go for those we love. All Emily wants is to protect James and her friends reluctantly help because it turns out that saying no to a dying woman is a lot harder than you think.
A love story in the shape of a search
Mrs Greenfield the Third is upmarket women’s fiction with a darkly comic premise: after receiving a terminal diagnosis, a therapist decides to find her husband his next wife.
Emily Greenfield has spent her career helping other people cope with grief, anxiety and loss. Given a year to live, all that professional wisdom becomes considerably less useful. Her fear is not dying, it is leaving James.
James Greenfield is kind, intelligent and uneasy in a world that rarely makes sense to him. Routine steadies him, honesty matters to him and Emily has always understood the anxiety he hides beneath competence. After his first marriage ended there was loneliness, poor choices and women who mistook his vulnerability for something they could fix or exploit.
Emily recruits a reluctant panel of friends and family, all horrified by the idea and all somehow drawn in. Lizzie, her loyal best friend, cannot abandon her. Hannah, James’s practical sister, knows how badly her brother can unravel. Mike, his closest friend, becomes involved after witnessing the depth of James’s grief. Alfie, his chaotic oldest friend, offers romantic advice so poor that including him is less a strategy than an act of faith.
Emily’s daughter Alix is the strongest opposition. A committed feminist in her late twenties, she is appalled by women being assessed as replacements and challenges the project with brutal clarity. To Alix, this is not love. It is grief disguised as control. Emily knows Alix has a point but she simply cannot stop.
As Emily throws herself into her remaining life, bucket-list activities take on a second purpose. Salsa, choir, flower arranging and speed dating become opportunities. Every kind woman, every single woman, every woman who makes James laugh becomes a possibility.
But in focussing so much on how James will cope, Emily creates distance and mistrust. When does love become control and when should we let go?
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Made for the screen
With its ensemble cast, sharp dialogue and emotionally resonant premise, Mrs Greenfield the Third has clear potential for screen adaptation.
For readers who love the warmth, wit and emotional punch of:
- Jojo Moyes
- Beth O’Leary
- Cecelia Ahern
- Graeme Simsion
Second draft complete. Currently seeking literary representation.