NEED TO KNOW
Christine Brown is opening up like never before in her new book, Sister Wife: A Memoir of Faith, Family and Finding Freedom.
The Sister Wives star, 53, detailed her and ex-husband Kody Brown’s sex life in her memoir — from crying during intercourse on their wedding night to revealing she didn’t have her first orgasm until two years into the marriage.
Christine and Kody, 56, had a spiritual marriage in March 1994 and, shortly after the ceremony, the two embarked on their honeymoon.
It didn’t take long for Christine to figure out Kody had seemingly put little to no thought into their special celebration.
Gallery Books
Christine recalled how she and Kody spent their first night together as a married couple in a castle-shaped motel near Ogden, Utah.
“At the time, I couldn’t imagine what that would feel like,” she wrote of intimacy. “I knew the basics of what would happen, but even though Kody and I had been friends for years, we exchanged no excited, silly banter on our wedding night.”
Christine revealed that the first draft of her book didn’t include any details beyond stating that their night together was “awkward” and jumping to the next day “without going into the in-between.” However, two trusted women in her life urged her to embrace the truth.
Noting that it’s “so painful” to revisit this moment now, she wrote, “Looking back, I thought it would be the best night of my life—magic.”
Christine Brown/Instagram
However, their night together was anything but magical.
“I knew Kody already had some experience, so I thought I would be safe with him, that he would be careful not to hurt me,” she wrote of Kody, who was already married to Meri and Janelle Brown by now. “I wasn’t completely clueless, and I trusted him.”
Christine said their first time having sex “hurt like crazy,” and that she “cried” as a result.
“‘I’m so sorry,’ he said, as I recall,” she wrote. “But it hurt because there was no foreplay. There was no anything. It was my first time after having my very first kiss at the altar, and he was experienced so he should have known.”
“‘I’ve been looking forward to this for so long,’ I said, crying from the pain,” she continued. “I envisioned handholding, moonlight, gentle touches. I imagined feeling beautiful and adored. I imagined a loving acknowledgment of our eternal life together.”
Christine said she was “too sore” for them to try again for the remainder of their honeymoon.
“I didn’t know anything else, and it was romantic enough for me,” she wrote. “I figured things would get better.”
Over the next couple of years, Christine recognized that her sexual relationship with Kody was different from those of the other wives.
Christine noted that Kody “remained distant” while spending nights with each wife in a rotating schedule.
“I didn’t feel as if he and I grew any closer,” she wrote. “I knew how close he could be with Meri and Janelle. The walls were thin. It’s one thing to know your roommate is having sex in the next bedroom over. It’s another when it’s your husband and you can hear everything.”
While she was aware that she shared Kody with the other wives, Christine admitted it “shocked” her to hear that they “had actual relationships where they talked and played and enjoyed each other physically.”
“We were all careful not to demonstrate affection in front of the other sister wives—no handholding or terms of endearment—but at night, I could hear the affection,” she wrote. “It was different in my bedroom.”
Christine also claimed that Kody also wanted her to wear “polygamy PJs” that went to the ankles and wrists during sex or lingerie, but that it “never felt like it was for sexy reasons.”
Courtesy of TLC
Finally, two years into their marriage, Christine had her first orgasm.
“We even got into a rhythm with sex, and there were a few years where it was kind of good,” she wrote of her and Kody’s sexual journey.
Upon having her first orgasm — despite it being “entirely accidental” — Christine recalled thinking, “Oh, that’s what everyone’s been so excited about…”
The couple went on to have six children together.
In November 2021, after more than 25 years of spiritual marriage, Christine left Kody. In October 2023, Christine married now-husband David Woolley.
Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
Sister Wife: A Memoir of Faith, Family, and Finding Freedom is now available, wherever books are sold. Additionally, Sister Wives season 20 premieres Sunday, Sept. 28, at 10 p.m. ET/PT on TLC.
