Book Review: Netgalley

The Wife Between Us

Greer Hendicks, Sarah Pekkanen

4.5/5 stars

 

When Netgalley suggested that I would like The Wife Between Us based on my preferences and past reviews in the Mystery & Thrillers genre, I thought how predictable. Another novel about cheating, lying and infidelity, haven’t I read this so many times before? Then I took a look at their description that read

A novel of suspense that explores the complexities of marriage and the dangerous truths we ignore in the name of love.

When you read this book, you will make many assumptions.

You will assume you are reading about a jealous wife and her obsession with her replacement.

You will assume you are reading about a woman about to enter a new marriage with the man she loves.

You will assume the first wife was a disaster and that the husband was well rid of her.

You will assume you know the motives, the history, the anatomy of the relationships.

 

Assume nothing.

I was intrigued so I dove into the story of Vanessa, the wife who had been cast aside, Emma, her replacement and Richard, the man at the center of it all. The first third of the story moved along well and I was definitely interested in these characters but I felt that all my prior assumptions were well in place and had yet to be challenged. For all practical purposes this appeared to be the story of a jealous wife. Still the authors expertly conveyed Vanessa’s pain, which was so palpable and relatable, that I wanted to know more about how her marriage fell apart. I was sure that my review would have to contain a warning to those who have suffered the deep ache and torment of infidelity in their own lives to, perhaps, steel oneself in order to read this intensely accurate portrait of betrayal that Vanessa had to endure. But, as the description above promised, the narrative takes a dramatic and unexpected twist in Part II of the novel. Although I felt this was slightly clumsy and a tad awkward in execution (perhaps that was the intention of the authors?) it was nonetheless extremely effective and totally unexpected.

As Part II progressed and morphed into Part III of the story the twists kept coming, right up to the final page and I found myself altering my initial proclamation. Whereas I previously had concern for survivors of adultery and may have warned them to wait for the pain to lessen before reading The Wife Between Us, I now realize, if you have been at the loosing end of an affair, then you should, and need to read this book! I love the ending and the feeling I was left with as I imagine how the lives of all three characters would unfold as they move forward.

I absolutely recommend this book and hope to watch the movie someday, as I believe it would make a great suspense story, akin to Gone Girl. This story will take you places you had not thought of and will leave you thinking, “What just happened”? That is the most I can ask of a good book!