The Wife by Alafair Burke Series: standalone
Published by Harper on January 23, 2018
Genres: Mystery, Thriller
Pages: 352
Format: Paperback
Source: Publisher
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Rating:
I received this book for free from Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
His scandal. Her secret.
When Angela met Jason Powell while catering a dinner party in East Hampton, she assumed their romance would be a short-lived fling, like so many relationships between locals and summer visitors. To her surprise, Jason, a brilliant economics professor at NYU, had other plans, and they married the following summer. For Angela, the marriage turned out to be a chance to reboot her life. She and her son were finally able to move out of her mother’s home to Manhattan, where no one knew about her tragic past.
Six years later, thanks to a bestselling book and a growing media career, Jason has become a cultural lightning rod, placing Angela near the spotlight she worked so carefully to avoid. When a college intern makes an accusation against Jason, and another woman, Kerry Lynch, comes forward with an even more troubling allegation, their perfect life begins to unravel. Jason insists he is innocent, and Angela believes him. But when Kerry disappears, Angela is forced to take a closer look at the man she married. And when she is asked to defend Jason in court, she realizes that her loyalty to her husband could unearth old secrets.
The Wife is a type of thriller that starts out with a bang, hooks you and never lets you go.
Angela is married to Jason Powell, they live with her son in a charming carriage house in Manhattan. When Jason wrote his book, his career exploded, and he became the center of the media - a place Angela was careful to avoid. Now, charges are being filed against Jason for inappropriate behavior, by one his current intern and another by a woman claiming rape.
I thought this was interesting, but I thought it could always have been a bit better.
I went into this book completely blind and it was definitely a way to do it. It kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time wondering what was really happening with Jason and the women who accused him of such terrible actions.
I did struggle a bit with this. First, I wasn’t a big fan of Angela. At the beginning she felt like a big pushover, until we learn more about her past and why she is the way she is. It started to shed some light on her actions and demeanor.
This book digs into the rape “culture” in America. I don’t like to call it that, but I wasn’t sure if there was a politically correct term for it. Thought this plays a huge role in the story, I felt like such an important topic could have been handled a little differently in this book. Needless to say I wasn’t sure I was a fan of how it turned out or was used in this case and when the unraveling came, I found myself a bit upset about it. I don’t think I can say much without spoiling the book, but it just feeds into certain misconceptions.
The ending, I did not see coming. I was trying to put together what was happening, but it ended up being nothing like what I thought it was going to be. Honestly, I wasn’t sure if I completely bought it due to the actions throughout the book - at times it felt like it was just thrown there at the end as a shock factor because the original might not have been strong enough.
Overall, despite certain issues with the book, I did find myself enjoying it. I do like endings that are unpredictable, so I cannot complain too much about it and the story flowed and was fast paced. If you are a fan of twisted endings and psychological thriller’s this is definitely worth checking out.
Oh no, did he? I am curious now
I love a good thriller, especially with a twist I don’t see coming, but you’re right, it has be at least somewhat believable for the story. But I am seeing this one around quite a bit, with decent reviews.
Thanks for your honest thoughts. I’m sorry to hear the book bought into some misconceptions. And yeah, rape “culture” is kind of the term, even though it does sound really crass.
-Lauren
I have been quite tempted by this book. I love a good thriller. It sounds like this one had some really great points and others that could have been done better. Great review!
Glad the author was able to convey why the protagonist acted the way she did.
Oh, how timely. There sure a lot of stories being exposed along these lines. I hope the author did a great job in showing the two sides of the story.
Great review!
I like thrillers with good twist and I don’t mind being fooled or a little confused, but in the end, I have to believe what the big reveal is. I think writing about any sort of abuse has to be carefully handled and some writers aren’t able to do it. Still, glad the overall story was engaging for you.
I read one of her collaborated book with Mary Higgins Clark before and really enjoyed it. This one though sounds really interesting but too bad about the ending. But despite those issues, I’m glad you still enjoyed it Lily 🙂
I wonder what happened? I am curious to know if he was guilty or not. Great review.
I’m sort of torn on this one. It sounds like it might be a pretty good read, but the content makes me pause. I’m always a bit weird when it comes to reading about rape culture (which is totally a thing)…especially in this current climate :/
I thoroughly enjoyed this one! I was impressed with the ending and how the author made me look one way while she was setting up the ending, so to speak. lol Fabulous review!