Bay and Annabelle’s first ball at their new home comes to a tragic end when he is found with a knife in his heart and she is nowhere to be found. Mrs. Van Duyvil will not let murder, disappearance or scandal tarnish the reputation of the family. Anne is dealing with a divorce from her adulterous husband and the death of her beloved cousin Bay by seeming aloof and showing off that nothing affects her. It’s only his sister Janie who is interested in finding out the truth and decides to team up with the journalist Mr. Burke to get about it.

The story is told in two timelines – one follows Janie’s quest; the other follows Bay in his journey to London a few years ago and his love affair with Georgie. I especially liked their interactions. The mystery surrounding Annabelle, Georgie and Giles and ultimately the murders is very well written and I thoroughly enjoyed not being able to guess true culprit till the very end. My only problem was that I didn’t like most of the characters except Janie and Bay in his stint at London. However, the story was so interesting that the pretentious and conniving characters didn’t stop me from completing or enjoying the book. I hope to read other books by this author as well.

I received an egalley of The English Wife in exchange for my own opinions.

Lauren Willig delivers exactly as she is expected in The English Wife: historical fiction, mystery, a little romance, and intrigue. Like with most of her novels, The English Wife has a dual timeline, but the time periods are much closer together, only six years and less as the progresses. But the back-and-forth is well executed with dates and locations heading each chapter. And the third person omniscient narration provides for fluency between time periods, which is where Willig struggled in some of her other stand-alone novels.

In regards to the intrigue, it is enjoyable, and I must admit that I had a sneaking suspicion about one of the Big Reveals, but didn't anticipate who the killer was. Read for yourself and be surprised!

For reasons previously stated, I will not be reviewing this book! Thank you for the chance to read and review one of your books though. I had a hard time staying focused on the plot. There were tons of moments of endless discussions when they should be hunting for the murderer of the two dead people. I did enjoy the writer's sense of description. She really knows how to bring the reader into the setting and make me feel like I was there. I just didn't understand and got confused a lot during the plot elements. They weren't what I was expecting. I kept wishing for more.

It has been a few years since I read a book by Ms. Willig, but The English Wife reminds me of why I enjoyed her books so much. I love mysteries and historical fiction and this is both with a spot of romance too. The setting is Gilded Age in New York City, but the story starts out in London with Georgie a young actress struggling to get by on her own where she meets a charming American named Bay, short for Bayard. Fast forward a bit and we find Bay married to Annabelle a young English woman struggling to be accepted by New York society, tongues gossiping about her and an affair they claim she's having with the architect building the replica of her childhood home, commissioned by her loving husband, Bay. When Bay ends up dad with a dagger in his chest at the ball to introduce society to their new home, Illyria, Annabelle is nowhere to be found. Bay's sister Janie takes it upon herself to find Bay's killer. I found myself transported to another era of parlors, poverty, betrayal, and secrets. I received an advance review copy of this book from the Great Thought's Ninja Review Team. All opinions are my own.

Another solid entry from Lauren Willig. The book is intelligent, well written, twistily plotted, has complex characters, and two separate story/timelines that end up converging. I enjoyed watching Janie grow up and find her way out from under her mother's iron fist. Bay was a wonderful, tortured, sympathetic character. The book was a little more melancholy than I had anticipated, but I should have expected it. Bay is found dead in chapter one, then the reader goes back in time and gets to know and fall in love with him, so it really is doomed from the get-go. Poor Bay!

SPOILER ALERT
I thought the treatment of the Georgie/Annabelle mystery was a little odd. It is hinted at throughout the first several chapters, deliberately leaving the reader to guess (is Georgie really Annabelle?), then all of a sudden, in chapter 11, the mystery disappears and it is plainly announced that Georgie isn't Annabelle. This may not have been the key element to the mystery here, but it was an important one, and I thought the reveal was much too abrupt and could have been done more gracefully. It felt a little like the author had been drawing it out, then decided to just give up and tell her readers.
END OF SPOILER

I was a little confused by the dates. I think there might have been a typo or two? For example, at the beginning of chapter 22, it says "Cold Spring, Jan 1898," but I think it's supposed to be 1899. Chapter 24, which deals with events directly following the events from chapter 22, has "Jan 1899." I read an advanced copy though, so this may be fixed in the final.

Anyway. I enjoyed this latest read from Lauren Willig and look forward to reading her next work. Thanks to the publisher for providing an ARC through netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

The English Wife is a tantalizing, scandalous story; a masterful blend of suspense and historical fiction. I was completely engrossed from the very first page, completely and utterly surprised along the way! The characters in this book were so interesting, so full of life; they could have become caricatures, but instead were fully-fleshed out, complex and multi-layered. My favorite character was Janie, a mousey and demure character at the start who finds her voice through the twists and turns of this story. A gasp-out-loud heart-pounding book! I received an advance review copy of this book from the Great Thought's Ninja Review Team. All opinions are my own.

Kind of spooky Gothic Lite. If you are looking for Wilkie Collins or Du Maurier, this isn't going to satisfy, but The English Wife can provide an entertaining few hours and will be appreciated by fans of the author.

I received an advanced review copy of this book from The Great Thoughts Ninja Review Team. All opinions are my own. I really wish that I could give this book six stars because it so easily deserves it. I loved it from beginning to end. The characters were believable, the story had a lot of twists and turns and the story was well told.

Annabelle and Bay have what appears to be a storybook romance, but as the story unfolds the reader learns more about truths about both characters. Did Annabelle kill Bay? Did someone named George kill Bay and Annabelle? The story is slowly revealed with many twists and turns.

Lauren Willig has outdone herself. Set in Gilded Age New York, a young priveleged man and returns from a trip abroad with an English bride. This unlikely couple face an unforgiving society with tragic results. This book will keep you riveted, the plot changes are brilliant.

A great historical novel by Lauren Willig. A bit of mystery, a bit of romance, and a great story overall.

A soap opera of the Gilded Age, The English Wife tells the story of Annabelle and Bayard Vanyvil in New York. After a quick romance in London Bay comes home to New York with a mysterious new bride to present to his family and New York high society. Things begin to unravel and end in a murder with so many twists and turns that it's hard to tell where the truth ends and lies begin. Lauren Willig wrote a wonderful story that keeps you turning page after page and scratching your head after every new revelation. She also does a wonderful job creating a visual of the beauty and opulence that the wealthy enjoyed during this time period. It's a wonderful story full of romance, mystery and plenty of unsolicited gossip!

The English Wife is a pretty good read. I liked it.

This is officially my new favorite book, hands down.

The English wife is masterful at weaving mystery with history. The characters were incredibly developed, each with their own distinct personality. The plot grew and deepened, never once lagging or becoming tedious. I quite literally could not put it down, and found myself thinking about it when I wasn't able to read. An amazing book that had me on the edge of my seat and hugely invested in the characters. Absolutely superb! 5 stars, without question.

With "The English Wife", Lauren Willig returns to a wholly historical plot and it is done very well--to a point.
The novel is set in Gilded Age New York, and told from two perspectives--Janie Van Duyvil and Annabelle Van Duyvil. The catch is that Janie is telling the story from 1899 and Annabelle is slightly in the past (1895). The two women tell their stories until the timelines match up in the end, which is rather clever. Janie is the daughter of a distinguished, monied New York family. As the novel opens, her older brother Bay has been murdered and his beautiful English wife Annabelle is missing. Janie is determined to solve the mystery as she is convinced that her sister-in-law would have never murdered the man she loved.

Janie teams up with Burke, an intrepid news reporter with no love for New York's aristocracy. Their attempts to discover the real killer are interspersed with flashbacks featuring Annabelle. Before she met Bay Van Duyvil, she was an actress in a burlesque show, fleeing from her past. She meets Bay on a whim, and is immediately distrustful, but their shared love for Shakespeare joins them together. Their friendship blooms into love and love into marriage, but it is not long before cracks begin to show. What results in the end are devastating secrets being revealed.

"The English Wife" was a page turner for the first two hundred pages or so. But as the novel should have been climaxing, it just ran out of steam. I actually sat it down for several days and only picked it up today to finish. I loved Janie, who was truly trying to be the good daughter, but in the end decided to follow her heart. Annabelle and Bay's story is heartbreaking; their characters were both flawed, and as a result, their marriage becomes a sham. So what went wrong? For one thing, I just could not buy into who Willig chose to commit the murder. It makes sense on the surface, but there were other characters that had better motive. While I applaud Willig for taking the road less traveled, the result was forced, and frankly, nonsensical to a point.

So would I recommend the novel? Sure. The suffocating atmosphere of Gilded Age New York is done well and lends a darker feel to the novel. I enjoyed it and I'm looking forward to reading whatever Willig has up her sleeve next. I really liked the fact that "The English Wife" was a true departure from her other historical novels.

Janie is devastated when her brother is found dead and his wife is missing. It is widely believed that Bayard killed Annabelle before killing himself, but Janie can't believe this. She teams up with a reporter to discover what really happened, never imagining the shocking secrets she will discover.

Good characters and a compelling storyline make this one an enjoyable read from Willig.

I am glad that I picked this for review. A truly great read

I am voluntarily submitting my honest review after receiving a NetGalley edition of this ebook.

This novel is full of detail and color that paints a vivid portrait of Newport / New York society in the Gilded Age. The characters are heartbreakingly flawed, but their foibles serve to make them more real and relatable. The plot twists in this mystery are shocking, and the surprise ending was both exciting and gratifying. Fans of historical fiction, mysteries and just plain great storytelling won't want to miss this one!

This historical fiction novel takes place between 1894 in London and 1899 in New York, moving back and forth in time as the secrets harbored by the characters unfold.

It begins with the discovery by 26-year-old Janie Van Duyvil, of an aristocratic New York family, of her dead brother Bay the night of a “Twelfth Night Ball” that Bay and his wife Annabelle were throwing to celebrate the completion of their new estate, “Illyria.” Annabelle is missing, but one of her dress slippers is by the waterfront. Rumors had been swirling about an affair between Annabelle and Illyria’s architect, David Pruyn, and the immediate assumption is that this was a crime of passion and jealousy.

Janie doesn’t believe it, but has to work around her aristocratic and cruel mother to try and find out what really happened. She enlists the help of a reporter, James Burke. They are from very different worlds, but both want the facts, and they make a pact to tell each other the truth, no matter where it leads.

Back in 1894 we learn how Annabelle, then called Georgie, and Bay got together. In addition we get insight into the gender politics of the time, both in London and in New York.

We also learn, along with Jane, that the lives of the rest of the Van Duyvil family was a carefully constructed web of lies. A great deal of suspense leads to a very unexpected denouement.

Evaluation: This is a good page-turner, and the different aspects of romance drawn by the author were quite well done.

The story has everything a must read, stayed up all night i had to finish it, it was that good.