No marriage is perfect. That’s no different for Sheila and her husband Dylan. They have been through ups and downs in their 19 year marriage, but when a 16 year old girl shows up claiming to be the daughter from an affair Dylan had during a tough patch in their relationship, Sheila’s life is turned upside down.
•
Now while Sheila tries her best to accept Eden into their lives and the lives of their three children, she can’t help but feel that something about Eden just isn’t right. Is she behind the weird creepy texts she’s been getting? Even though Eden has denied it, and Dylan has asked that the occurrence be dropped Sheila just can’t let it go...
•
What if Eden isn’t as innocent as she claims to be? What if she’s something darker? Although if it’s not Eden then it may be someone much more dangerous
•
This one was fun but I found it to be a touch too long. Very intricate and everyone had their part to play. I have to say that I really loved Steve, the 15 year old son of Sheila and Dylan! I wish we got to have more happen in his part of the story. Overall I would say it was a decent read.
•
Thank you to Netgalley, Pinnacle and Kevin O’Brien for the e-ARC copy of this title in exchange for an honest review.

The Betrayed Wife, by Kevin O'Brien, is a novel of suspense, a roller coaster ride of many twists and turns, simply Unputdownable!
Sheila and Dylan are married with 3 children. Dylan has been unfaithful the entire time which leads to them being confronted by a 17 yr old girl claiming to be his daughter from one of his indiscretions.
Immediately things begin to take a turn for the worse for their family and I mean horrifically worse.
Author Kevin O'Brien had me on the edge of my seat throughout!

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Books for an arc of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

2.5 Stars (rounded down)

A woman in Portland falls to her death from the rooftop of her apartment building. It is deemed a suicide.

In Seattle, Sheila O’Rourke receives an anonymous text on her phone with a link to the news article about the woman’s death. It is eerily familiar. Her husband Dylan, disagrees. Thereafter, Sheila finds that she is in danger. The brake lines on her car go out and her mechanic informs her that they were cut on purpose and she notices that people are stalking her.

Unfortunately for Sheila, her husband Dylan O’Rourke, can’t keep it in his pants. He never has and he never will, regardless of the fact that he’s married. What can he say, except that he likes women? He loves his wife, really, but he just can’t help himself. This time however, he gets caught.

Then there’s teenaged Eden and her boyfriend both of whom show up in Seattle. They have a plan.

Sounds like a fairly tame mystery / suspense right? Wrong! Talk about crazy and insanely far-fetched. “The Betrayed Wife” is an entertaining read to say the least.

This was another buddy read with Kaceey.

Thank you to NetGalley, Kensington Books and Kevin O’Brien for an arc of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Published on Goodreads and NetGalley on 8.31.19.

Definitely was excited to read this book and wasn’t let down. I think readers of this genre know by now that predictability is inevitable and to take each new book as its own and try not to compare too much to specific other books. This was a really fun read and I’d def recommend.

Betrayed wife is a PERFECT read if you do NOT want to put your book down. Don’t say I didn’t warn you. :) ok, this book is FANTASTIC!!! Sheila (wife) is married tu Dylan (husband) Dylan has uuuuuh had some infidelity issues. Sheila tried to put it behind her.....well until the girl claiming to be Dylan’s daughter. Sheila is getting some pretty creepy texts.....from who and why? Hmmm is someone following Sheila and why? Well you’ll have to read it. You will not be disappointed. AWESOME BOOK!!!!

You can see this storyline from about 3oo miles away but that didn't make it any less great. I still enjoyed reading the story unfold. I can't imagine how I would feel as a wife and have my husband's teen daughter come to my doorstep after all these years and having to find a way to just emotionally to work through it. This was a thriller that although you see it coming from all those lifetime movies, its still a stay up all night to finish.
Thank you to the publisher and to Netgalley for allowing me to read this in exchange for an honest review.

So who won at the end of this really? Certainly not me for having finished it.

I am starting to wonder what genre I should start giving a chance because these mysteries/thrillers are not doing it for me. The themes are similar and the stories are downright depressing. I know it’s fiction and not everything has a “happily ever after”, and shouldn’t, but come on!

The thing about this one? It was just too full of stupid. I don’t mind a villain, the more evil, the better. Bring it on! But I want them to be clever. All the women in this story were dormant, manipulated, over the top and just plain dumb.

Perhaps if it had one redeeming character, one person to root for then it could have been salvaged for me?!? Not sure. Maybe if you don’t read many thrillers or don’t mind a cast of horrific characters (minus Steve) you will get a kick out of this. Please give it a try if it appeals. The writing is good and this could have just not been my cup of tea or wrong story/wrong time...

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and Kensington Books for a copy in exchange for a review.

Kevin O'Brien does such a stellar job of using his character's unique voices to rope in the reader. The Betrayed Wife has a good premise, long suffering wife of serial cheater finds herself confronted by an unknown child of his indiscretion. Mr O'Brien tells the story by alternating between the main characters, and their character portraits are layered and compelling. The secondary characters are not as completely drawn. The story itself moves quickly, the atmosphere of suspense carries through well. There is a nice balance between story and suspense. I was entertained.
3.5
I received my copy through NetGalley under no obligation.

Kevin O'Brien has to be one of my top 5 favorite authors. I always have to read his books when they come out. However, this book didn't feel like a 'typical' Kevin O'Brien book for some reason. It was suspenseful but not as much as some of his past books. That's the only reason I give this book 4 stars instead of 5. I am not sure what it was missing, but I wanted a little more. With a title like The Betrayed Wife, I would have assumed that the wife was the one causing all the trouble, not the wife being on the butt end of all the trouble. The wife is definitely the one who kept me reading, though. I wanted to know more about her. I needed to know what happened all those years ago. Most of the characters were unlikeable. I could not figure out what was so great about Dylan either. I am glad that I kept being reminded of how old Steve was supposed to be because I would have thought he was much younger by his actions and mannerisms. There were definitely some unexpected twists. I had suspected who the culprit was not long before it was revealed. This book was one that kept me reading more, even if I could barely keep my eyes open. The ending seemed kind of open ended. I would have liked more closure and answers.

Sheila O'Rourke behaves in a really kind manner. Her marriage was a bit rocky, but a recent move to Seattle smoothed things out a bit. However, when a teen girl shows up at her home, claiming to be the daughter of her mother, Sheila is perplexed. Shockingly, the girl's mother has just died from falling off a roof. Knowing she has no one else, Sheila invites the girl, Eden, to live with her husband and their two teen children.

Things begin to go awry rather quickly. Things such as anonymous texts, strange noises next door, and other odd things, make Sheila worry. She is not just worried that this might have something to do with Eden, but she begins to doubt her husband Dylan. Is there something that he is hiding from her?

This psychological thriller by Kevin O'Brien has no shortage of unlikable characters, most notably, Eden and Dylan. As Dylan's true nature is revealed, it is any wonder that Sheila stayed with him over the years. Then there is the weird and obnoxious neighbor that moves in next door. Also, there is Eden's boyfriend. Lastly, there is an unnamed narrator for part of the story. Therefore, there are lots of twists and turns throughout the many pages. I was rather impressed with Sheila's focus. Had it been me, I would have shriveled up and shut out the world.

The Betrayed Wife is the first book I have read by this author. I loved the style, the suspense and the shocking conclusion. This book did WOW me and I look forward to reading more from him in the future.

Many thanks to Pinnacle Books and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

Rats! This book was archived before I downloaded to my kindle. I’ll hunt for a physical copy when it comes my way.

Note to self: do a thorough investigation on anyone who comes knocking on your front door, claiming to be a member of the family. Oh, and while you're at it - investigate your husband as well! THE BETRAYED WIFE is a genuine thriller, complete with false leads and surprise twists. A very fast-paced domestic drama. Good for fans of Shari Lapena and Mary Kubica.

I'm very embarrassed to admit that I asked for the ARC from NetGalley by accident, having mistaken this author Kevin O'Brien for Tim O'Brien who wrote an award winning masterpiece about the Vietnam War and its profound and lingering impact on veterans, The Things They Carried. Therefore I was quite surprised and disappointed to find I'd signed on to read a contemporary psychological thriller about the O'Rourke family in Seattle, the skeletons in their closets, coming home to roost. I had no patience for long-suffering wife Sheila's putting up with her handsome, philandering husband Dylan, and even though I feel sorry for their three kids, and the illegitimate ones to boot, I won't be looking for more books by this author in future.

I really enjoyed this book by Kevin O'Brien. There were lots of twists and turns throughout. - some I guessed and others that really took me by surprise. There is a lot going on in this book - there's a philandering husband; a daughter he never knew about that comes to live with the family; a murder; strange occurrences; and so much more. I have never read a book by Kevin O'Brien before but I was really happy to have found another author to read! Even though book was rather long for a thriller, it is fast paced and I zipped through it over a couple of days

3 for neutral. Not a good read for me. I just had a hard time getting through it, will update later if able to enjoy.

Thank you to Netgalley, Kevin O'Brien and the publisher, Pinnacle Books, for allowing me an electronic ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I have been reading Kevin O'Brien's books, since his very first book was published, and I always look forward to the newest release by him.

Kevin has the best way of keeping the reader on the edge of their seat, while steadily racing from one chapter to the next. I absolutely love the way that Kevin weaves the story line throughout each chapter. This was not a disappointment, and I am ready to read his next one.

As always, it's a 5!!

Not my favorite book by this author. It is full of unlikable characters. There are plenty of twists that made me keep reading despite myself. I really wanted to reach into the pages and slap the characters so the author definitely succeeds in making you feel!

The Betrayed Wife by Kevin O'Brien is a so-so novel of psychological suspense.

Dylan and Sheila O’Rourke are married with three children. She knows he's not perfect, but he has supported her through hard times and cares about her. He was supportive about moving to Seattle after her rough patch and they are doing well now, right? Or is Sheila just doubting herself and seeing things when she feels like she's being watched, followed, and receives strange texts. She even tries to be as supportive as she can when sixteen-year-old Eden turns up, claiming to be Dylan’s child by another woman. Her mother has died and Dylan is her only remaining relative.

Right from the start a woman dies, so you know there is going to be some kind of suspense. Next we are introduced to Sheila, who is anxious, being followed, hearing noises, and keeps referring to her difficult times. Teenage son Steve is a good character, but the other two children are forgettable characters. Then Dylan shows his lack of morals and we learn about his serial affairs. And Sheila knows about him, but stays with him. At this point it is hard to keep reading this rather pedestrian novel of suspense because it feels like we have heard this story before: cheating husband, loopy wife, illegitimate child, and a deranged lunatic on the loose.

The narrative is mainly told through the point-of-view of Sheila, Dylan, Steve, and Eden. It does keep you reading, mostly while shaking your head and muttering about... well, the whole plot. I kept reading just to see what happened, how Eden was involved, who the crazy neighbor was, and if Sheila finally got a backbone and told Dylan bye-bye. Perhaps I need to avoid books with serial philandering unfaithful husbands. I'm not sure it was totally worth powering through, especially when I got to the ending.

Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of Kensington.
http://www.shetreadssoftly.com/2019/08/the-betrayed-wife.html
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2924036753
https://www.librarything.com/work/23522330/book/171655465

I’m sorry I didn’t enjoy this book at all. A husband that fools around with any woman that will look at him twice. His wife knows and accepts this. He has a previously unknown daughter knock on his door wanting to live with him. His wife accepts this. Then he falls in “love” with some woman he met at the gym. Still his wife won’t leave him for the sake of the kids. This is nuts - I’m too old for this.
Thanks to NetGalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review

What happens when you have a husband who is the ultimate philanderer and a wife who just lets him get away with it?

While I typically LOVE Kevin O'Brien's books, this one felt like it was missing something. There were definitely twists and turns. But I think the fact that husband was such a wimp and too willing to hop into the sack with other women turned me off. There were crazy and evil characters, which is characteristic of the author's books. And you will be left guessing you is behind all of chaos that is wreaking havoc on Sheila and her family.

And the end of the book just left me with my jaw hanging down in shock. Not sure I really liked the ending, but it was one of those shocking end-of-the-book moments.

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and ARC in exchange for my honest review.