#thelastwife #nicolamarsh #bookreview #booksofinstagram #bookstagram #netgalleyreview #arc wow. Just wow. From beginning to end you had no idea where this book was going. If you are looking for suspense, intrigue, drama... This is a must read book. You have different point of views telling a story. At one point you are yelling at the book because darn it tell me 😂 the ending had me #shook I was #quaking definitely not what I was expecting which makes it two thumbs up for me 👍👍 #bookhangover

This one kept me guessing and totally enthralled from start to finish. The secreta, lies and mistrust of a family determined to stick together made for a great read. Thrilled to have been able to read this title thanks to Netgalley, & will be looking for more titles by Nicola Marsh in the future!

Family is supposed to be the all important bond that ties us together and is the center of our existence, but in the Parker family money comes first then family. Lies, deceit,and murder span the pages of this fabulous book. “The Last Wife” had me completely enthralled from the first page until the very last.

Fast paced family thriller- think scandals among Chicago's elite. No one is what they seem and it kept me guessing until the last chapter! Loved the varying points of view and had to read the last third in one sitting. Looking forward to more from this author!

Twisty turning crazy family drama unputdownable tense tense tense kept me guessing to the end.#netgalley#bookouture.

This story is told in the first person and with chapters from alternating characters viewpoints. I am not particularly wild about a book written in that style, but it didn’t bother me in this book.

This is a book about family dynamics, jealousy, and betrayal. Most of the characters weren’t very likable. Up until the ending I would have given this book 4*. Because I wasn’t happy with the ending I am giving the book 3 1/2 stars. Thank you tonet galley for an advanced readers copy.

"I’ve hidden a lot behind that smile over the years. Rage. Jealousy. Derision. Loathing. My smile broadens. This isn’t about revenge or vindictiveness or hatred. It’s about one thing. The only thing that matters to me. Family."

Well, as someone once said, you can pick your friends but you can't pick your family. And boy are they right.

Ria married into a prominent family in Chicago only to be abruptly left by her husband give years ago. All she got are some compromising photos and he was gone. Now years later some one else has taken to sending her emails about all the sordid things the rest of their family was doing. The family that has *mostly* been supportive of her and her daughter. Her mother in law, while never overly affectionate has continued to embrace Ria and Shelly when her son did not.

In order to protect the rest of the family and discover who is trying to black mail them all shes forced to coax her ex-husband out of hiding where ever that may be. She can only hope that opening that door will save them and not destroy them.

I really enjoyed The Last Wife and gave it 4 starts. Nicola Marsh does a great job of building the characters back stories and leaving a lot of doubt for the reader to until the very end. I kept changing my mind about the who's and the why's until it all unfolded.

My one addmitedly petty complaint was the over use of the word pad. "She padded to the door, he padded across the room" it was used too many times in my opinion.

With that teeny tiny exception I really enjoyed it and didn't find it predictable like many of the other thriller/mystery novels I've read in the past!

I was gripped by this book right to the end, the story is full of twists and secrets involving the women in the family and while the ending was predictable, it was an enjoyable read. I would like to thank the publishers and netgalley for letting me have the book to review and the opinions expressed are entirely my own views and are completely unbiased.

This was a good read. I thought though that it was predictable. It is a quick easy read whichheld my attention.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

It took me a while to get into this book and I'm not even fully sure I did get into it.

May is the matriarch of not only her rich family but the family business, she has been busy making changes.

Ria is her daughter in law who was abandoned five years ago by May's youngest son, Grayson. Ria is also a journalist and has been sent some mysterious emails leaking secrets of the rest of the family. She investigates to try and save the family from any scandal.

I just couldn't connect with the characters none of them were likeable, even Ria who was supposed to be the heroine and it was obviously fairly early on who was behind the accidents befalling the other members of the family.

Its not often I feel like I do not want to finish a book, but this one made me feel like that and if I wasn't reviewing it, I wouldn't have persevered.

Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to review, this is my honest opinion.

Whilst this book wasn't for me, it doesn't mean someone else wont love it.

This book was definitely a page turner. I was not expecting the twists in this one at all. And I’m usually pretty good and guessing a plot. The characters all were developed amazingly and each had their own unique personalities, which you don’t find much of in books today. So it was quite a a nice surprise. The ending took me out. I was actually gasping and laughing out loud. I loved this book so much I went and found more books by this author. .

The Last Wife has it all: family, loyalty deceit and so many secrets !!

My head is spinning from all the twists and turns; the last one I did not see coming at all!

What a family unit the Parkers are! Who can you believe in that family ? Someone is more than manipulating , we know May the matriarch falls under that category as she controls the family money and company.

The family dynamics are fascinating and somehow so relatable.

Loved this book !

Thanks to Net Galley and Bookouture for another great read The Last Wife!!!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for letting me read this wonderful ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This story is about a prominent wealthy family in Chicago. The matriarch of the family, May, is trying to keep her family together by using money to keep them gather around once or twice a month. She gets to see her three grand-daughters as well as checking up on all her children. The only son whom she hasn't seen in five years is her youngest, Grayson. When unexpectedly an anonymous email was sent to Grayson's ex-wife Ria, showing each family member's secrets, Ria had no choice but to go through the dark web to find her ex-husband. He's a genius when it comes to IT. The investigative journalist within Ria must investigate who is threatening her family. Slowly, the mystery starts to unravel.

Even though it was an easy read, I feel that the story line is very slow to developed. As the mystery builds, I was expecting more than what was uncovered with each characters. Each characters was never fully developed, there was never a past for any of the characters, except for Shamira. Even her past was gently graze over. Ria was describe has the girl next door, level headed and down to earth. Yet she's not every relatable. Aisling was not a likable character, more of the dark horse that never truly fit in with the Parker. Yet her character waiver from good to bad and it's confusing. Her character was truly under developed. I expected more. The ending was good and I did not expect that. Overall, characters development was lacking. Story line was good.

This is my first read by Nicola Marsh. I enjoyed this book. Good plot, interesting characters, some more likable than others. Just when I thought I had things figured out, I had not. Great ending. Many plot twists and mysteries. I thought the book could have been shorter without losing its essence. If you enjoy tales of wealth, deception , dysfunctional families and revenge, you will like this. I plan to read The Scandal, too. Thanks to Netgalley, the publishers and Ms. Marsh for the ARC. Opinions are my own.

A fabulous read! There's everything here - secrets, danger, deceit. The Parker family is mega rich and run by matriarch May alongside eldest son Justin. The family live in Chicago, apart from daughter Christine who lives in New York. As 'accidents' begin to occur to each female member of the family it's clear someone wants to do them harm. But who? And why?

Skilfully written from all the main female characters' viewpoints it's an excellent story which keeps you hooked right until the last page. May is all about appearances. Keeping the family's personal business out of public view. But it's clear when you get to know this family they all have big problems within each of their relationships.. A great weaving of characters through a central plot containing mystery and danger.

Not giving anything away, simply to say, this is definitely a must read.

The Last Wife is a good thriller set in Chicago with the main character Rea trying to fit into her husband Grayson' s high society family with her other caustic sister's in law particularly Ashlyn who is married to Justin in a marriage which is falling apart.But when Grayson disappears Rea is forced to try and stay friendly with the powerful Parker family for daughter's sake who her grandmother and head of the family May adores,but then accidents start to happen to all the sister's in law and Rea realizes that someone is out to destroy the Parker family but why ? The story is told from the all the women in the family points of view and is a decent enough thriller but not the best I have read this year by a long way,I would recommend this book however to anyone who enjoys this genre of book.A decent 3 star read for me.

This was SOME read. Now I know what it means when people say ambook was un-putdownable. I just had to finish this in one sitting. It was just too good to wait until the next day. Ten stars to this author fir her enticing writing style, riveting plot and terrific characters. You will NOT want to miss this suspense/mystery. Ten stars definitely!.

This was a great read for me , even better than The Scandal . It's a fast paced page turner and I was hooked instantly . Ria is part of a dysfunctional wealthy family even though her husband had left 5 years previously she is still included with his family . She is a journalist who one day is sent some emails detailing some family members hidden secrets , instead of going to May the matriarch she starts investigating herself . After several accidents seem to befall different members of the family she reaches out to her ex husband for help .
A good twist , even though I saw it coming did not spoil my enjoyment . This would be a great holiday read .

Growing in the foster care system , Rita vowed to someday have a real family of her own. She succeeds beyond her wildest dreams when she meets and marries wealthy and attentive Grayson. Life is complete when she has a little girl. Of course, her husband’s family has never made a secret of the fact that they think Rita is beneath them. but as long as she has Grayson and her daughter, Rita doesn’t care. Then Grayson disappears and Rita has to turn to the very people she dislikes and doesn’t trust for financial and emotional support. Ah, the in-laws from hell, we all think we have them, but this story takes it to the next level. You might even appreciate your own in-laws after reading this…..maybe

This is a family drama with secrets and lies everywhere.
The story is told mainly from the point of view of Ria who married into a wealthy family "the Parkers."
She had a daughter but suddenly her husband disappears.

Shocked and confused Ria went back to work as a journalist to support her daughter without the help of her in-laws who never really warmed up to her.

Later she started receiving disturbing emails with compromising info about both her sister and mother in-law. Now she has to dig deep to know the truth and who is behind all of this.

The plot is interesting with some nice twists. However, I did struggle a bit with the style of writing.
As there was too much emphasis on thoughts rather than actual dialogue or action. This also made the narrative slow as some information became repetitive. The female characters also lacked distinctive voices, so sometimes I wasn't sure whose point of view is being told.

However, the mystery intrigued me enough to carry on until the final reveal which I really liked.
3.5*** rounded to 4.

Thanks Netgalley, Bookouture, and author Nicola Marsh for an ARC in exchange for an honest opinion.