I thought this was a great little read, I love the UK novels in this genre. This was a little reminiscent of Claire Macintosh or Ruth Ware. Great characters, both flawed and likeable at times.

After reading and enjoying Claire McGowan’s other book, What You Did, I’m definitely disappointed by this one. I found the storyline very uneventful and I wasn’t surprised by anything. It’s also a storyline that I’ve heard several times before. I found myself having no energy to carry on reading, and thought about giving up several times. The only thing I liked is that it was quite a quick read and didn’t take me too long to get through it. I found the characters quite annoying and a bit weak. I will possibly read more from Claire McGowan in the future, but only because I enjoyed What You Did. Unfortunately The Other Wife isn’t one that I would recommend.

This was a fun read about women who all have secrets and lies (why am I always drawn to these?) Suzi meets another woman when she and her husband move to a remote and isolated part of the country. Nora seems sympathetic and friendly (but how does she know Suzi's name)? Then we are introduced to Elle who is has problems of her own as she suspects her husband has been stepping out on her. Why are marriages so complicated? Well, you will see how complicated they are when you read this thriller! Twists and turns that I loved so it compelled me from beginning to end!

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC. I loved it even though some things were predictable but never saw either of the husbands actions coming. Those men were sick and twisted and got what was coming. The wives? I have no words for either one, just pure twisted chicks, yet sadly brilliant.

I couldn't get into this book no matter how hard I tried and no matter how good the reviews are. This book's writing fell flat for me. It did not grab my attention nor my interest. I was not invested in the characters and could not finish the book. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book.

The beginning of the book had a slow moving plot that introduced a lot of characters that were hard to keep track of at first. I figured they were all going to be intertwined somehow so I was trying to make possible connections from the start and I'm not sure if that helped or hurt me in trying to keep everyone straight. At around the 2/3rds mark of the book, the plot really started picking up. Characters started revealing themselves and their true motives, connections were made and I was starting to get a glimpse at how it all might turn out. While there were still twists I didn't see coming, nothing was really crazy. This book, unfortunately, fell a little flat with me.

I just finished reading this book and can definitely say it was gripping and a good read. The story was well told and carried me along fast and furious even though I didn’t especially bond with any of the characters. Suzie was pathetic and passively irritating. Nora was too crazy for me to feel comfortable in her presence.. Nick, Suzie’s husband was skillfully drawn as superficially harmless but with a dark underbelly. Elle was a wife blinded by her need for a husband she believed in.

This is a mystery, and a psychological study of what goes for love in our society. Marriage, infidelity, parenthood, jealousy, obsession and betrayal.. Nothing new really but the book was well written and even the parts that were a bit far fetched kept me guessing.

I dont like books that use dogs as a plot foil so here is a spoiler - Poppet survives!

I came away with the sense that human beings are rather unpleasant and selfish creatures. And perhaps that is true for many.

The Other Wife by Claire McGowan is a multi-layered novel of secrets, deceit, abuse, and plenty of twists, all coming together in a suspenseful read that will have you turning pages late into the night. For me, the buildup was slow but the tension only ratchets up as the story progresses, and patience will be duly rewarded.

Told from the alternating perspectives of three women, Suzi, Elle, and Nora, it is immediately apparent that all is not as it seems in the lives of these three women. Suzi, the most fully fleshed out character, is pregnant and living in fear in a remote cottage where she is the victim of domestic abuse. Nora, coincidentally or not, takes up residence in a cottage of her own across the street, and might just be the salvation that Suzi is seeking. Or will Nora's secrets, in fact, be the undoing of them all?

This is a read that picks up steam as it progresses. There are lightbulb moments when individual stories shift into focus, and the twists will have you glad to have stayed the course.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Amazon Publishing UK for this ARC.

This book kept me on the edge of my seat with the tangled web of lies and deception. Just when I thought I had figured things out another plot twist would come along. I don't want to say much about this book because I don't want to give ANYTHING away.! This was the first book I've read by this author - after my experience with this book I will definitely be seeking out additional books that she's written. I thought she did an exceptional job with the character development - not only with the main characters, but with the supporting characters as well. She also really set the scene of the isolated, cold, rundown cottages (Suzi's was newly renovated, but was formerly one of the rundown cottages). A fantastic read!

Thank you to Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for providing a copy for review.

The Other Wife tells the stories of Suzi, Nora, and Elle. Sui and Nora are new neighbors, and Suzi is delighted to finally have someone to talk to. Her husband is the jealous controlling type and he moved her to the country with no neighbors and without a car. He has some right to be jealous though has Suzi hasn’t always been the best wife. She quickly wants to confide all of her dirty secrets to her new friend Nora but that would be a terrible mistake.

Told from differing points of view and with new characters brought in randomly, it was often hard to follow. I finally got it all straight about 2/3 into the book, at which point it was hard to put down. This story has it all: secrets, revenge, gas-lighting, lies and murder. It is a quick and suspenseful read as the lives of these characters come together.

Thanks to NetGalley for an ebook copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks Claire McGowan and NetGalley for my advanced copy.

The chapters are narrated from Suze/Nora/Elle’s perspectives. From the very beginning I was trying to figure out who ‘the other wife’ was...that was easily done by 20-25% of the book. I thought, now what? Well, now the story starts coming up with unexpected twits. There’s quite a bit going. One surprised that I did not see coming....Overall, it was good read and I have already recommended to some friends.

Suzi, now pregnant, had an affair and this love of her life has apparently ghosted her. Her husband has moved her into an isolated internet controlled house as be becomes increasingly more and more controlling. A neighbor moves into the rambling cottage next door and has secrets of her own.

This book follows the currently very popular formula for psychological thrillers, narrated from multiple viewpoints with many twists and turns. It is well written and readable, but there is nothing really new here in a story that is a bit far fetched. I had a hard time with the characters. The women are seemingly out of the 1950s and most of the men full of deceit and domination.

(SPOILERS AHEAD!)

Just fuck me up, honestly. What a twisty tale. I was pleasantly surprised to put together that Elle and Nora were the same woman BEFORE the big reveal (which rarely happens for me!), and I felt like it actually lent itself well to the story to know early, so I could read the story as they were the same person rather than piecing it all together later. I found Suzi to be super dislikable (probably a personal bias from a former spouse cheating but HEY! We've all get our own baggage) and honestly pretty irritating as she backed herself further and further into what felt like a super obvious corner with her husband.

Loved the ending. I was fearful it would end on a cliffhanger, so I was very pleased to have a definitive answer to what happened to most of the characters involved.

This novel has every ingredient in the domestic noir repertoire- three women, and their various POV’s, deplorable husbands, a desolate cottage. Throw in jealousy, secrets, violence. Mix it all up. Out comes The Other Wife and it’s a great read. Recently read What You Did so I knew we had plenty of twists and surprises. Solid four stars.

A good psychological thriller which at times stretches the imagination with lots of twists and turns. Don’t over think it, just read and enjoy and never forget not one of us know that goes on behind a hall door

How well do you know your neighbours?

With thanks to publishers and author for ARC in return for an honest review

Good story, great pacing and reasonably realistically drawn characters. Although the story revolves Round some nefarious characters i found it unexpectedly positive and life affirming also...

The other wife is a domestic thriller with deceit, lies and abuse, told through POV of three women.
Creepy with great plot twists kept me engaged. I read this in one sitting.
Thank you Netgalley and Amazon publishing for my advanced copy for sn honest review.

Unfortunately, I just really felt this a a formula book. Very similar to so many of the suspense books out right. now. Nothing Original about it.

Review
Suzi and Nick have moved to a cottage in the country, a cottage that has been modernised with security and technological features. Instead of feeling content in her new home, Suzi feels sad, isolated and lonely. She is also missing Sean, a Doctor, who she has fallen in love with and who she believes is the father of her unborn baby. She doesn’t know where he is and why she hasn’t heard from him.

Nick is controlling, possessive and critical. He seems to know all of Suzi’s movements and tries to control all aspects of her life.

Nora moves into the cottage next door and she and Suzi start to make friends, however Nora is suspicious of Nick’s attitude towards Suzi. It isn’t long before Suzi tells Nora all about the other man. She decides to go to the hospital where he works to find him. It is only there that she realises that Sean may not have been entirely truthful with her.

In the meantime, recently-widowed Nora has her own past to come to terms with.

This book deals with domestic abuse from a psychological as well as physical aspect. I thought the way it was written seemed realistic with Nick’s behaviour getting worse, the less control he had.

There were some other parts of the book that I struggled to relate to. Dr Holt’s parents - too much of a coincidence. Dr Holt’s unprofessionalism, eg contacting Suzi about Nora - this irritated me because it just wouldn’t happen. Suzi being such a wet blanket when she obviously had such a strong personality in London - to then being so passive in such a short period of time. Surely most women would still have some strength to stand up for themselves? I didn’t like Nora and I couldn’t see how she could get away with what she did without raising suspicion. And, how the two women could become close friends finished on a bit too much of “not sure how to end this book, so let’s give it a happy ending” note for me.

Overall, I would say that it was a good book, an enjoyable read but there were some anomalies that I couldn’t overlook. For its enjoyability factor, I rate it 4 stars 🌟🌟🌟🌟

Thanks
Thank you to the author Claire McGowan and publishers Amazon Publishing for an advanced copy of this ebook in exchange for an independent review.

This was a domestic thriller that keeps you on your toes. For once a domestic thriller that I didnt know what the outcome was going to be. It has some great twists that I didnt see coming. Was it the neighbor, the wife, the other woman, the ex, or the husband? Who was doing all these stalkerish things to Suzi. The story was fast paced and the chapters short enough that I just couldnt help to keep reading on. If it was a tad bit shorter it would have been just that much better because it was losing pace about 3/4 of the way for me and then picked up toward the end. I would read another one by this author.