Clare Boyd does it again with a suspenseful domestic noir. Told from two points of view by Elizabeth and Heather and the very different lives they lead both while loving the same but very devious man.

Lucas can put on the charm when he needs to and or wants to. Both women are never quite sure they are on even footing when it comes to him. And they are justified in questioning all their decisions with regard to him. A man who will stop at nothing to get what he wants.

The book was almost poetic in its writing. The feelings that the author invoked in the reader makes us wonder if we’re even understanding the motivations and actions of Lucas. One minute we might think we know what’s unfolding before our very eyes; the next the same doubt and confusion of Elizabeth and Heather is also felt by the reader. It’s been a minute since I’ve felt I could be either character at any time during the story. You are that drawn into the lives and events of both main characters.

You’re never quite sure and this tension is taut with emotion and foreboding. Love and hate are intertwined and the journey is well worth the price of admission.

Special thanks to Netgalley and Bookoutre for this intricate take on two lives lived in a most curious time and place.

This book is set at the mysterious Copper Lodge in Surrey, owned by prestigious couple Lucas and Elizabeth Huxley. Lucas inherited the land on which Copper Lodge is built from his parents when their previous home stood upon it. He went on to have the new structure built in impressive materials and design so that it stood out from its neighbours. Lucas is all about appearances and how people rate him in society. Behind closed doors, wife Elizabeth is a bundle of nerves, always having to live up to Lucas's exacting standards, but instead of letting people see this she makes out that she is a capable, strong woman and because of this comes across as being stern faced and impersonal.

Next door neighbours Gordon and Sally work in the grounds of Copper Lodge, keeping the gardens and property maintained to the highest standard while their own property gets neglected. They don't like extravagance and are strident supporters of the local soup kitchen, providing food and emotional support to the local homeless community. This belief that they should not over indulge has been drummed into their daughter Heather all her life so when she gets called back to her childhood home to support her father when Sally has to go away from home to support her sister in her last weeks, her sense of duty means she cannot say no.

With flashbacks to Heather's childhood throughout the book we get a glimpse into Lucas and Heather's younger years. Lucas certainly seems to have had a big influence in Heather's formative years but the extent of this shocked me. Lucas has a reputation to maintain in the world of international business and he pressures all his employees to make sure that everything is absolutely perfect for the garden party he is hosting to - hopefully - celebrate the union of his and international businessman Walt Seacart's companies. This will be a major coup, but only Elizabeth knows just how important it is to Lucas. Can she cope with the pressure?

"Smoke and mirrors" is the name of the game in Lucas's world and he needs to portray a certain lifestyle to the Seacarts in order to seal the deal. Luckily for him Elizabeth's brother can help him out here. But is he willing to? The more we find out about Lucas as the book goes along the more I disliked him. He stands for everything I dislike about the world of big business and the secrets that lurk under the surface. Heather has the scales torn from her eyes and is shocked to hear very unsavoury things about her parents' neighbour who has been such a big part of her life. She is torn between the evidence she has been shown and the man she thought she knew. But if this is all true then why have her parents shown him so much loyalty over the years?

There are shocks and revelations throughout and the impact of Lucas's actions send ripples across the lives of many. I switched allegiance between the characters as the different versions of the truth came out so I was definitely kept on my toes with the plot in this book. Clare Boyd is definitely a master of mystery writing.

I have to say that I was quite disappointed with this book. This book is definitely not a thriller by any means. The storyline was all over the place and I couldn't figure out what the direction was supposed to be. The characters made no sense and had no likeability whatsoever. I was bored throughout my reading, but I was determined to finish the book.

I enjoyed this insightful and thrilling novel very much. The storyline flows at a great pace, and the characters are well fleshed out. Highly recommended!

This book wasn't for me. It was really slow but my biggest issue is the characters. For me, it's not about likeability (which they aren't btw), rather the characters are non-sensical. They have no clear direction or purpose, so just bounce around and do random things. None of their actions seem even slightly realistic. In addition, the dialogue feels clunky.

Wow wow wow! I’ve never read any books by this author but In future I will be the first to buy any new books she releases. Incredibly well written and I was hooked from page 1. The story was told from different characters view points and like heather I didn’t know who to believe but I was praying she would make the right choice. With so many twists and turns you’d struggle to not enjoy this book

Described variously as “heart-stopping” and a “page-turner” I fully expected to devour this novel. It began as a bit of a slow burn, but by halfway through it was picking up and by the time my Kindle indicated 75% it was well away!

Written in alternating chapters (one in first person, the next in close third person) the writing style was pleasant and avoided the American style short chapters with short sentences so beloved of this genre. Working out quite who was the unreliable narrator (or, should I say, the most unreliable narrator) kept me guessing. A satisfying read with most of the loose ends tied up by the finale.

I dithered in my rating - it's a solid 3 1/2 stars. I would read more by this author.

I would like to thank the publishers, Bookouture, and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this novel in return for an unbiased review.

Lucas and Elizabeth Huxley lead a perfect life, or so it seems. Elizabeth has mental health issues and Lucas is controlling and manipulative. Heather has come back home to help her father with the huxley’s garden as her mother has been called away to look after a sick relative.
This book was hard work, nothing much happens for the first 50% of the book. The characters were unlikable with no redeeming qualities. The ending was also a little disappointing as you are left not really knowing who was being truthful. This was a toxic relationship that made the characters bring out the worst in each other.

Looking from the outside in Lucas and Elizabeth Huxley have it all. But under the surface things are not as they appear to be. Elizabeth suffered a traumatic childhood and now has mental issues. Her husband is controlling and manipulative thus putting a lot of stress on her to prove that she is better now. He has asked her to plan a large party that will allow him to firm up a business deal that will make them multi-millonaires. The Shaws are the gardeners and the daughter is asked to come and help get the grounds ready. Heather Shaw, the daughter has history with Lucas from before he was married. There was jealousy all around and this is when things become complicated.
This is a good physiological read and will keep you guessing until the very end.

Thanks to Net Galley for allowing me to read this arc for my honest review.

This is a well written thriller on the whole. It did lose its way at times and I nearly didn’t finish it. I’m glad I did though as it was a decent read on the whole.

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy of My Perfect Wife.

Unfortunately I had to bow out of this one early... I got to 57% (I know I should just keep going) but there was nothing intriguing about the book... I was bored and wasn’t excited to read it. I was reading more just to get through it so I could move onto the next book. It’s probably not necessarily a bad book but just not my cup of tea. I like thrillers that start with the suspense from the very beginning and at 57% there was nothing thrilling so far.

Overall, this is a good suspense novel. I have to be honest, I struggled with whether or not to finish this book most of the way through. Not much happened until about 75% of the way through, but I did finish this book so that tells me that it was just enough to keep me reading.
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The story alternates between the characters of Heather and Elizabeth. I found that both of them were repeatedly frustrating me. It really does have a good plot but the story moves very slowly with not enough revealed to keep it all that suspenseful.
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I wasn’t wild about this book, but it was still good and I can see how other people would really like it.

Wow I could not put this book down as the author kept me guessing literally until the end of the book. Following the story of two protagonists Elizabeth and Heather it makes you question if not everything is truly as it seems. The characters were well developed and believable and the plot moved quickly. I found myself questioning who I believed many times. This domestic thriller is one you won’t be able to put down. Thank you netgalley and publisher for the early read. I give this five out of five stars

The Perfect Wife was a great domestic thriller that made me think that perhaps nobody’s lives are perfect.
Lucas and Elizabeth Huxley appears to have the perfect life, a house to dream of, perfect children, perfect lives and are able to employ people to take care of the house and garden and children. Heather Shaws parents work for the Huxleys and she too joins the team but as the book advances we learn that something went on with Heather and Lucas years ago and also that Elizabeth has suffered from an illness before so this leads to a nail biting read as information is revealed and do you really believe Elizabeth? This was a great read, the chapters were alternated by Elizabeth and Heather and worked well, I did feel Elizabeth was a more developed character than Heather but it didn’t interrupt my enjoyment of this thriller.
I would like to thank Netgalley and Bookouture for this ARC I received in exchange for an honest review.

Meet Lucas and Elizabeth Huxley-they are wealthy, attractive, and have two adorable children. They have it all, or so Heather thinks. Heather is the daughter of the Huxley's gardeners and had fallen in love with Lucas when she was a teenager. She has returned home for the summer to help her parents with the garden. But as the days go by, She begins to suspect that something is not quite right with the Huxleys.

Elizabeth Huxley is a devoted wife and does everything that she can to keep her husband happy. She is working hard to make their summer party a success and is desperate to prove to Lucas that she's not sick anymore and will not snap under pressure. But everything changes when she begins to suspect that Lucas is a liar and not who he pretends to be. Lucas reassures her that she is just ill and imagining things. But Elizabeth knows what she saw, or does she? Can we trust Elizabeth, a woman who has a history of not being able to tell fact from fiction?

I enjoyed this domestic thriller by Clare Boyd. Although slow at times, it did manage to keep me guessing until the end. Told from the perspectives of Heather and Elizabeth, this story has one of my favorite thriller tropes- the unreliable narrator. Elizabeth paints herself as a victim of her controlling husband but is she really? I thought her character was well-developed and the author did a great job of making the reader question whether they should believe her or not. Heather's character fell a bit flat for me and I found it hard to connect or care about her. But I was proud of her for the decision she made in the end. This story had many twists and turns and will keep you on the edge of your seat until the reveal. The culprit was not a surprise but I thought the conclusion was satisfying. If you enjoy thrillers centered around family drama and dysfunctional families, then I definitely recommend checking out this book.

I received an ARC from Bookouture through NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Well written story of the perfect couple, at least that’s what it looks like. But looks can be deceiving, and they definitely are in this twisted story. Their home is beautiful, their children are beautiful, but their marriage is anything but. Mental illness and infidelity are just the beginning of the story of this dysfunctional family. Written from different points of view and different points in time, this book explores the darker side of relationships.

An ARC of this novel was sent to me by NetGalley for reviewing purposes. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This is an extremely well done psychological thriller- the beginner had me hooked, and the characters were really well written. The author did a great job writing, and I look forward to reading more from them in the future.

This was a very good psychological thriller. The protagonist returns to the site where she grew up and relives her relationship with Lucas a man she had fallen in love with when she was a teenager. Lucas was a wealthy man whose wealth had diminished and he is trying to land a deal with a wealthy enterprise to restore his own wealth. The characters are well developed and you root for first one and then another. There is a lot of blame amongst the characters and you don’t know who to believe. The novel has many twists and turns and you don’t know until the very end who the antagonist is. That is the sign of a great thriller. I throughly enjoyed this novel and read it in one sitting. This was an ARC from NetGalley and Bookoutre for my honest review.

I'm not sure why I'm drawn to books about the messy, complicated, and darker side of marriage--maybe because I'm grateful for my own mostly-un-complicated one! Elizabeth and Lucas are a wealthy couple who appear to have it all--a lovely home, two wonderful children, and housekeeping and gardening help. But as we know, appearances are often over-rated as secrets simmer beneath the surface of many relationships. When the gardeners' daughter, Heather joins the team and we realize she had a previous liaison with Lucas, red flags are everywhere. Adding to it is Elizabeth's precarious mental state and a warning that she's previously been "ill." As the novel progresses, we see the disparity of wealth and privilege versus poverty and inequity as things begin to fall apart. It's a lovely and powerful novel, albeit painful to read at some points as your heart will break for these flawed but oh-so-human characters!

I really enjoyed this book as every time you think you’ve reached a conclusion the author throws a curveball in the makes you rethink it all. The basic premise is Elizabeth and Lucas are a happily married couple and Lucas is working on a deal which will set them up for life. Enter into the picture Heather who is helping her father to do the garden at the luxury home of Lucas and Elizabeth. Elizabeth becomes concerned that Heather is after her husband. This is a book where no one is what they seem and as more of the characters personality and history are revealed you’re not sure if anyone is a good or bad guy.
I highly recommend this book and look forward to reading the next book!
Thanks to Bookouture and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
#NetGalley #ThePerfectWife