Member Reviews
This is the book I needed right now! I’ve been craving a good thriller and Shari Lapena did it again. I was a huge fan of ‘The Couple Next Door’ and I was pumped when #NetGalley provided me with an ARC copy!
This book had all the domestic suspense you would crave. Stephanie and Patrick are married with two young, colicky, infant twins and they are ex-hau-sted. Secrets begin to arise when Erica, Patrick’s first (deceased) wife’s best friend, comes back into his life. Erica is seeking big payouts and is threatening to open up the case of Patrick’s first wife, who died in a car accident due to carbon monoxide poisoning. Erica is saying Patrick killed her on purpose to get his wife’s insurance money. Stephanie has a hefty, multi million dollar trust from her parents, and Erica is trying to get a payout. When the police start digging, Stephanie's trust in her husband begins to falter, their marriage is crumbling, and even more secrets start to arise.
This book was full of twists and turns, some predictable & some not, but overall it kept me reading at a fast pace and I could not put it down!
Thank you Netgalley for the ARC digital copy in return for an honest review
The premise was interesting but the plot was convoluted and you have to suspend disbelief throughout much of the book.
Patrick and Stephanie are happily married wth adorable twin baby girls. One day Stephanie is approached by a beautiful woman in the park. After speaking with her, Stephanie begins to have nagging doubts about her husband and everything she thought her marriage was about.
Nancy and Niall's marriage already survived one of Niall's extramarital daliances. Nancy swears she will leave him if he strays again.
Devin is a happy, well adjusted little boy. The Mannings were so grateful to be able to adopt him.
One woman wreaks havoc on all of these people with so many twists and turns. I loved this book! All of Shari LaPena's books are really good!!
The End of Her is one of those whodunnits but with a different twist because you don't know all of the "it". Character motive is set up through the entire book.
We start nine years ago with a young, unhappy couple getting ready for a road trip in Colorado. Flash forward nine years to New York. The husband, Patrick, is newly married to Stephanie, tired mother of twins. A woman from his past comes into his life and sets it on fire. She beds his partner, threatens his marriage and freedom, and tries to rekindle their former affair. Meanwhile, she has previously extorted a desperate couple in exchange for her unborn child and now she is stalking them again. Oh, and that partner? He and his wife aren't too thrilled with her either. As she weaves all of her strands, the reader can see that she is braiding her own rope. Twists and turns and everyone's life is changed (at least) by Erica's infecting it.
You read and find the characters are all more than they seem. Did Patrick kill his first wife or is Erica just blackmailing him with trying to convince police he did? Is Stephanie so exhausted she is a danger to herself or others? Are Ned and his wife hiding something more than an affair?
Fun read to find out. Satisfying ending, as well. Thanks to Netgalley, Shari Lapena, and her publisher for the privilege of reading in exchange for my honest review.
This book was a trip! This kept me guessing up until the very end. Erica is one of the best manipulators I’ve ever read about. And Patrick- I constantly wavered back and forth between did he or didn’t he? Loved the ambiguous ending as well!
I've enjoyed all of Lapena's books that I've read, including this one. That said, I don't think this one quite matches the last few, which all had jaw-dropping WTF turns in the last few pages. THE END OF HER is tense, puzzling, and full of unreliable characters, and it's a good read. But if you've read Lapena's other works, you'll see this is good, but not great.
Thank you to NetGalley for the advance digital copy of this book. Shari Lapena is one of my favorite authors, and maybe that’s why I was a bit disappointed in this novel. Through most of the book, I felt things that were happening were not plausible considering the backgrounds we were given. For example, with such a lack of evidence, I couldn’t fathom that the case in question would be reopened let alone the suspect put into jail. The ending, however was a breath of fresh air and the Lapena I’ve loved to read.. 2 stars for the first half and 4 stars for the last half of this book, thus averaging for my 3 star rating.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my copy of The End of Her by Shari Lapena. All opinions are my own.
This was... a lot. Shari Lapena is an author on my automatic read list- meaning I don't even read the description of her books anymore and dive in blindly. While I found myself drawn to this book, I also found myself super overwhelmed by the characters and the story lines Lapena attempted to tie together. The whole thing almost seemed like too much; like the author was trying too hard. That being said, I overall enjoyed this book and found it to be super ominous and creepy at times. While I don't think this is Lapena's best work, I do think this is a solid take on the domestic thriller genre.
Shari Lapena does it again with a northern pageturner.
A sleep deprived new mom and Dad have have twin daughters and they are both struggling through this latest stage.
Erica, a most unlikable character shows up to bring some added pressure to their already busy, chaotic lives. Adding doubts and implications to what happened to Patrick's first wife.
Initially, Stephanie is supportive of her husband, until the doubts sink in and the police are involved.1
This is fast paced and addictive read.
What an intriguing thriller!! The End of Her is the story of new mom Stephanie and her husband, Patrick. They have newborn twins and are as happy as can be until...Erica shows up in town. Erica brings many secrets, lies, and stories from the past with her. Is she lying? Is Patrick lying? Throughout the whole book I could never figure out the truth, until it was revealed at the end. Bravo!!
In the past, I have enjoyed Shari Lapena's previous titles, but I just don't know about this one. Most of the twists and "revelations" were super-obvious, but then when it came to the big shocking reveal at the end, it came from out of nowhere and was really out-of-character for the person that carried out the twist. I would say probably skip this one if you have other titles to choose from. "The End of Her" wasn't terrible, but not the greatest, either.
One of the better books by Shari Lapena. This one kept me intrigued; kept me flipping pages to see what craziness would happen next. The ending was a little unsatisfying, but only a little. Overall, a good thriller.
This is the fourth novel I have read by Lapena. They are all brain candy, pure and simple. Highly predictable, sensational, modern day pulp fiction. Read this if you just want to zone out or just want a mindless TV show. Same effect either way. I don't feel compelled to read anymore from this author.
Readers who enjoy thrillers about secrets between couples will like this one. For me, it didn't quite live up to her others and I found the pacing a little slow.
Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read this book for my unbiased opinion. I absolutely loved this book. This is the first book I have ready from this author and I will look for more. This book will hook you and keep you guessing until the very end!
Gotta love Shari! This is a good, quick page turner. There are twists and turns and lots of guessing going on. I only wish some of the other characters had a bigger play in the novel. Thank you, NetGalley!
Dysfunctional family and intrigue. One women's conniving tears apart multiple families. Not totally out downable but written with enough twists and turns to make it easy to want to read. I do like Shari Lapena's writing style.
In "The End of Her", Shari Lapena has crafted another excellent murder mystery! Lapena has brought her signature spellbinding style to her newest book. "The End of Her" centers around Stephanie, who is shocked to learn that her husband may be hiding a dark secret: the death of his first wife, When a frightening yet believable woman arrives on the scene to confess that she was having an affair with him when his first wife died, Stephanie is finding it difficult to continue trusting her husband. This book was full of twists and turns and definitely kept my attention! However, I wish the book hadn't ended with a cliffhanger.
Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.
I'm not usually into domestic suspense, but I make an exception for Shari Lapena. This newest book cements her position as an auto buy author for me. In The End of Her, we have Stephanie and Patrick, doting parents to twin baby daughters. Though they are both severely sleep deprived from dealing with colicky babies, life is good. They have a nice life in a bucolic suburb, Patrick is a partner in his own architecture firm, and Stephanie is a stay at home mom. Everything is as close to perfect as can be, until a mysterious woman from Patrick's past appears. She has some serious allegations about the accidental death of Patrick's first wife, and a few other stories to tell. I don't want to say more than that, because the reveals are a big part of the fun in the book. What I really love, though, is Lapena's masterful crafting of characters. She gets you under the skin, into the shadowy corners, and down into the depths of depravity that dwell within us all. She makes them real, breathes life into them, and because you are so invested, you can't help but keep turning the pages. The End of Her was fast and fun, and not at all what I predicted. Another winner for Shari Lapena. This book may just crown her Queen of Domestic Suspense!
4.25 stars
I was provided a review copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.
Thank you to Pamela Dorman Books and Netgalley.
Enjoyed the beginning and was intrigued, but once again the ending fell flat for me.
I didn't feel like the characters played out well. They weren't true to their character build up. I can't say more without spoilers, but it was a quick read and you may enjoy it more than I did.
I will read this author's next, but this is my least favorite from her so far.