I do enjoy a good thriller and was intrigued by the synopsis for this one, about 30 and 40 something year old privileged women and a murder. However, I found the main character so unlikeable it detracted from the story itself for me. I didn’t get her obsession with Margot - it was so stalkery and odd - especially when it came at the expense of her family, especially her son.
I appreciated how fast paced this one was and that it kept me guessing, but overall it was not for me.

Seriously intense and dramatic suspense spread throughout The Hunting Wives...to the point where I was not sure who the killer was throughout most of the book! Spicy secrets spill over into the lives of a group of ladies of wealth and influence... more like a Bad Girls gone wrong tale! Or maybe Desperate Housewives with a mean streak?

A fun night at the lake house turns into a nightmare where there are too many suspects and at least one of them is guilty of murder. Sweet Sophie, our main character is one of the suspects...but did she do it or have motive? Who had the opportunity and the motive....that is one of the trickiest questions...

I enjoyed the writing...crisp, clear characters with all their flaws and sordid secrets... combined with a plot that really kept me guessing!! Well done May Cobb!

Thank you to NetGalley, Berkley Publishing and author May Cobb for this temporary, advanced review copy for me to read and enjoy. As always, my opinions are mine and mine alone.

#BerkleyBuddyReads #books #bookstagram #Berkleywritesstrongwomen
#Berittalksbooks
@NetGalley
@BerkleyPublishing

Sophie O’Neill left behind her busy life in Chicago to move to the Texas small town, where she went to high school, with her husband and toddler son. Soon after, she becomes obsessed with the socialite Margot Banks. Margot is gorgeous and seems to have it all. One day, Margot invites Sophie to join her small group of friends, called the Hunting Wives, at her lake house. They like to drink and do target practice with shotguns. However, they get up to other secret wild and dangerous activities. When a body is found on the lake house property, Sophie ends up being one of the main suspects. Sophie has to save herself as her life spins out of control.

This was such an intense thriller. It had short chapters, which I always find makes me read the book faster. There were so many twists and unexpected events that I couldn’t predict where the story was going. I was completely surprised at the ending. I thought I had figured out what was happening but I was wrong. I love it when a story can surprise me like that.

There were some very intense and potentially triggering scenes. There were instances of alcohol abuse, drugging someone, and having affairs. There were also mentions of suicide and abortions. These things made the story very intense and dramatic, but these scenes could be triggering to some readers.

The Hunting Wives was an intense and surprising thriller!

Thank you Berkley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Not my cup of tea, almost didn’t want to finish it but wanted to find out who murdered whom. Bored housewives, social media stalkers, rich entitled women, cheating wives, underage sex, this story had it all.

A group of Texas woman get together weekly to drink, shoot skeet and essentially be unfaithful to their spouses. When the girlfriend of the son of one of the woman is found murdered, Sophie becomes the prime suspect. Sexy, provocative and scandalous. These woman may not be likeable, but you'll have a hard time turning away.

DNF at 40%. I’ve seen lots of friends who loved this book but it just wasn’t working for me. I have given it a good shot but not connected to the story. I don’t like any of the characters and don’t really care what happens to them. Thank you to Berkley and Netgalley for the advance reading copy.

Book Review of the Hunting Wives
By Nicole Harmon

Title: The Hunting Wives
Author: May Cobb
Publisher: Berkley an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC
Date: 2021

Book blurb: "My God; I've sunk so low. I feel like a fugitive, but a necessary one." Loc 4396
Summary
This story surrounds the following characters: Margot, Sophie, Jill, Callie, Brad, Jamie, Abby, Graham, Jack, Tina, and Detective Flynn; all entangled in this story of double murder. A group of women- Margo, Jill, Callie, and Tina are a part of the group called The Hunting Wives. The group meets to let off some steam and have sexual liaisons with men outside of their marriage. The one rule: No one ever actually commits the act of adultery. Into the mix is invited, Sophie. Sophie is intrigued by the women particularly Margot. She thinks she and Margot could have a good kissing friends relationship. In fact, in college Sophie had dated and had sex with another woman.
The invitation came to Sophie when she and her husband Graham went to a party. Their son Jack was at home. Not completely enjoying herself she saw her latest fantasy obsession on Facebook Margot Banks. And somehow got her personally invited to the Hunting Wives meeting. When she got there the ladies were drinking and enjoying their selves. Then the quintet started shooting birdies on the land. Sophie was deciding who she liked and who she didn't but always decided that she was excited and wanted to know Margot. Near the end of the first fateful meeting, Sophie got invited to the night out. The girls all go to a club and meet men. While there the four now five have liaisons with men outside of their married life as long as they don't go all the way. The first night out Brad and Jamie join in. Sophie quickly sees that Brad and Margot have a more serious liaison than some think. But this still doesn't deter her from the fantasy that Margot would be sexually interested in Sophie.
After that first meeting the group now number seven hung out together drinking and playing around. Into this seven-topped group comes Abby. She is friendly with the two younger men- this becomes important later on. And this group goes out together often. But Jill isn't so happy about Brad and Margot's relationship. She hits Margot and tells her to leave her son alone. Meanwhile, the other members are feeling out who they like and what they want to do. Sophie although uncomfortable feels comfortable enough to drink and returns home late. This draws the suspicions of her husband who remains silent until he can't anymore.
Then one night after drinking- Abby turns up dead on the property. She was shot with a rifle. The only person noted to be there was Sophie. Sophie, approached by the cops admitted to being there but not knowing that Abby was there. Nor did she admit what happened sexually but noted who else was there with her. The police officer then told her she was a suspect in the murder of Abby. Her husband kicked her out because she was if not in reality unfaithful almost as good as. Her son was told she was working.
Desperate to keep her family together she checks into a hotel. And then starts her investigation. Going to see Margot against the wishes of the police she finds out that Margot isn't above using Sophie to help her ends and that Callie would be turned on at a moment's notice. She also decided that Brad although handsome could be dangerous. Taking what she learned she approached the cops at the same time that she was informed of a second murder, that of Margot. Again a suspect Sophie became terrified and even more desperate to find out who the real culprit was.
In one last-ditch effort to find out what happened, she sees Jamie who gives her some very important information. Using that information she travels to Dallas to unearth the rest. Armed with that knowledge she contacts the police and Jill. That last meeting with Jill clinches the case.
Analysis
I give this book 5 stars but I have to say despite that rating it was a bit long for me. I loved the mystery and the unraveling of information. I can share some notes with you that I posted throughout the book:
• Leads to some event or happenstance
• End of event foreshadowing
• Go back and reread the last five pages
• Mindset and relationship
• Margot has the power to "kill" you in society
• Gee no one knows Sophie.
That is the last note. The rest deal with the actual crime that took place and the investigation.
I like the story and how it sets it up in what we do in today's life. All of us probably have a Facebook account and follow someone who we would love to meet, be or date. In Sophie's case, her love-fest was about Margot. But that didn't turn out so well. I felt she had this great life for herself or at least one that she liked having. One she chose. Even her mother didn't understand her choice. But her deciding factor was her son whom she wanted to know and to love. Then there was Graham. Her husband wouldn't understand even if he forgave. But she seemed to not want to destroy it but couldn't help herself. Jamie was a temptation she couldn't resist. Margot was a temptation she couldn't resist. As a result of those two sexual liaisons, she was the witness or main suspect in a crime of double murder.
I think anyone who reads this can see any saga on television or you read on real-life Facebook. It makes you question how much about yourself to reveal to people particularly on social media. Our obsession with social media, personas, and the right thing to do colors our lives-to the point that we sometimes forget who and what we are.
Although the crime, in the end, was solved she lost her life as she knew it and all for excuse me a piece of a--. Very well written and kept me reading more to find out. I think any who reads this will enjoy the book.
Disclosure: I received a copy of this book solely to write a review.

HOLY MOLY. This book. I finished this one awhile back, but this story is so disturbing that it's taken me a little time to formulate my review.

The entire plot is very squirm-worthy in so many ways. My first reaction to this book is that I hated it. Most of the characters are awful people that I hope to never meet in real life. The main character, Sophie, makes so many bad decisions that I wanted to scream at her. Sophie has a picture-perfect middle class life with an adoring husband and young son who both worship her. And then she messes this all up. Sophie reminds me of another main character, Erin of Something in the Water by Catherine Steadman (my review here). 

Sophie joins a group called The Hunting Wives, who are moneyed, bored, sexy housewives who live in a small Texas town. Since everything's bigger in Texas, they like to shoot large shotguns and binge drink on Friday nights. But that's not all they're into! The Hunting Wives love picking up random men in bars, sex with strangers, dancing, and staying out all night. It's very admirable how they balance this lifestyle with husbands and children.

Speaking of children, some of the wives are into having torrid affairs with teenage boys which is all kinds of wrong. If you want to read a book about a wild, over-the-top beautiful married women behaving very badly and making poor decisions, this book is for you.

This book was crazy! There was a lot that happened that you would never guess and every time I thought I had it figured out I was wrong. This story is much more than Mean Girls, it's more like Crazy Women with way too much time and money seeing what they can get away with!

I found this book supremely readable. The Hunting Wives has an interesting concept, very hateable characters (in a good way), and a compelling plot that propels you through the book. Spoiler: until the twist, with the main three suspects all being bi (presumably) and oversexualized did put me off quite a bit. I did appreciate that none of them ended up being the murderer, so it didn't totally villainize the only queer characters in the narrative, but I was worried about that through the last half of the book.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an e ARC of this book.
I had to force myself to finish this book. Chick lot at its worse
A bunch of rich entitled women who care only about themselves. Abuse, murder lots of triggers for those who are set off by this. Sorry I didn't like it but it is a real waste of time.

his one didn’t live up to the hype for me. It wasn’t bad, but I didn’t love it. {Thank you @berkleypub for the free book. #berkleypartner}⁣
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It was a really fast read, which is always a plus for me. Short chapters for the win! But it didn’t seem to me like much happened, I was hoping for more somehow I guess. I wasn’t that thrilled by the “thriller”. ⁣
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3.5/5 stars ✨

OH MY GOD. Sorry, just had to get that out of the way.
My initial attraction to this book is that I'm from East Texas. At first, I thought it would be just another dull read about bored, rich housewives, but it was nothing like I thought it would be. I couldn't put it down once I started reading it. Everyone is just so messed up, it was like watching a train wreck in slow motion. I highly recommend this one for anyone looking for a scandalous, salacious read this summer.

I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised with this book! A quick beach read filled with rich white women doing rich white woman things (drama, entitlement, more drama). The concept intrigued me right away and my post-pandemic brain appreciated the fast-paced plot. I would have liked to know a bit more about the main character and why she was so obsessed with Margot - I found myself questioning a bit her decision-making skills but it was more enjoyable once I realized that her lack thereof was the real driver of the plot. I'm not a huge thriller reader, and maybe this was a bit simplistic, but I devoured it in a couple days while floating in my pool - I'd say that counts for something! :)

Thanks to NetGalley & Berkley Publishing Group for the opportunity to read a free eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The anxiety reading this book gave me while watching Sophie make bad decision after bad decision after bad decision is almost indescribable. Suffice it to say that for about 90% of the book I had one palm pressed to my forehead while the other clutching my e-reader and my eyes the size of dinner plates. I also deeply wanted to grab Sophie by the shoulders and shake some sense into her. So I suppose one could say “The Hunting Wives” is a tense thriller with an unlikeable main character that you are only rooting for because you like her husband and son. It is well-written with a story that feels much like being dragged out on a bar crawl when you’re a homebody. You are filled with both a deep sense of reluctance to be a part of the activities but also a need to know how everything will turn out.
If you’re looking for a thriller that will give you heartburn from the anxiety, you will find that in “The Hunting Wives.” If you’re looking for a cozy murder mystery amongst a group of friends where you don’t know who to trust, this is not that book. “The Hunting Wives” takes a long hard look at the dark side of suburban life and the manipulation that can happen when there is an imbalance of power in any relationship.

It was very fast-paced and entertaining. It lead to some fun and dramatic conversations. Both my podcast and in my podcast-hosted online book club had a good time discussing it. I didn't find any of the characters likable, but that didn't detract from the book's shenanigans. Feel free to hear the full podcast discussion on this title.

The words "holy shit" come to mind. And I still can't really decide if that's a good thing or a bad thing.

Here's the good: this book is a major page-turner. From the get go, I was hooked. There was so much intrigue, it had kind of a Sex and the City mixed with Desperate Housewives vibe, and I just needed to know more. I mean hell, there was even a little bit of Gossip Girl thrown in, with Sophie being the outsider looking in.

That said, literally none of the characters are likeable. They range from Sophie's husband, who's kind of a wet blanket and totally does not pay attention, to Margot, who sleeps with underage kids and drinks alcohol like it's water and she's wasting away in the desert. And Sophie is somewhere in between, someone who can't think for herself and totally gets taken along for the ride.

At the end of this read, I didn't really know what I thought. So I ended up giving this book a C rating. It's trying to be good, but it's so ridiculous and unbelievable that I kind of disliked it as well. Definitely confusing.

This book was so twisted and amazing. Please keep an open mind when reading, because there are parts that seem unbelievable but take it for what it is….. an amazing ass book!

I said to my husband what the hell!

The ending left me 😦. This writing, and these characters were so crazy. This story was such a roller coaster ride and left me on the edge on my seat white knuckling my kindle!

I definitely would have liked to have more at the end. I had so much anxiety within this book and I would have loved to have more conclusions in the end.

However this book fucking killed! LITERALLY! What a twisted tale of lies.

I was hooked from the beginning in the fun wives club of wine and guns! 😬 Boy did this pack more than just a punch. More like a shotgun bang! 🔫

This reminded me of Bath Haus, The Neighbors, and I think Girl on the Train.

This was a BOTM pick for me as well so I was able to read this book in its physical form. Okay let me start by saying I know that this comparison is made a lot but this book gave me all the desperate housewives vibes in the best possible way. I must admit I can be a bit of a chicken when it comes books surrounding by murder /thrillers but I think that this book was just the all around perfect book for me. I mean it somehow felt glamorous and dirty, expensive but cheap, thrilling but comforting. I think the Sophie's obsession was truly gripping as I found myself getting addicted to trying to find out more about Margot and her life right along with Sophie. I am also pretty good at guessing who in the end did it, but I was pleasantly surprised by the twists in this book. Overall I think that this is a delicious read, and one I will re read again this summer for sure! I would love to see this be turned into a tv show. I just would love to be in this world for a little bit longer... it was that good.

I found this book difficult to review. It was very slow moving in the beginning and then it picked up. But then it became so convoluted...like everything happening at once. It was not enjoyable at the end.