3.5 stars

Kristin Miller's "The Sinful Lives of Trophy Wives" is a great beach/summertime read! The ladies of Presidio Terrace give whole new meaning to the term “desperate housewives”. Brooke, Erin & Georgia appear to have it all. Their perfect lives, just the right address & wealthy spouses can’t always buy happiness. They each have their own backstory but have banded together on a real roller coaster of a ride. Just how far will they go to keep their secrets & protect their friends??? Lots of twists & turns along the way…some unexpected but a bit predictable at times.

A quick & easy read. Great character portrayals. Hard to relate to but interesting to read about. If you are looking for a great soap opera style read… this one is for you.

Thank you @NetGalley & Penguin Random House Publishing for the ARC of this book.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this novel. I thought the the story would go in a different direction so unfortunately I'm not able to finish it at this time.

From my blog: Always With A Book:

This is the first book I’ve read by Kristin Miller and it was just deliciously fun and wicked! When I was first asked about it, I immediately got Desperate Housewives vibes, which was such a guilty pleasure for me, and I have to say, that’s exactly what I felt when reading this – a purely entertaining, thrilling read with a little mystery thrown in!

I loved how twisted and addicting this book was…it really grabs you right away and that never seems to let up with some crazy antics happening to hook you further. The idea that not everything is as it seems could not be farther from the truth here and I absolutely loved that. These three women have notoriety, but it’s not quite for reasons you may think and I loved being able to hang with them and learn their deep, dark secrets!

It’s no surprise that a book filled with drama and intrigue is going to be a winner – and of course you have plenty of scandal and misdirection along the way. I definitely did not see the ending coming and wouldn’t mind a sequel if the author was so inclined! But either way, this is definitely the perfect book to add to your summer reading list – it’s a binge-worthy read that is sure to entertain and keep you flipping those pages!

Mystery writer Brooke Davies and her husband just moved into an expansive home in the elite, very private and high-security Presidio Terrace neighborhood in San Francisco. Jack is a billionaire CEO of a tech company, and Brooke is his new, much younger wife.

She immediately meets Erin King, a TV news anchor and wife to a plastic surgeon (and personal beneficiary of his medical skill), who goes on to introduce her to Georgia St. Claire, who is infamous for being the “Black Widow” — her first two husbands died within a year of their marriages. She became rich upon their deaths, and many believe she murdered them for their wealth. Now she’s about to marry for the third time.

All three women are beautiful and could be seen as having the perfect lives. But that’s rarely the case, is it?

When a tragedy occurs yet again in Georgia’s proximity, everyone wonders if she’s ever told the truth and what she may be capable of. Meanwhile, Erin is trying to attract her husband’s attention, fearing he’s having an affair. And Brooke feels like a prisoner in her beautiful home. Her new friendships with Erin and Georgia are not only bright spots in her days but are giving her inspiration with her writing.

The Sinful Lives of Trophy Wives is an over-the-top story of mystery and suspense populated with characters who could be plucked from nighttime soaps. It’s entertaining if you’re in the mood for that sort of read and has a few little twists.

This book is Hunting Wives meets Woman in Cabin 10 meets Desperate Housewives. It’s a quick, fun escape, and I didn’t guess the twist at the end although I realize now that it was staring me in the face! I love books about rich people behaving badly, and this one was no exception. There’s just something about catty, backstabbing women that I love to read, which is why I picked this one up.

Oddly, though, these women seem to actually be genuine friends! They’re still absurd (I honestly wanted more HOA drama, I live for that stuff), but not in the way I was expecting.

The ending turns out a bit wild and over-the-top, but with the right amount of suspension of belief it’s enjoyable. This book is the definition of a popcorn read, a quick one that’s perfect for a day at the beach.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Brooke is a mystery writer a moves to a prestigious area of San Francisco with her husband whom is significantly older than her. When she befriends two local wives on the Terrace, she starts uncovering what they have to do to stay perfect. Erin is a news anchor who walks off her job and decides to try being a “housewife”. Georgia is called the “Black Widow” because her husbands keep dying after they marry her. When Georgia’s most recent fiancé disappears right before their wedding, everyone looks right at Georgia although she has nothing to gain, they aren’t married.

This was a fun quick summer read. My favorite kind of summer read keeps me interested and having less than 300 pages I was in! I love a good mystery with a twist I never saw coming. The housewives are secretive and it makes for a good page turner. The book goes between the 3 women narrating which kept me interested.

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Random House for the e-Arc!

This was a deliciously quick and easy read, I loves me some soap opera type drama once in a while!

I would have given 5 stars, but I felt the different backstories could have been explained a lot better and there were instances where the storyline kind of dropped off. All in all I loved it though!

Unfortunately this was just barely ok for me. The characters were annoying and unlikable (and not in a villain you love to hate kind of way). They were constantly engaged in behaviors that made no sense, and their dialogue was not realistic for wives of million/billionaires. It didn’t feel like a thriller as there was nothing that had me on the edge of my seat and the “twists” were so rushed they didn’t have any impact on me at all. A lot of errors, too. I do appreciate the opportunity from Netgalley to read an ARC, but sadly this book is one for 2021 that I’ll find very forgettable.

Brooke is new to Presidio Terrace. As the new girl on the block, Erin and Georgia, PT veterans, decide to befriend her, but Brooke's billionaire husband isn't so sure this is the company she should be keeping. Georgia is known around town as The Black Widow. Two of her husbands mysteriously died in her PT home, and she's on the eve of Marriage Number Three. And Erin, a top news anchor, just walked out on her job. Brooke decides to defy her husband for once & attempts to get to know her neighbors. But once she starts digging, will she like what finds? Or are some secrets better left buried?

This was pure, sinful fun! I don't know about you, but I loved Desperate Housewives when it was on TV. It was a Sunday night routine for me and my grandmother. We'd settle in and watch what the women on Wisteria Lane were up to. This book had all the Desperate Housewives vibes. Told from three POVs, this story grabbed my attention from the get go. I was hooked. There was murder. There were lies. There were questionable friendships and questionable relationships. I guessed one part of the storyline but not the main twist. Overall, this was a quick, fun, guilty pleasure of a story. Check it out - you won't be disappointed!

This book showed up on a lot of lists and newsletters for this summer, so I was excited to get approved for an ARC copy of the book. I see the 4 & 5 star reviews for the book, and so many who seemed to really love the book, but I felt like I was reading a totally different book. This was no where near a 4 star book for me. I know this is an unpopular opinion, but I found nothing gripping or page turning in this book. I didn't care for any of the characters and the writing itself seemed really flat and 2-dimentional.

I did finish the book, but it was a chore for me to finish the book. Had it not been an ARC, I would have quit reading around 20% into the book because it just really did nothing for me.

5 star book for me! Definitely kept me interested only down fall is a shorter book. I was skeptical before reading it I don’t really care for the cover but over all it was a nice read.

This was not a super high quality book, but what a fun one!
Each chapter revealed more twists and more craziness. You have to laugh along this journey.
I can't say it was high quality literary work, but was a fun lighter read that I flew through.

In Persidio Terrace in San Francisco's exclusive neighborhood we come across 3 trophy wives:
Brook Davies: New to the block and is a Mystery writer whose much older husband Jack is a tech-billionaire who likes to appear he controls his wife and expect perfection.
Erin King: The famous news anchor whose husband is a plastic surgeon which helps her maintain her looks. Her busy schedule and ambition has caused a rift in their marriage.
Georgie St. Claire: Nickname the "Black Widow" since her first two husbands died under questionable situations and she ended up with all their money. Now she is getting ready for marriage number 3 and claims this one is love.
Tragedy strikes when Georgie's Fiancee goes missing. People are wondering if Georgie has she struck again? As the 3 trophy wives become involved in each other's lives things come to light. Will we discover what happened to Georgie's Fiancee and how will the new girl on the block be accepted by Erin and Georgie? Being a trophy wive is not as simple as it looks.

This story is told in 1st person point of view by each member and it makes the story oh so good! All I can say is there is a plot twist and I don't want to give much away because it is best you go into this book blind and savor it! Do yourself a favor and it you like mystery and drama this is the book for you. I highly recommend!

Campy, twisty beach read. You, dear reader, definitely need to be in the mood for an escape read. It's not particularly thrilling. This book is billed as psychological suspense, but it's really more frothy than a substantive thriller. All the characters are completely unlikeable, but I'm not quite sure I was the right reader for this type of book. If you enjoy soapy drama with characters you love to hate, you would probably enjoy this one.

Thank you to Ballantine Books and NetGalley for my copy.

The Sinful Lives of Trophy Wives by Kristin Miller is a domestic thriller about three couples that live in Presidio Terrace, San Francisco's most exclusive neighborhood. Jack and Brooke have just moved to the neighborhood, while Mason and Erin and Georgia St. Claire and her soon-to-be third husband have lived there for a while. Brooke is a mystery writer, and she is very quickly thrown into all of Erin and Georgia's drama. This book reminded me a lot of Desperate Housewives with all the secrets, untimely deaths, and kidnapping. There was also a fun twist towards the end of the story that I really liked. Thanks to NetGalley for the free digital review copy. All opinions are my own.

This took me back a couple years to watching those night time soap operas where the wealthy live, friendships based in deception, frenemies, wives trying to kill their husbands, infidelities, catfights - this has it all. Perfect summer read.

I received a free ARC in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to the publisher for this opportunity. Will be posting a review of this on my bookstagram account.

I loved this book, I was hooked trying to figure out how each of these women would be involved with the mysterious happenings of the book. I feel like often now with thrillers unfortunately the plot feels stale or easy to predict. This book kept me on my toes and I loved it. The devious and twisted lives of these rich housewives is a character of its own in this book. The plot moved fast and I got through the book in one sitting because I had to figure out how all the loose strings connected.

Looking forward to reading more from this author!

Thank you to the publisher for an e-ARC of this novel. This was an okay mystery/thriller. I didn't love the characters, so found it hard to be overly invested in their outcome.

If you're a fan of Real Housewives, you'll love The Sinful Lives of Trophy Wives! A fun, voyeuristic read.

This book was very disappointing for me. It is set in a wealthy, exclusive neighborhood, and the female characters are all unlikeable trophy wives with an annoying sense of entitlement. I just could not make myself care about their so-called problems. The plot felt a bit ridiculous, and the twist was not thrilling for me. I honestly do not have much to say about it because I did not enjoy it.