OMG THIS BOOK WAS A RIDE!! It was a bit slow paced at the start but I’ve come to expect that from these sort of books but once it started to click, it was a hell of a read. There was some things I guessed before hand but the final twists at the end I did not expect at all. Samantha did a fantastic job writing this book, I was hooked on Jen and I would love to see an adaptation of this on a tv screen or film screen soon! However if you do want to read this book, I would look up any trigger and content warnings for this book cause I know that some people may find the content that is dealt in this book very triggering

Thank you to Bookouture and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

The Trapped Wife by Samantha Hayes is an explosive, powerhouse mystery that will blow the rest of this year's domestic thrillers out of the water! After reading this synopsis, I went into this thinking that this would be a typical run-of-the-mill thriller about a lonely wife and a domineering man. I was so wrong. In fact, I recommend that you skip the synopsis and go into this book blind, because it gives away more than it has to. The bare-bones plot is this: Jen is a doctor whose husband died in a ski trip recently, leaving her and her 16 year-old son Kieran to fend for themselves. One day, she gets a male patient named Scott, but when she sees him, she starts getting flashbacks and feelings of unease. Has she met Scott before? And what does he want from her?

Here's a gripping excerpt from the beginning of Chapter 1, which is from Jen's perspective:

"I stare at the pregnancy test strip, waiting for the results. My cheeks still smart from the dank February air outside, even though it's warm in my office. Too warm, I think, making a mental note to ask Peggy to turn the heating down. I glance at my watch. Fifteen minutes until clinic starts - my first day back at work since... since the accident six weeks ago. Since I lost Jeremy, my husband. And only three minutes to find out what the rest of my life holds.
My hands are shaking, so I close my eyes and take a few deep breaths. It does little to ease the ache in my heart, the fear flowing through my veins. I miss him so much."

Overall, I cannot say enough good things about The Trapped Wife, which I am giving 5 brilliant stars! The author isn't a "big name" like B. A. Paris or Ruth Ware, but I think that this book can take its place right up there with the bestsellers in domestic thrillers. It was that good. The author is a master in laying out clues and tiny details, red herrings, and other hallmarks of the mystery genre. I felt like I was reading an actual mystery and not just a domestic thriller. I had some things about the ending figured out, but other things, I had absolutely no idea were coming.

I took a break in the middle of the book to go to sleep, and I literally could not stop thinking about possible theories and explanations of what was happening in the book. After a restless night, I got back up and finished the second half of the book quickly. The climax and ending are amazing, and everything that was built up in the first half of the book came together perfectly at the end. I am telling you that this is not a book that you want to miss out on! If you're intrigued by the excerpt above, or if you're a fan of thrillers in general, you won't regret checking out this book when it comes out in September!

Apologies but a DNF at 40% for me, not liking the story or any of the characters and found it unbelievable how the main character reacted to certain things,apologies again

Samantha Hayes has another hit on her hands! I have had the pleasure of reading a few of her previous books and I have enjoyed them all. I was excited to read this one and it didn't disappoint. I read this book in one day because each chapter left me wanting more and more. That's the sign of a good thriller to me!

The beginning of this book was a bit slow but my interest was piqued so I had to keep reading. The book has multiple pov's between Jen, her friend, and a young boy from the past. Multiple pov's can be confusing but it wasn't while reading this. Each character has their own distinct voice and their own motives. I never understood Jen and I couldn't understand the decisions she kept making. I wanted to scream at the end of every chapter she narrated because I was beyond frustrated with her. But by the end, it all came together. That's not to say I wasn't shocked by the end of this book! The last 40% of this book was so good! I couldn't believe all the twist Samantha kept throwing in this book. There was quite a few and I didn't say many of them coming. The narration from the past has such a insane reveal that I'm still not over it. I had to read that chapter a few times, just to wrap my mind around it.

The cover is right when it says "whatever you think you know...you're wrong." Enjoy the ride that is this novel. You're in for a thrilling and twist filled book! This is easily a 4 star read for me.

Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for providing an advanced reader's copy of this book in exchange for my honest thoughts.

I really need to give so much praise to the author for her newest psychological thriller novel. It is so so bloody good. I read it in a couple of days and was fully invested from the prologue chapter. While on holiday, I kept picking it up to read a sneaky chapter whenever I could!

It had everything I love about this genre, the slow build, the twists throughout with drip fed information and those last few chapters that tie it all together and of course the ultimate chapter that cements it as a top read of the year!

An absolutely brilliant premise with a great ending! I am absolutely floored!

How do you write a review for such a fantastic book and do it justice? I’m not sure I can, so just go pre-order and read it for yourself.

A massive five stars from me!

Thanks to NetGalley for an advanced copy.

This book just wasn’t for me. It was extremely slow and I really struggled to get through it.

A great thriller from start to finish. Written in the past and present and told from different character views there was plenty of twists and turns along the way. Some I guessed but there was a big one I didn’t. Love being surprised! Definitely recommend reading this book.

My Review:
Another great book by the fabulous author Samantha Hayes. Every time I see that she has a new book coming out I jump up and down with joy knowing I will love it even before reading it. She has written many books but this may be her best one yet. She really hit this one out of the ballpark. I can’t wait to read her next book.

Let me start off by saying that I loved this book. The characters really made this book pop. I especially loved Jen. Just when you thought you knew what she was all about BAM the author throws the readers for a loop. This character really surprised me at the end. It was like opening gifts on Christmas morning. I also loved the way the chapters alternated between characters. This kept the book interesting and fast paced. There was never a dull moment in the book. Now on to that shocking ending. I almost had a heart attack and fell over while I was reading it. I would’ve never guessed it in a million years. I thought I knew by the middle of book were it was going but I was wrong, dead wrong. Samantha Hayes has a few tricks up her sleeve with this book. This book was so worth my time and I loved every minute of it.

Between the plot, characters and all the twists in this book it made it an easy and fast read. I would definitely recommend it and happily give it 5 Hearts❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

When everyone seems to be lying, including the main character of the novel, who are you left to believe? This book was a great thriller that had me hooked from the very beginning. I loved reading the chapters from altering POV's - Jen in the present and a boy in the past by the name of Evan. Evan seemed to be an unfortunate, mischievous boy who was out looking for trouble.. or did trouble seem to find him? Flash forward to the present, and Jen is being manipulated and blackmailed by a man in her present by the name of Jeremy. He seems to enjoy playing with her and making her squirm as she must do everything he says he does after all have blackmail he can use against her that will ruin her life.

Many times I was mad at Jen for her choices. Why allow this man Jeremy rule and dictate her life? Just tell him to fly away and leave her alone, and just suffer the consequences of the blackmail whatever that may be. She can get through it. Of course I felt bad at times for Jen as well for what she was going through. She was intimidated, scared, bullied and felt she had nowhere or no one to turn to for help or advice.

There were many revelations in this novel - some I actually predicted and others I was close but never quite was close to figuring out the true story. Many shocking twists and turns that had me hooked, I read this book in just a day.. I loved this book and I highly recommend you add this thriller to your TBR list. You'll be hooked as well!

This book seemed interesting based on the blurb and it doesn't disappoint on that front. The story is mainly told in two alternating narratives - Jen in the present and a young boy in the past. Jen's husband passed away several months ago on a skiing trip and she and her son, Kieran, are trying to cope and move on with their lives. When a new patient shows up at her surgery, she's left with an odd sense that she knows him but can't figure it out. It turns out that she attended a medical seminar awhile back and awoke from a night of drinking in the hotel with no memory of the previous evening. She's certain this patient is connected to that night, but fears her mind will never recall the lost moments.

The young boy in the past is an outsider with a rough home life and no friends until he meets Mac, a classmate of his who shares the same fascination with bugs and creepy crawlies. They also share the tendency to harm these bugs, which creates an odd bond between them. As they grow closer, they dream of hurting those who treat them badly and come up with the name 'Kill Club' for themselves. That can only foreshadow good things, right??

It's hard to say any more, especially about the Jen's timeframe, as there are several twists. Some you might see coming, others may surprise you. The author does a good job of leading you to think one way and then revealing just how wrong you were. I did feel near the end that certain wrongdoers should have been held more accountable while other actions were glossed over. I wish I could elaborate, but I don't want to divulge anything about this twisty tale - you'll just have to read it yourself and draw your own conclusions!

Mark your calendars! Publish date for #TheTrappedWife is on 8 Sep 2021!
I will definitely buy my own copy of this book even if I've read it already just to add it on my shelf and re-read it again in the future.

This book was just BRILLIANT! It's a definite 5 star read for me. I don't know how many times I've picked my jaws up off the floor. It was a dark, mind-blowing, and twisty read. A definite page-turner that got me gripped from the first word down to the last. I 100% agree with what it says on the cover - "Whatever you think you know... you're wrong". I was so wrong. It's been a while since I've been surprised with the plot twists. It's really refreshing from the usual thrillers that I've been reading on Netgalley.

This book however is a bit difficult to summarize as there is a lot of storylines to follow (I will try my best to summarize it later when I post my full review) - it may be a bit slow in the beginning but when it starts to pick up you'd be at the edge of your seat, flipping through the pages as quick as you can just to see what happens next.

Thank you to #NetGalley and #Bookouture for providing an advanced reader's copy of this book in exchange for a genuine review. A full review will be posted later once I get to process everything and get over this book hangover. I will just edit this review later and post my full review below. Thank you Samantha Hayes for writing this story. I recommend this book highly especially to readers who are seeking a refreshing set of plot twists! For fans of unpredictable twists and turns.

Thanks NetGalley, Bookouture and Samantha Hayes for an eARC to review.
It's difficult for me to review this book, on one side the writing style is engaging and I like the writer's previous books. Though I had a hard time reading this one due to the nature of the crime portrayed in the Then chapters and the Evan and Mac's story.
I liked but didn't enjoy reading it.

What a NIGHTMARE, in the best thriller way! I loved how all the characters became so intertwined. You’re just curiously reading, not really knowing what’s about to happen (or you think you have a really good idea) and then BAM… something completely unpredictable happens, and continues to happen. It’s eerie, it’s intense, and most of the time completely shocking. Scott gives me full-body chills because he is so freakin’ creepy. Jen made me so mad at times.. Like girl, don't let him in your house! But then, it all makes sense in the end.

Only thing I didn’t like was Jen’s poor decisions. I often found myself shaking my head because I was disappointed in her, but she definitely redeems herself/you realize she isn’t as she seems.

This book reads like a scary movie, when you know the killer is upstairs and as the main character slowly walks up you’re yelling “don’t go up there, get out of the house!” This one was a great creepy thriller! It was my first book by Samantha Hayes and it won't be my last!

The synopsis got me right away on this one. It was so so good. This book was a fantastic thriller, I flew through it. Great twists and Story. Thank you so much NetGalley for this ARC!

I hated putting this book down! It was so gripping and had so many twists that kept me guessing. All the way through I was screaming at the main female character but in the end it all made.pwrfect sense. I can't wait to read another by Samantha Hayes

Quite the surprise ending on this one. I’m a fan of being surprised by the twists and this one was unexpected. Not one of the many possibilities I had in my head. The book started a bit slow, but picked up midway through. The main character made some sketchy choices, but they made sense by the end. The author is from the UK, so there was quite a few British words and phrases that I was unfamiliar with. But nothing a little internet search couldn’t help with. I was drawn to the cover of the book and the title. I love the butterfly, but the title didn’t seem to quite capture the essence of the book. I overall enjoyed this book though and would recommend it to any thriller or mystery lover.

Jennifer Miller is a grieving widow, family doctor and mother of a 16 year old. Her husband Jeremy recently died in a freak avalanche in Switzerland while on a ski trip. She’s sure her husband was cheating on her with his assistant and that they went together on the trip. Jen keeps having flashbacks to a night she doesn’t remember and then a strange man keeps popping into her life. What happened that night and who is this man?

Thanks to Net Galley and Bookouture for the advanced e-copy of the book. It will be available on September 8th.

Started out a little slow for me.....but stuck with it and the second half was full of twists and everything starts to make sense. Great characters and storyline..

Thanks to the author, the publisher and NetGalley for an early release of this book.

This novel is written in dual timeframe and dual narration. The two main threads tell the story of a local GP and the loss of her husband and the second thread is about two childhood friends who love being in the wild with nature all around them.
Jennifer Miller is a doctor working in the local GP surgery. She is well respected and popular. She lives with her husband, a would-be author, and their teenage son Kieran. Their home is luxurious with beautiful views over their garden and land. There is even a lake on their secluded property. Although they are a golden couple, Jen has suspicions that her husband is playing away. She thinks that he is having an affair with his assistant. They are soon due to travel abroad together yet again. Later on in this thread comes the news that her husband is missing, presumed dead, taken away in an avalanche whilst skiing off-piste. Some bodies have been recovered but now the search has been abandoned. Jen and Kieran are distraught and she is left with regrets and guilt of the harsh words they had before he left for the airport.
Two lonely boys forge a friendship on the school playground. Mac and Evan soon build a strong friendship and become inseparable, enjoying cycling together and nature watching. They form a two-boy club that they call the Kill Club. They catch spiders, maim them and watch them as they die, full of wonder and excitement. They explore animal carcasses and make a den where they keep personal items hidden away from sight. Although they are from different sorts of families, they are loyal and stick up for each other. They feel invincible.
Jen and Kieran grieve. Jen takes compassionate leave as she tries to move forward. They begin to make new lives for themselves with the support of Jen’s best friend Rhonda, her husband and her daughter Caitlin. Then a stranger knocks on her door and Jen feels compelled to let him in. He tells her his name is Scott. He seems to know a lot about her but Jen cannot work out why he seems so familiar. He is pushy, even sinister at times but is determined to be a cuckoo in her nest. Jen has the feeling she must keep him onside, as bit by bit she remembers a symposium in Oxford that she attended. Scott is weird and sometimes he is rough. He lies to her and threatens her. But she is keeping a huge secret too. This is Jennifer’s story, and what a cracker it is.
Samantha Hayes is a talented storyteller. Her preferred genre is dark and twisted psychological thrillers. She weaves her story threads together deliberately throwing in red herrings, twists in the story and bloodcurdling shocks. The characters in her story are well-crafted and developed with an astute eye on her intriguing and complex storyboard. This story is full of menace, tension and is fast-paced. The final twist in the story is massively breath-taking and as usual totally unexpected. I thought it was inspirational. I received a complimentary copy of this story from publisher Bookouture and through my membership of NetGalley. Thank you for my copy sent in return for an honest review. I have followed Samantha Hayes for years and I always enjoy her novels. These are my own honest opinions without any outside influences. It’s a 4.5* review from me.

The Trapped Wife by Samantha Hayes is a psychological thriller. I really enjoyed this book. It was interesting and exciting all the way through. Jen is a doctor whose husband disappeared in an avalanche. After hours at a medical convention she went out drinking and ended up sleeping with a stranger. Later, a man shows up at her house and starts moving in. She has flashbacks of him and eventually figures it out. There are a lot of twists in this one, most of which I didn't see coming, though one major one that I did. Excellent tension level and pacing in this book! I highly recommend it!
Thank you to Netgalley for providing me this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book is intriguing and certainly keeps you turning the pages as you try to piece everything together! It's a typical domestic suspense, which features on understanding the characters.. Though I've looked at a few Samantha Hayes books before, this was the first one I've read. It certainly won't be the last - in fact I'm checking out her backlist now to pick my next read! Thanks to NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.