Thank you Netgalley for this ARC of The Widow by Kaira Rouda.

Uuuuuugh, not a faaaaaaaan. Newsflash, everyone in this cutthroat political story are gross and corrupt and sociopaths. Okay, maybe not all of them, but literally, that's it, that's the story. I'm so bored.

If I could write this review in one word, it would be vapid. The characters are somehow unlikable and bland at the same time. Affairs, sketchy back door dealings, privilege, wealth, and facades. It's exactly what you would expect from a story like this, and I've read it.

This was my first Kaira Rouda book and I loved her writing style. I didn't enjoy this book as much because of the politics aspect, but the plot was definitely intriguing enough to keep me reading. I loved the guides interspersed between the chapters. I hope to read another book by the author soon

So I have to say that I think Jody might be one of my favourite villains of the year. She is so manipulative & scheming but it works so well with the story. I’m glad the American politics is mostly in the background as I don’t find that interesting, I really enjoyed the ending when Jody dropped her bomb on Mimi and then Mimi’s retaliation which brought down some high powered politicians in the story. All in all a good story which I enjoyed.

Thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the chance to read this book.

I will start off by saying I have enjoyed Kaira Rouda other books, This one Im not sure if it was the time or what I did not enjoy. It was slow and I just struggled with it.

The book description says "marriage, privilege, and lies" and I would say that's pretty accurate. This is a great book for you if you liked House of Cards. It was very much a novel of women getting ahead and men trying to control them.

I thought the guides/advice interspersed throughout the book were interesting as they highlighted how important the spouses and other parts of a politician's inner circle truly are. Unfortunately, there were quite a lot of them and they detracted from the flow of the story sometimes. One complaint I had was with big reveal at the end - it came out of left field and didn't feel hugely relevant or well explained.

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the opportunity to review this book ahead of publication. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

This book was excellent.
Great political thriller. The DC area makes for a great background. Everyone is hiding something and you have to keep up.

Well written and fast paced.

The Widow, by Kaira Rouda, tells the story of corruption and money in Washington. Every major character is flawed beyond redemption. There is absolutely no one to like or cheer. Yet, it was a fun, quick read as I tried to figure out who was playing who and for what purpose. As usual, I was surprised. I confess that I was left with a bit of distaste and a squeamish wonder as to how much of the government underbelly, regardless of which party is in power, was revealed.

I awarded 3.5 stars, rounded up to 4.0, mostly because the story captured my interest, despite my dislike of the characters and the implied message. Thanks to Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for the opportunity to read a digital ARC.

The Widow by Kaira Rouda has a very political setting thanks to Martin being in congress and Jody being a politician's wife, and I have to say I was a huge fan of this! Normally I am not big on politics in books, but I can never turn down a Rouda novel, and I'm glad I didn't let the topic deter me. It was actually really interesting, and despite the fact that basically every single character was despicable, I kind of loved how awful and devious they were. Jody especially was quite conniving (though if we're being honest Martin was worse), and she is one of the main viewpoints, so we are in her head a lot. I know this isn't going to be for everyone, but it worked really well for me and didn't make me want to throw my book across the room which was a plus. There are a few different viewpoints spread throughout the story, and I loved all of them along with the tips for new congressional spouses and more that split up every chapter.

The Widow also just so happens to be on Kindle Unlimited for both the eBook and the audiobook, and I really enjoyed the audio. There are 3 narrators, Donna Postel, George Newbern, and Nancy Wu, and I loved all of them! I saw some negative reviews saying the narrators were monotone, but I didn't think that to be the case at all, and it felt like really easy listening to me. I thought they were all nice to listen to and voiced their parts perfectly. I had no idea that Rouda's husband was a congressman and I loved that some of the events mentioned in the book are real. This story felt like it was a little bit of a departure from Rouda's previous novels, but I would definitely take more books from her set in D.C. The Widow felt a little bit like watching an episode of House of Cards and I was here for it!

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This was the first Kiara Rouda book that I have read even though I have several on my Kindle TBR. I was skeptical at first about this book because I despise all things politics, but this turned out to be a fun read.
I loved the powerful women aspect of the book even though both Jody and Mimi were vengeful and cutthroat. Jody by far was my favorite. Jody was other level crazy and she knew it, but she went after what she wanted. The ending was jaw dropping. I loved every minute of this book. Thank you Netgalley and Thomas & Mercer for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Wow! I really enjoyed this one by Kaira Rouda! New to me author and I’m so glad. This one hooked me early on and was super engaging. Loved the premise. So many great insights into the DC world. Loved the characters!
Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book

Totally gripping. Had to finish it in a day that I wasn't able to do any household chores! Haha. Thanks for the ARC!

I really have enjoyed this author's previous work, so I was very excited about this book. However it just wasn't a win for me. I despised all of the characters and it truly made this one hard to get through for me.

Sadly , despite loving previous Kaira Rouda novels, this one is only three stars for me. I found all the characters in this this book to be deportable . Jody was a rich entitled, cold hearted Ruthless woman, and I could not stand her. The ick factor of her husband Martin sleeping with his stepdaughter (he did not know) made my skin crawl. I look forward to Kaira 's other novel, but this was not the book for me.

I absolutely loved the Widow. I devoured this book in one sitting..Martin Asher is a congressman with secrets and his wife Jody really runs the show. The secrets, lies and betrayals make this story fly by. This is my favorite Kaira Rouda book so far

This is a really twisted story of manipulation and life in the power halls of D.C. Martin Asher makes a good puppet for his power-hungry wife Jody and is a seriously flawed character. He makes a good representative of what politicians are like, with his numerous affairs and his quest for riches as he gets further and further into debt. Jody is the perfect wife for him, ambitious enough for both of them. She finds herself in the enviable position of saving her husband’s reputation after his death and is determined to establish his legacy, no matter what she has to do to make sure that his past does not tarnish the future for her and her daughter. The machinations in this book are riveting and the characters are just evil enough that I wanted to read more and more, especially about how Jody planned to bury Martin’s past from the inquisitive reporter. Fast paced and riveting entertainment that is realistic and thoroughly engaging as well as informative.
Disclaimer
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255, “Guidelines Concerning the Use of Testimonials and Endorsements in Advertising.”

Thank you @netgalley for my e-arc of THE WIDOW in exchange for an honest review. This one published Dec 1!

I’ll keep this short- I didn’t really like this one. It started off strong, but then it felt like nothing was happening. I also didn’t like any of the characters 😅😑 I debated DNFing it, but at this point was at 60% and just decided to power through.

I like the premise/idea of the story- full of revenge, secrets and betrayal. But I have coke to realize I am not a huge fan of books with entitled, rich characters, and I don’t like characters who are all unlikeable… I have to like at least one character!

Overall, I don’t really recommend this book. If you have read any of this authors other books and likes them, then maybe pick this one up. It just wasn’t for me.

The Widow is a political thriller that revolves around three main characters:

Jody is the definition of a narcissist. A wife, mother, and friend who isn’t capable of caring about anyone other than herself. The question is, exactly how dangerous is she?

Martin is the Congressman, the man in charge, or is he? Is he on the up and up, or is he the epitome of a crooked politician?

Mimi is the best friend. The friend that helped Martin grow his political career and reach his aspirations. But is she the friend she claims to be?

Politics are a very dangerous game…

I give this one ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.

Looking for a suspenseful political drama/thriller with a main character that knows what she wants and will do anything to get it? This is the book for you! I love the tips for congressional spouses and multiple viewpoint chapters. It's not super twisty, but there are a few surprises and I really enjoy Kaira's writing style.

I've read a previous book by this author and really liked it, but this one just wasn't for me. It was more of a political drama, and reading about politics, even a fictional account, is just not enjoyable to me.

Although I didn't care much for this one, it has a good rating on Goodreads so it's worth checking out, especially if you don't mind politically based plots.

Thank you to @netgalley, Thomas and Mercer and the author for the e-arc of this book.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for gifting me a digital ARC of the latest suspense novel by a favorite, Kaira Rouda - 4 stars!

Jody Asher is the perfect political wife to her husband Martin, who has been a congressman for 15 terms. While he didn't have the ambitions that Jody did, life was good. Until Martin's behaviors caught up with him right before their daughter's society wedding. When Martin dies, Jody takes matters into her own hands.

This is a different book from Rouda - not quite edge-of-your-seat suspense, but more of an interesting look into politics and people who will do anything for power and prestige in a city where that's all that matters. Told from different perspectives of the major players, we were privy to all the behind the scenes deceit. I loved the messages between chapters from Jody and others, giving hints to newcomers to the DC political arena. And Rouda knows whereof she speaks - her husband was a congressman. This book has short chapters, dark humor, and lots of backstabbing!