Pacy enoyable thriller. The Young Widows club is Isabel, Adrianna , Kylie and newcomer Hannah, they've held each other's hands through loss and sorrow, told each other their life stories but all are keeping big secrets. What follows is a gripping read of power and the abuse of it. Can these widows ever trust a man again?

Right off the bat I'm going to say that this one was hard to follow at times. Not because there were four women at the center of things. No, it was because each chapter was told from a DIFFERENT point of view of either one of the four, or the character called "the watcher". Added to that, the characters, in my opinion, so closely resembled each other that I sometimes had trouble remembering who was who and what their story was.

However, even with that, I found the book to be paced well enough that I was never bored while reading it. In fact, I spent much of the book trying to figure out which woman was the one who had never been married before as the secrets they carried were all (mostly) spelled out for the reader (if never spoken aloud to the others).

The depths of those secrets though? Came together in a way that I had never thought possible. And even when I thought I had one part of the story figured out, there was still another twist waiting in the wings that I had not seen coming.

That being said, I would definitely read more from this author in the future as I am curious to see where they take their stories after everything they achieved with this one.

DISCLAIMER: I received a complimentary copy of this novel from the publisher. This has not affected my review in any way. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are 100% my own.

It starts out as a support group for young women who have become widows and are using this group for support and friendship. The members are Adriana, Isabel and Kylie. A fourth member, Hannah joins the group, her recent grief is a fresh reminder for the rest of the group. Each group member is hiding something, yet it seems one member was never even married. This is a fast paced psychological thriller with plenty of twists that will have you hooked. Thank you to NetGalley, Avon Books UK and the author for the chance to review.

Four women, all with one thing in common. They are all young widows. But, is it really just grief that brings these women together? Or is there something else that we don't know about.

The Young Widows is told from the points of view of each of the women. This way we get to learn about each of them separately, but also how they interact with each other. There were times that I was getting confused about the different backstories, but that is purely because of my reading habits and homelife going on around.

Reading from different points of view is my preferred reading style, put to one side my confusion I really enjoyed the way this was written. And, thrown in was an unexpected point of view. A mysterious person that kept me guessing and trying to piece the connections together.

The theme of grief flows through the narrative, but we soon learn that the women all deal with their grief in differing ways. There is also a clear theme of something else in this story but you will have to read to realise what, because it would be a spoiler for me to reveal.

I really enjoyed how the women's stories progress and how the interaction is between them.

"We weren’t only young widows, we were misfit widows, too. We needed each other."

This book was well-written and even humorous, at times. It also had a huge level of being predictable but at least this book had a good plot and characters. Readable but not memorable.

Recommended. Some will like this and others will not.

THanks to Netgalley, SJ Short and Avon Books UK for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Available Feb 1, 2024

The Young Widows is an interesting story with interesting characters. I did like it but found it slightly predictable in places so for me it was more of an OK read than anything else.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for my ARC.

Three women who became widows in their 20’s find each other online and forge a friendship and support group for each other. Each one had a different type of marriage and all have secrets they have not shared. As Adriana prepares to get remarried she is slow to tell them or introduce them and she starts to get messages that her new fiancé is dangerous. The past comes back to haunt them as the secrets unfold and the many twists and turns had me on the edge of my seat to see what was happening and if their sisterhood of shared grief would withstand the secrets.

Thank you to Avon Books for the ARC! #NetGalley

What a clever and original story. Four young women, all widows and all with demons and secrets. Meeting up regularly, they support each other through their shared grief. However, each is reserved and doesn’t want to reveal their true selves to this group of friends who would all go out of their way to help one another. Their husbands died in different ways and circumstances. Some longer ago than others but the problems the women faced were all down to their individual losses. As the story progresses deceptions are revealed and together with the additional traumatic experiences each of them has gone through or is still going through it becomes a brilliant page turning roller coaster of a book. I loved the twists and ultimate satisfying conclusions.

A very enjoyable and different story ,set in Melbourne four young widows form a group to help one another through the grief .Each one has a secret she keeps from the others and demons to deal with and sometimes revenge .A very clever twisty tale with some interesting characters .Thank you to NetGalley for my ARC

A good build up to an ending I didn’t see coming - a group of young widows forge a tight friendship group supporting each other as they try to cope after the loss of their husbands . One of the group has moved on and is engaged to be married - but somebody knows that her husband to be is not what he seems … separate stories keep this book at a good pace building the characters really well until it all comes together in a twisted ending … really enjoyed this book

Unputdownable. The titular young widows are each clearly hiding something, and as we learn what those things are, we get a peek into their very different lives, brought together by one common thing - grief. Or is it?

Despite the story being a four-person narrative, each voice was distinct to me and clear to identify. The author navigates the story in a very clever way and I was hooked to the end.

Grief brought the Young Widows club together but it's the secrets they keep from each other which makes them intrinsically linked.

Overall I enjoyed the book with the subtle descriptive narrative of Melbourne life.
Whilst reading I could begin to see what was going to be revealed but I thought it was well brought together.

The individual stories of each character build up well and whilst I could overlook the unlikely 'twists' and just enjoy the unfolding story I did struggle with them all pertaining to be family but not discuss what had happened at the end.

Adriana, Isobel, Kylie and Hannah are 4 young women who meet up on a regular basis, at first glance you would assume none of them have anything in common but they were drawn together as a support network due to them all being young widows. But all of them have secrets they are keeping from each other. As the story progresses it becomes clear that secrets will not stay covered forever.
I wouldn't necessarily consider this a psychological thriller but it was very entertaining and a fast paced novel. I could imagine this being made into a TV drama and would happily watch it

The young widows, a group of women who get together weekly for a support group of sorts. But how well do they really know each other? Kylie shows up wearing expensive shoes, but they all know she is struggling financially. Isabel hides away, her past trauma poking out of the surface but she keeps her cards very close to her chest. Adriana is getting married again, but is she ready to show him to the group of women? Then there’s Hannah, the newest member, will she be welcomed into the group?

At first I struggled with this book with the sudden switch of characters, however I’m really pleased I carried on because it is a truly brilliant read. Full of twists and surprises that you think you have worked out but you haven’t. Highly recommended

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this eARC.

Everything is not as it seems for this group of young grieving widows, because at least one of these young women is keeping secrets from her group of friends. As all mystery readers know, all too often, secrets can be deadly.

An entertaining, enjoyable mystery told by a talented wordsmith.. The ultimate revenge novel!

Shared grief is was brought Adrianna, Isabelle, Kylie and Hannah together. Grief over the death of their husbands gone far too soon. But they each also have secrets. Secrets they are not willing to share with each other.
A fast, paced captivating story of complete strangers bonding, becoming friends with nothing in common but their grief. Or is it?
The characters were great and the plot built to a surprising ending. Thank you Netgalley and Avon Books for an early copy. This review is my honest opinion and voluntarily given.

I am sorry to say that this book didn't float my boat.I just didn't really connect with the characters. I hope other readers enjoy it more.

The young widows centres around four females who have lost their partner’s,they meet up regularly as a support group to each other and start to form a good friendship, however each member has their own secret/ heartache/ motive and things aren’t what they seem!
Each member brings something different to the group, Kylie has a drink problem, Hannah newest to the group and unsure if her place within it,Adriana preparing to get married but very reticent to announce this and Isabel who has suffered great trauma at the hands of a man!
These woman are all intrinsically linked and as the book progresses we learn how and why!
A good concept that flowed well but I felt it was a bit repetitive in places.
Thank you NetGalley for this early read.

*Thank you to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for providing this book, with my honest review below*

This book started out with a great hook and then hit some more predictable territory, with conflicts and turns that I began anticipating. That said it’s written very well and was still fun to read through. A tried and true formula for those who like thrillers with some satisfaction from knowing what they may get and being proven right. The premise of widows who seem different with one not being quite what they seem was unique, and I really enjoyed that, as well as the character of Kylie who truly was a mess, but endearing,

Thank you again for the ARC, Avon Books UK. It is much appreciated and I enjoyed the read and the opportunity to share my feedback.

Great read,fab plot and interesting characters,kept me reading…..it was a pretty perfect thriller tbh right up to and including the ending,would recommend