Meet the young widows. Together, they've shared their grief and emotional healing in the wake of losing their husbands. But whilst these meetings are the only places they feel they can open up, all is not what it seems.

The hot mess Kylie is done with commitment. Her trust in men died with her husband. Now, she trawls the bars looking for fun - no strings, no promises, no second night. That is until she meets a man who seems to want more, but is it a mistake to trust again?

The new member, Hannah's grief is fresh and reminds the other widows how raw their pain was.

The wallflower, Isabel is hiding in the shadows, her past still haunts her.

The fiancée, Adriana is moving on. But as her wedding draws closer, she's starting to question how well she truly knows her fiancé.

One member of the young widows group isn't a widow. They've never even been married. But which one is it?

Set in Melbourne, four young widows who met online in a support group have become friends. The story starts with a man's death. The story is told from the widow's perspectives, but we also get the occasional input from Hannah - the new member, and an anonymous voice, the Watcher. The women all have secrets. The story flows well, but it's a bit predictable. At first glance, the woman all seem different, but the further you read, they have more in common than you first realised. A quick and easy book to read.

I would like to thank #NetGalley #AvonBooksUK and the author #SJShort for my ARC of #TheYoungWidows in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book, a bit different to my usual read but a great storyline.

The characters were good, told in different timelines which I found to be great storytelling.

Thank you to Netgalley and Avon Books for this ARC which I can thoroughly recommend.

Name of Book: The Young Widows
Author: S. J. Short
Genre: Mystery/Thriller
Publisher: Avon
Pub Date: February 1, 2024
My Rating: 3.4. Stars
Pages: 384

The Young Widow’s Club began when four young widows met online who were widowed in their twenties although they typically would not be friends otherwise but now approaching thirty they find they need each other. They meet once a week .as a support group.
The members are:
Adriana, Kate, Isabel and, newcomer, Hannah – who sort of invited herself and seems she, may have a reason for joining.

Hannah plus the prologue had me curious. However I was struggling to finish. (I have several great reads waiting for me, I was afraid this one was going to be a waste of my time)
I hung in there and was pleased that I did as the ending made the struggle worthwhile!!

Want to thank NetGalley and Avon for this early eGalley.
Publishing Release Date scheduled for February 1, 2024.

Told form the points of view of grieving widows I found this novel to be a great read. Refreshingly different to most domestic thrillers, I enjoyed finding out more about each woman and trying to work out who was lying. I really recommend this novel.

Thank you to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book.

Adriana, Isabel, and Kylie make up The Young Widows Club. They meet regularly to help each other through the grief of losing their husbands so young in life. But each one of them harbours secrets they couldn’t possibly share with each other.

This was a brilliant read. Very unique and unlike anything I’ve read before. The characters were very well written, and I loved each of them. They were all flawed and imperfect, but perfect in their roles of the story. The plot was brilliant, and had many twists and turns. A real gem of a book. A solid 5 stars from me.

Predictable at times, but still a good popcorn thriller. Thank you to netgalley for letting me read this e arc in exchange for an honest opinion

The young widows is a great book. The plot is brilliant and the characters are very well written.
Lots of suspense and a fabulous end.

This is a really good read. We are introduced to five widows who seemingly different have more in common than just grief. I’m not going to give away the plot or twists but just read it yourself. Five stars!

3.5 Stars

I received an advanced copy of this book from Avon Books UK via NetGalley.

Together, they've found solace amid their shared grief, supporting each other through the loss of their husbands. Yet, within these meetings, where they feel safe to reveal their inner struggles, lies a tangled web of secrets waiting to unravel.

Kylie, embracing her free-spirited approach, shuns commitment after the loss of her husband. Her nights are spent seeking fleeting moments of joy in bars, steering clear of attachments. However, a man who seems to seek more may challenge her resolution. Will she risk trusting once more, or is it a perilous mistake? Isabel, accustomed to blending into the background, carries the weight of her haunting past. Only her late husband knew the truth of the night that forever altered her life. Can she safeguard her buried secrets from the prying eyes of her companions? Adriana, moving forward from her loss, prepares for her impending wedding. Yet, a cryptic message arrives, unsettling her certainty about her fiancé. As doubts loom, she realizes she might not know him as well as she thought. Joining the group as a new member, Hannah's raw grief serves as a poignant reminder of the other widows' own profound pain. It raises the question: do they dare invite that intensity back into their lives?

Each woman harbors hidden chapters, concealing parts of themselves. Among them is an imposter, someone who has never experienced the bond of marriage. Their intertwined lives are teetering on the edge of revelation, poised to unravel into unforeseen truths.

While initially drawn in by the promise of an original premise, I found myself navigating familiar terrain as the plot unfolded. As an avid consumer of thrillers, the story's trajectory felt somewhat foreseeable, and the twists, though present, lacked the element of surprise I crave in the genre. Nevertheless, the brisk pace of the narrative makes it a quick read, offering a snapshot into the concealed lives of these intriguing characters. Despite its predictability, the book maintains a certain allure, providing an engaging escape for readers seeking a lighter venture into the world of psychological suspense.

honestly i was skeptical but ended up having a great time. predictable but in the fun way where it does what it says on the tin.

I really enjoyed this book. The opening was catchy and hooked me in to find out what happened to the man (apart from being pushed off a balcony!), as well as the women who are part of this grieving wives' support group. Definitely recommend this!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an arc of this book in return for a review.

This story has everything in this book. Suspense, Drama, someone who isnt as they seem, and just all kinds of secrets. This is a Young Widows Club for women who are grieving loss of their husband. One isnt even a widow who is in the group.

This book was a thriller with vigilante threw in. There are four POV. i loved seeing how this unfolds and the writing was very good.

I will recommend this to other readers. Hope to find more by this author.

An informal group of widows is the central theme to the book. The story is told form various points of view and is based in Melbourne. Each woman has her own secrets and the characters were well defined. An easy read which was exciting in places. Thanks to Net Galley.

This was really good! I thought the concept was interesting, and it definitely lived up to its promise. I enjoyed following the four young widows - each with a very distinct story and personality. Kylie's story was my favourite, but they all interlink.

The only thing that stopped this from being a 5 star read for me is that I guessed very early on how the characters were all connected, and whilst I found the ending satisfying, none of it came as a surprise.

I would recommend this book as I thoroughly enjoyed reading it.

Four women belonged to the Young Widows Club, an informal support group that allowed them to process the grief surrounding the loss of their husbands. All of the women seemed to have dirty little secrets, in fact, one of them wasn’t even a widow.

I requested The Young Widows on a whim through NetGalley and I’m so glad that I did! This was a juicy, delightfully sinful thriller with a side of female vigilante. The book was told through the POV of the four members of the Young Widows Club - Isabel, Adriana, Kylie and Hannah. There was also a mystery POV referred to as “The Watcher” that added another layer of interest to the plot. I loved all of the main characters, but Adriana and Isabel stole a piece of my heart. While I loved them for very different reasons, they were both beautifully complex, strong women. The bond that these women shared was unparalleled. While this group was formed
to provide an opportunity for them to deal with their grief together, it had evolved into a true sisterhood. My only real drawback with this book was that while it was enjoyable, I wasn’t truly hooked on it until the end and I would have enjoyed more twists interspersed throughout the first three quarters of my read. Overall, I would definitely recommend checking this out if you enjoy thrillers with a healthy dose of girl power.

Group of 3 young widows meet to support each other. All vastly different circumstances and life experiences. They share a common link but only one of them knows it.
Planning Adrianna wedding highlights the connections and fishers in the relationships.
Can they forgive, move forward and unite together?
A book that will keep you guessing.

#TheYoungWidows #NetGalley
Awesome.
Kylie is done with commitment. Her trust in men died with her husband. Now she trawls bars looking for fun – no strings, no promises, no second night. That is until she meets a man who seems to want more, but is it a mistake to trust again?
Hannah’s grief is fresh and reminds the other widows how raw their pain once was, do they want to let that back into their lives? Isabel is used to hiding in the shadows, her past still haunts her. Only her late husband knew what happened the night that ruined her life. Will she be able to keep her secrets buried? Adriana is moving on. But as her wedding draws closer, she’s starting to question how well she truly knows her fiancé. Then she receives an anonymous note that reads: Get out while you still can. Each woman is hiding something, but one is not who she says she is. In fact, she’s never even been married .
Thanks to NetGalley Avon Books UK for giving me an advance copy.

A novel set in Melbourne Australia whereby 4 'widows' come together and form a club to help them survive through their grief. From the outset you knew that there was more to each member and that somehow they were all connected. A well constructed, and entertaining story.
Thank you to NetGalley and Avon books for the advance copy of this book.

3.5

The Young Widow’s Club began as an informal support group for women widowed in their twenties, but after meeting weekly for over three years, the women have become friends.

The members are:

Adriana, the only one who has dated since her loss, and now she that she is engaged, she’s been afraid to tell the others-until she receives an anonymous warning about her new fiancé.

Kylie, the “party girl” that is starting to realize that what is happening when she gets black out” drunk may be worse than she thought.

Isabel, permanently scarred from an incident in her past, which she has yet share with the others.

And, newcomer, Hannah, who has suffered a more recent loss, and has just joined the group.

ONE member of the group has an ulterior motive for joining, and she ISN’T really a young widow at all…

The story unfolds mostly the rotating POV’s of the original members, with occasional insight from both Hannah, and an anonymous “WATCHER”.

I was attracted to this story because it had an original premise, but as an avid reader of thrillers, I found much of it a bit predictable.

But, If you don’t mind suspending disbelief, and are looking for something different, it was, for the most part, still an enjoyable popcorn read! 🍿

Available February 1, 2024

Thank You to Avon Books for the gifted ARC provided through NetGalley. It was my pleasure to offer a candid review!

Really enjoyed kept me reading late into the night.So many twists and turns kept me guessing till the end.#netgalley #avonboksuk