I had no idea who Paul Strom was. Or the fact that he had a second wife.

I requested this because I liked the synopsis and it was not until I was a good way through the book that I realised that this is the second Paul Strom thriller. Can you read this without reading the first? I did and loved it.

In fact I am going to download the first book to read. Completely out of order but I am not going to worry about it.

I get a sniff from the end that there may be a third in the series, but I am not 100% sure.

For me some of this novel was obvious, and a lot of it was where did that come from? I really enjoyed it and read it almost in one sitting.

This is going to become one of the must reads of the year and I personally would not be surprised if it produced as a miniseries.

3.5 ⭐️

Paris 930 PM

Paul Strom and his SECOND wife, Cecelia are celebrating their FIRST wedding anniversary in Paris and he has planned the “BEST NIGHT EVER”!

Oh Paul! You will never learn!

But then again, a Narcissist will never learn from their mistakes because they do not believe that they make any.

This is a sequel to one of my favorite psychological thrillers-“BEST DAY EVER” published in 2017. See review here:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2064212438

Note: Chapter 35 of this book completely SPOILS the first-so if you haven’t read it AND you plan to-start there.

If you do, however, you WILL know where this one is headed and although you will feel like you are privy to the secrets of what is really happening, you also WON’T find this book as SHOCKING.

If you haven’t read the first, and don’t plan to-this will rate higher for you, than for me-as it will be more SURPRISING.

The synopsis of this book says MUCH TOO MUCH, and I am not even going to recap it. For the BEST an experience with either book-go in blind!

Let’s just say that neither wife is as THRILLED with Paul’s dates as he is! And, these are definitely NOT love stories!

Expected publication date: August 16, 2024

Thank You to Bookouture for the gifted ARC provided through NetGalley. These are my candid thoughts!

Our favorite narcissist, Paul Storm, is back!! Ready to cause some chaos once again with his new wife. For fans of “The Last Mrs. Parrish” this is such a fun tale of scheming.

When Paul takes his new wife to Paris, things begin to unfold. Suspicions arise from both of them and we are left wondering who we can trust. This is a truly fun page turner!

I can’t tell you how overjoyed I was to learn that Paul Strom was back in the picture. After first meeting him in Best Day Ever, I knew without a shadow of a doubt that I would be in for quite the ride within the pages of this sequel, The Second Mrs. Strom. After all, one of my favorite tropes just so happens to be that of the villain narrator. But add to that delicious bag of tricks the fact that Paul is a sociopathic narcissist? For this thriller lover, it truly couldn’t have been better.

The plot and the characters, of course, had a delightful unhinged quality that I always equate with Kaira Rouda. Gifted at crafting scenes and personas that are perfectly unstable, they also somehow retain a true-to-life essence. Naturally, this book was no exception. Well-plotted and written with care, the ballooning suspense and sense of impending disaster just ratcheted higher and higher right along with the page count. Even better, however, were the multitude of twists that caught me entirely unawares. Needless to say, they were jaw-droppers for sure.

Done and dusted, the unlikeable characters, epic mind games, and questionable morals won me over hook, line, and sinker. Now I just pray that this second book in the Paul Strom saga isn’t the last that we hear from him. Poised perfectly for a follow up, I’m throwing myself on Ms. Rouda’s mercy. As for you, fellow readers, if you haven’t discovered the perfection that can be found within these quick, easy reads, be sure to check them out ASAP. After all, those of us at Thriller Book Lovers: The Pulse simply can’t stop talking about Paul, Cecilia, and this killer tale of domestic suspense. Rating of 4.5 stars.

Thank you to Kaira Rouda, Bookouture, and NetGalley for my complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.

This was such a gripping and unputdownable book. I love the setting of Paris. I thought some characters were toxic while some were mysterious. In this book again, like the author’s other books, characters are not how they appear to be. The twists and turns kept me on toes. The ending is twisty too. The author has not only written a gripping psychological thriller but also unveiled characters real facades.

Many Thanks to the Author and Publisher

The title of this book is a little misleading to me. It references the "second" Mrs. Strom as if there is a buildup or lead up to how she came to be. The book centers around the couple in Paris for their first anniversary. The week starts off with them lovey dove and as the days go on, they each begin to realize that they know each other's secrets. Him - he befriended an older lady in hopes of benefiting from her inheritance, and her, getting close to him in hopes of benefitting from the money as well.
There are a few plot gaps for me, as in referencing the first wife and him not having custody of the kids, but no real insight as to what happened. It doesn't really lend to the story line. For her, she was adopted at a younger age and then returned to the orphanage, and we are to believe the farfetched story line that her husband is having an affair with her previously adopted sister.
The ending tries to wrap it together, but I found it to be a little too drawn out overall.
Thank you to #netgalley for this #arc

This book was good! I thought the plot was quick and engaging and kept me wanting to read more. Overall I would recommend this book!

Kaira Rouda has a truly incredible gift. I just can't get enough of her books. I love how wildly scandalous and twisty they are! The Next Mrs. Strom is no exception! There is always something so truly shocking at the end, that I'm left thinking about it for days. I can't get this one out of my head. Everyone had secrets. Everyone was narcissistic. Two of my favorite character components. The ending was NOT what I expected. I devoured this book! I can't wait to see what Kaira Rouda comes up with next!

I read Best Day Ever almost seven years ago (reviewed here), but it's one of those books that I haven't forgotten about. I was so excited to find out there was a sequel and I had to get my hands on it right away!

Paul Strom has clearly not learned any lessons from the first book, nor has he changed at all. He's still an egotistical, controlling, sexist narcissist. Kaira Rouda giving him his own narrative is actually quite a genius move. Even though we all love to hate him, it's rather entertaining to see what is going on in his mind and whether or not he will succeed at what he's planning to do. I only feel slightly sympathetic toward him in regard to the situation with his kids, but I won't say anything more so as to not spoil the first book. (You really should read it before reading this one! Lots of spoilers otherwise.)

This time around, Paul has met his match with Cecilia. She's a force to be reckoned with! I love that Cecilia also has a narrative in this novel so we can see the game of cat and mouse that is going on between her and Paul. There were some things I was able to guess at, but I was also surprised by some other things that came into play throughout the story.

I also love that the majority of the story takes place in Paris. It's a great setting, and I even learned some stuff I didn't know about the City of Lights. While the story jumps around in time every so often, it works nicely for piecing everything together. I found a few little inconsistencies, but since it is an advanced copy, I hope those will be ironed out for the final publication.

The Second Mrs. Strom will be out in mid-August, so be sure to read Best Day Ever between now and then (if you haven't already), so you're ready to pick this one up as soon as it hits shelves! I feel like there will be a third book in this series, and if that's in the works, I hope I don't have to wait another seven years to find out what else is in store for Paul Strom.

Movie casting suggestions:
Paul: Mark-Paul Gosselaar
Cecilia: Virginia Gardner
Susan: Madison Wolfe
Christopher: RJ Mitte

Thanks Kaira Rouda, Bookouture, and NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. Have you read, Rouda’s BEST DAY EVER? I didn’t realize the connection at first, but the tone of the writing made me think of this book. Then I realized the overlap. This book was a hard one to put down. Lots of great twists right until the very end, when things come together nicely. Definitely one worth reading when released in August.

4.5🌟
Welcome back Paul!
One of my all-time favorite male sociopaths has returned in the long awaited follow up to Best Day Ever! Paul’s character has left an indelible impression on me for years. Now I compare all other sociopathic characters to him. Joe, (from Caroline Kepnes' You series) is a very close second.

Paul Strom insists on things being done a certain way. He wants to be in charge. Unfortunately for Paul, the women in his life have an irritating habit of not going along with his plan!

Paul has suddenly come into some major money! And just as quickly, he marries Cecelia. Now he can have everything he has ever wanted. But hold up, big boy. Cecelia is turning out to have wants of her own.

Paul senses he’s losing control of the situation. And we know it’s about to hit the fan!

Grab your popcorn and glass of wine and witness the battle royal between our precious couple as they celebrate their first wedding anniversary in Paris.

Can this book stand on its own? Well, yes. But for the best experience read Best Day Ever first. You can thank me later!

Are we in for a third book in this series? Or is this the end of the road for Paul? Well you’ll just have to find out for yourself. What would be the fun in me just spilling it?

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture.

The Second Mrs Strom is full of secrets and twists, and is a nonstop adrenaline rush. You’ll love to hate Paul, a narcissist intent on creating the perfect life for himself, at whatever the cost.

“The Second Mrs. Strom” by Kaira Rouda is a sequel to “Best Day Ever.” I think reading the first book would help a little with this book but Ms. Rouda does a pretty good job catching the reader up on past history (though I do think the first book really helps establish the character of Paul better than this book did). Anyway, Paul has a new wife … and they’re celebrating their first year anniversary in Paris. While the majority of this book once again takes place over a few hours, there’s a lot of backstory from a number of character’s points of view (which, I’ll admit, I found a bit confusing at times since we jumped back 10 years, then last week, then had a mysterious “diary” writer in certain parts). I did like that this book once again held my attention, but I didn’t feel this one was a strong as the first book - granted, though, it would have been difficult to top the first book. I didn’t really like either Paul’s new wife or his side piece (of course Paul has yet another side piece!) and couldn’t feel anything for either of them, which did take away some of the enjoyment I felt from the first book. The short chapters helped move this book along at a good clip and once again, Ms. Rouda’s story was engaging. 3.5 stars rounded up.

It was suggested to me that I read Best Day Ever before this so that I really understood Paul. That being said, I have never loathed a character so much. I loved loathing him – if that even makes sense. I didn’t realize that the first book was released in 2017. I imagine that those readers are chomping at the bit to see what Paul is up to this time.
The Second Mrs. Strom brings us back to Paul’s world. The world that he controls. In Paul’s world, he knows all the outcomes, he is always right and gets what he wants. Paul has swooned an elderly widow who recently passes so he comes into quite a fortune. Sticking with his younger blonde and beautiful type, he meets Cecilia at the funeral and his conquest has begun. They have a whirlwind marriage and move to the West Coast where is he set on becoming a successful producer. Paul attempts to control everything about their relationship, down to what she can wear, who she can talk to and interact with.
But Cecilia has her secrets too. There is no victim and no villain. This isn’t a traditional cat and mouse game. It is more like a battle between two pit vipers. “There really is such little space between love and hate, life and death, for all of us.” This is a great binge read with devious and greedy characters that keep the story moving quickly. Enjoy!

Being back in Paul’s world is hilarious 😂 I love his inner monologue of thinking he can do no wrong. Best Day Ever definitely grabbed my attention more and kept me wanting more. This one felt a little slow and I wasn’t dying to know the ending. Also a few predictable parts.

Well well, looks like Paul is given a run for his money! Let me tell you that I was ecstatic when I found out Kaira Rouda had a sequel to Best Day Ever coming out in August. Best Day Ever, released in 2017, is literally my favorite hidden gem when it comes to thrillers. Everyone at #ThePulse, @thrillerbookloversthepulse couldn’t wait to eat this up!

Best Day Ever was the story of a married couple headed away for the weekend to have their Best Day Ever! Only thing is, both parties were terribly wrong! While heading for the cabin, we get to hear the narcissistic thoughts that come from Paul. Man, this guy is one hell of a character.

Fast forward seven years later enters The Second Mrs Strom. Paul has managed to snag himself a younger and gorgeous wife, Cecilia. It is their one year wedding anniversary and they are spending it in Paris. Once again, it will be their famous best day ever! Or will it?

This dude is beyond in love with himself. Paul truly believes the world revolves around him, since he’s so handsome, successful, rich, a great lover, and has the best looking wife. His controlling ways and ignorant thoughts are truly baffling. But you know, I LOVE his character and hope you do too!

Thank you so much @kairarouda and @bookouture for this amazing opportunity!
Publication date August 16, 2024
4.5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Second Mrs. Strom by new to me authoer K. Rouda is a thriller of its finestr. Masterfully crafted, full of unexpected twists and turns that has the reader guessing till the very last page.
There is no real villain or victim, they're all that and more. A story where nothing is as it seems. literally nothing, wonderful twisted.

This was a pretty good thriller. I was kept on the edge of my seat and wanting to know what was going to happen next the whole time. I definitely look forward to seeing what else this author comes up with!

To say that I loved this book is an understatement. I tossed aside all my adult responsibilities to finish it in one day. While I need to read the first book it wasn't necessary to be able to follow along. In this story we find Paul with his second wife, Cecilia on holiday in Paris. Paul is controlling and devious. He's acquired the fortune that Esther left him at her passing and maybe Cecilia is scheming to get the money. As the story progressed, I found it hard to like Paul and Cecilia equally. It was a very enjoyable book as I couldn't decide who was good or bad. This is a five star book!

I found the storyline to be entertaining but overall I found the writing to not be the best. It was fairly predictable and somewhat far-fetched at points, though I understand fiction often is. Both main characters were not likeable in my opinion and that made it hard to get into.