This was one of those books that once you think you've figured it out, the story twists and you haven't. A little drawn out at times the author ties all the loose ends. The characters are deep, the story very good. A very good read.

The Wife Between Us kept me on my toes! It was also a page-turner for me - keeping me till all hours reading. As we follow Nellie to her upcoming nuptials and Vanessa through her unhappy marriage, we stay on the edge of our seats waiting for answers to be revealed. Things are not always as they seem - there is something very wrong with Prince Charming.. The characters come to this realization through twists and turns that kept me guessing.

This book certainly took a few different twists and turns than I thought it would. I kept thinking if it goes this way, I'll quit reading it and then it didn't. At the next turn, I would think the same thing and it didn't. Richard is the man of the hour. There are several female characters but Vanessa and Emily are the two main ones. The first part of the book goes back and forth between these two characters and then there is a change in format and the story focuses on one of these ladies mainly. I like adult fiction mainly but for a change this is a good book. Stick with it to the end because you really don't want to miss what happens next. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read an advance copy for my honest review.

I read an advance copy of this book through NetGalley. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It concerns a young divorcee, Nellie, who seems to be unable to get on with her life after being dumped by her successful husband. He has moved on to a younger version of herself while she sinks into depression. As the book progresses, all is not always the way it seems. I don't want to give much away but prepare to be engrossed and, possibly, fooled. I love books like this that keep me guessing. Thank you to NetGalley for the chance to check out this wonderful book ahead of publication.

A brilliant thriller with many twists and turns throughout the story. The plot contained strong characters. A real page turner, I read it in one sitting, I could not put it down. Highly recommended.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen for the copy of this book. I agreed to give my unbiased opinion voluntarily.

Book Review Netgalley

Greer Hendricks, Sarah Pekkanen
The Wife Between Us

4.5/5 stars

When Netgalley suggested that I would like The Wife Between Us based on my preferences and past reviews in the Mystery & Thrillers genre, I thought how predictable. Another novel about cheating, lying and infidelity, haven’t I read this so many times before? Then I took a look at their description that read:

A novel of suspense that explores the complexities of marriage and the dangerous truths we ignore in the name of love.
When you read this book, you will make many assumptions.
You will assume you are reading about a jealous wife and her obsession with her replacement.
You will assume you are reading about a woman about to enter a new marriage with the man she loves.
You will assume the first wife was a disaster and that the husband was well rid of her.
You will assume you know the motives, the history, the anatomy of the relationships.

Assume nothing.

I was intrigued so I dove into the story of Vanessa, the wife who had been cast aside, Emma, her replacement and Richard, the man at the center of it all. The first third of the story moved along well and I was definitely interested in these characters but I felt that all my prior assumptions were well in place and had yet to be challenged. For all practical purposes this appeared to be the story of a jealous wife. Still the authors expertly conveyed Vanessa’s pain, which was so palpable and relatable, that I wanted to know more about how her marriage fell apart. I was sure that my review would have to contain a warning to those who have suffered the deep ache and torment of infidelity in their own lives to, perhaps, steel oneself in order to read this intensely accurate portrait of betrayal that Vanessa had to endure. But, as the description above promised, the narrative takes a dramatic and unexpected twist in part II of the novel. Although I felt this was slightly clumsy and a tad awkward in execution (perhaps that was the intention of the authors) it was nonetheless extremely effective and totally unexpected.

As Part II progressed and morphed into Part III of the story the twists kept coming, right up to the final page of the story and I found myself altering my initial proclamation. Whereas I previously had concern for survivors of adultery and may have warned them to wait for the pain to lessen before reading The Wife Between Us, I now realize, if you have been at the loosing end of an affair, then you should, and need to read this book. I love the ending and the feeling I was left with as I imagine how the lives of all three characters would unfold as they move forward.

I absolutely recommend this book and hope to watch the movie someday, as I believe it would make a great suspense story, akin to Gone Girl. This story will take you places you had not thought of and will leave you thinking, “What just happened”? That is the most I can ask of a good book!

Great read! So many twists and turns, I might have to go back and read parts of it again!

Hendricks writing style is nicely paced for this type of book. Would read this author in the future.

Just when you think you have it figured out...you don't.

Thank you NetGalley for the free read, always appreciated!

I was captivated from the beginning. The last paragraph in the Prologue grabbed me by the throat, and there was no way I could stop from turning to Chapter One. It's been a long time since I've read a book that was riveting from the get-go and then held my attention through the rest of the opening chapters.

The story is a mysterious twist, so I won't spoil the fun of reading. In fact, I avoided reading too much of other reviews in order to preserve the surprises for myself, and I highly suggest you do the same.

To comment on the writing, I'll say I loved how the author developed all the characters and made each one so interesting and believable. The pace of the story was fantastic.

Highly recommend reading this when you don't have pressing chores, because once you start, the chores will be forgotten.

Wow, held my attention from beginning to end, thoroughly enjoyed this book. Writing was excellent
and the plot was extremely clever. Run, don’t walk to get a copy of this outstanding book.

I've been a fan of Sarah Pekkanen's writing ever since I read The Opposite of Me in 2010. She has recently started adding a darker side to her stories, but with The Wife Between Us, she has crossed over to the psychological thriller side. And she did a great job with it. She paired up with new author, Greer Hendricks, who has been an editor for over two decades. Like with Liz and Lisa's novels, you can't tell where one author begins and the other ends. The writing is seamless and flows throughout, making this novel very difficult to put down.

Vanessa is a sympathetic character. Her husband just left her and she's working a low paying job while living with her aunt in an apartment more than half the size of her house. And then she finds out that he has met another woman and is about to get married. I could understand her desperation in wanting to stop the wedding from happening. However, there's more to the story...

As soon as I thought I knew what was happening, Greer and Sarah turned the story on its head and left me reeling, but also turning the pages even faster to see what would happen next. And there are still more surprising revelations and shocking moments to come. I was definitely rooting for Vanessa the entire time, no matter how unstable she seemed at times.

The only concern I have is about some of the structure. There were flashback scenes and other past moments that were alluded to at times, but some things didn't really add up the right way, and I wondered why they were even mentioned at all if the story wasn't going to go in that direction.

Overall, this story kept me on the edge of my seat and I really couldn't predict what would happen next. I thought I had an idea about one thing, but my guess was still off quite a bit. The novel brings up an important issue that should never be taken lightly and it may be helpful to some readers. I hope Sarah will stay along this new path, as I can see her going far with it. She and Greer make a great team! I would also love for Greer to write a novel on her own, so I can see what else she is capable of.

My dream cast:
Nellie: Meredith Hagner
Vanessa: Mélanie Laurent
Richard: Sam Page (Because he played a Richard on The Bold Type, but he also would be a good fit for this part)
Maureen: Natascha McElhone
Sam: Nathalie Emmanuel
Aunt Charlotte: Ann Dowd

The Wife Between Us is not your average thriller, containing several unexpected twists and turns along the way. It's the story of Vanessa and her failed marriage, and her attempts to interfere with the impending marriage of her former husband to a younger woman. Excellent writing, plot twists and character development. Highly recommended.

Not quite as good as I was hoping. There were many twists and turns and you don't know everything until the end. It was a little harder to read than I thought it would be and didn't quite grab me the way it did others.

I received an advance copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading The Wife Between Us. The writing was tight, the characterizations full, and the plot suspenseful. We begin by meeting Nellie, a young teacher about to marry an older, seemingly perfect man. But this man has an ex-wife who is not ready to give him up. For the first third or so of the novel, it's all pretty familiar and not that exciting, but all of a sudden the authors take a sharp left that leaves the reader screaming "Wait. What!!" This is a great page turner that takes an often told ex versus current love story and tells it in a whole new way. To say anymore would lead to spoilers, so just trust me and read The Wife Between Us. Thanks to Net Galley for providing an advance copy.

THE WIFE BETWEEN US WRITTEN BY GREER HENDRICKS

This was a slow burning psychological thriller that for personal reasons I picked to read based on the title only. I don't usually choose my books to read for the title only. At times this was confusing for me (It might just be me), but I kept confusing the ex-wife Vanessa with the engaged Emma. I would have to go back and re-read it to know for sure, but the narrative seems to intermingle Vanessa and Emma's jobs and Aunt Charlotte who is a great support and the only family they both have throughout the entire book besides the epilogue.

Oh my, what a dynamic epilogue this book slam dunks in a huge surprise I never saw coming. This is the type of book where you like it better and appreciate it the more you read. Vanessa is Richard's ex=wife who seems like she is jealous of the character Emma who Richard is planning to marry. At first we question her life style of drinking too much wine and her motives for wanting to stop Richard from marrying Emma.

The more we read we empathize and actually route for Vanessa and want to see her succeed. This is the kind of storytelling where Richard, Emma and Vanessa are not who they are presented to be. The deeper you get into the story you begin to question everything. This was a skillfully written novel that at 354 pages was slightly longer than your typical novel of psychological suspense. Richard{ money seems to be no object or worry as he uses it to his advantage. How many times has Richard been married? His sister the only surviving relative plays an eerie role and enables him to hide behind a false persona. I promise all readers that this is unique and as I have mentioned a slow burn in the sense that it becomes addictive the more you read. MIND BLOWING EPILOGUE, and I usually hate epilogues. If you are in the mood for a richly well thought out twisty turn of an ending then look no further then this novel. Recommended!!!!!!!!

Thank you to Net Galley, Greer Hendricks and Macmillanusa Publishing for my digital copy in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Great suspense which kept me wanting to keep reading. I thought this was going to be like girl on the train but I was so wrong, what a surprise twist.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book in return for an honest review.

Once again, I seem to be in the minority. Maybe I’m just overly critical? Nah.

This was another booked billed as the next Gone Girl/Girl on the Train, but just turned out to be a wannabe. And for the sake of not giving away the plot, I won't give you a synopsis of the storyline.

First of all, I never figured out what the title means. There was never anything about a wife between anyone. Second, it plods along. I didn’t find it fast-paced at all, and the author kept dragging out Vanessa’s secrets. Also, I was getting a little tired of Vanessa’s crying and depression over her ex-husband. Third, the intricacies in the plot were a little unbelievable. If Vanessa really was able to plan all this out, why was she crying about her plan working, to the point of drinking, losing her job, etc.? She’s strong and smart when it’s convenient, then dumb and stupid when it’s convenient. Granted, there was a plot twist at the end, but by that time, it was way too late to save the book. This was a letdown.

There have been many books compared to Gone Girl and Girl on the Train. Most disappoint - but not this one! I went into this book "blind" and think other readers should do the same - the plot twists and turns, characters deceive (or do they?) and I don't want to take any of the pleasure away. Readers will definitely enjoy The Wife Between Us!

I was so excited that I got to read this book early thanks to Netgalley. It was a great story full of twists and surprises that I never saw coming. I highly recommend it.

An intense psychological ride. I was weary to believe the synopsis and all the tag lines that warned readers that as soon as they thought they had it figured out, everything would change - I was wrong. This novel includes a small cast of characters - most of whom you spend the entirety of the book trying to decide their motives and level of sanity. I could say that this book keeps you guessing until the final chapter, but even that's a lie - you'll be putting things together well into the epilogue that have you wanting to reread and leave you playing the story over in your head all day.

This book was amazing! It started out as a story of one woman and husband. But it begins to twist and turn. At some points one character or another seems unstable. Then the story twists again. The ending is so unexpected. I found the book to be one that was hard to put down. This is the type of writing I wish more authors adopted. The story line will stay with me for quite awhile. Excellent!