Thank you Netgalley, the publisher and Jo Jakeman.
I loved this book, fast paced, page turner.
I did not see that ending.
I loved the story so much I purchased the book.
Recommend

This book was fantastic! I was completely hooked from the first page, and simply couldn't put it down! I love a good domestic psychological thriller, and this was certainly that! This is the first I've read from this author, though it sure won't be the last.

Thank you to NetGalley, as well as the publisher for providing me with a digital copy of this book, in exchange for an honest review. Sadly, the digital copy was archived prior to download.

Three women. Three women with almost nothing in common except the man they love or once loved. Three women that should dislike each other and they do. So what would make these three women form a bond?
Revenge. We all think about it; when someone has wronged us. We fantasize about it and some even act upon it.
Imogen was and technically is still married to Phillip. Ruby is the past wife, Naomi is the future wife. And they have more in common than you might think.
The story starts with an ending and page by page as we go back, there is more revealed to see how these three women, while not yet fully trusting each other, become united against a man that seems untouchable. A man so cruel, that he leaves victim after victim in his path of destruction. This is one of those books that makes you set aside some of your beliefs of right and wrong and embrace “the end justifies the means”.
This book is hard to put down and many times I felt myself tensing up and my ears listening for every creak in my own house. It made me angry, frustrated and sad, with a few giggles in there too. Chocked full of suspense and some humour, I really enjoyed this book. And that demise was so delicious. This book is a 4 1/2 stars for me.
Thank you to net galley and the publishers for allowing me the privilege to read and review this book by sending it free in exchange for an honest review

I really love reading dark mystery thrillers these days, so I’m happy that so many are being published, but unfortunately that means I end up picking up quite a few that I don’t particularly care for, and that’s definitely what happened with The Exes’ Revenge by Jo Jakeman. I’d never even heard of this book before a copy showed up in my mailbox, but while that sometimes lead to a new surprise favourite, this was not one of those books. The Exes’ Revenge is the story of Imogen, who takes revenge on her ex-husband while going through a messy divorce, only to have his other ex-wife and current girlfriend get tangled up in the plans.

Based on the synopsis, I knew that Jakeman’s debut was going to be over the top, and it definitely has a soap opera quality to it, where bad just keeps getting worse. That said, while it includes a lot of thrilling elements, it’s just kinda messy and boring to read. It starts off with a funeral and then goes back in time, which should be thrilling but it ends up taking a lot a lot of the mystery of the book and resulting in an underwhelming ending. The book drags and moves really slowly. I wanted more passion, more vengeance, especially for the exes’ besides Imogen–I never really felt like the book even lived up to its title. I felt like The Exes’ Revenge had a strong start and premise, but as somebody who reads a lot of thrillers, this one was a disappointment for me.

The story begins with Philip’s funeral. Then we go back a number of days to see how we got there. The story centres around three women - his current wife, soon to be ex. His first wife who seemingly still loves him, and his current girlfriend. Philip is a police officer but he is a lying, manipulative and all round horrible person. But much worse than that he abuses his wives and girlfriend. During their marriage, Immie his current wife had tried to call the police but they banded together and wink wink we look after our own. In the end nothing was done to help her.

The three women meet under unusual circumstances and devise a plan to get the better of Philip. But he’s always one step ahead. Immie begins to distrust the other women. Because there’s one thing she’ll die for and that’s her son. She will never let him have Alistair.

Quite a good read. Immie starts off kind of meek but ends putting on her big girl pants. It was entertaining and witty and a quick read. I’d like to read more by Jo Jakeman.

Thanks to NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

I am sorry but I was unable to finish this book. I got one third of the way through before I decided it was just too unbelievable and I found too many errors. I wish I could have finished.

Thank you to Penguin Random House Canada for providing me a free copy of this book to read. Happy Publication Day!

This was the first book I have read by Jo Jakeman and I was quite impressed! This book sucked me in from the very cover and title of the book. I just knew it would be a perfect thriller of a book, which would be one that I loved.

This book follows 3 women and a man they all have been with at one point in time named Phillip. There is the first wife, now ex-wife, Ruby. She has always been there for Phillip and they still have contact. She has always loved Phillip and is blind to all of his faults. There is his current wife, and soon to be ex-wife, Imogen. They share a son together, and Imogen knows what her husband is truly capable of. There is his current girlfriend, Naomi, who is much younger and prettier. Phillip has cheated on each women with the next woman in line.

Phillip is rude, cunning, conniving, controlling, loves to play mind games, is mean, violent, and is physically, emotionally and verbally abusive. Even though all 3 women despise one another, circumstances and fate bring them together so they have to work together to get through it all. Will they make it out at the end as friends?

Phillip is currently living with his girlfriend Naomi, but his wife (soon to be ex) Imogen is living in their family home they shared together with their son Alistair. Imogen is waiting for Phillip to sign divorce papers but Phillip is determined to have his say in everything and gives Imogen an ultimatum: be out of the house by the end of the month or there will be consequences. He will take their son away from her.

This book was wonderful. I was hooked from the very first page, and I found myself so into the storyline that I seemed to breeze right through this book. I loved how detailed the storyline was and how in depth we got to read about each character. It allowed us to understand why each woman was the way they were and their experiences they went through being in a relationship with Phillip. Each woman experienced something quite different from the other in their relationship with Phillip, but had some common experiences as well. It ended up bringing them together so they had to work together.

Phillip was so easy to despise in the novel. He mistreated all 3 of these women in one way or another, and some more harshly than others. Did he love them in his own way? What made him act the way he did? What exactly happened? You’ll just have to read the novel to find out. You won’t be disappointed.

This tale of female revenge begins with the funeral of Phillip Rochester; among the attendees are his ex-wife Ruby, his second wife Imogen, and his girlfriend Naomi. Imogen, the narrator, then takes readers into the past, to 22 days before the funeral. We learn that Phillip gave her an ultimatum: move out of the house or he would sue for sole custody of their son. Desperate to protect her son from her abusive not-yet-ex-husband, she makes an ill-conceived move to take control of the situation. Then Naomi and Ruby become involved and the trio of unlikely allies sets out to take revenge on Phillip and to protect their interests. Since the opening reveals the ending, the book’s interest lies in discovering how Phillip meets his end and how the three women escape criminal charges.

The book has an interesting premise but it soon deteriorates into the realm of the ridiculous. The friendship the women develop is bizarre; they have to overcome antipathy and have only Phillip in common. Then they continue to make poor decisions even when they have some time to think rationally. Some editing is definitely required: at one point, Imogen “watched [Ruby’s] back disappear up the stairs” but then a minute later Naomi “looked at me and Ruby”? The “riding off into the sunset” ending had me shaking my head in astonishment.

It is not just the plot that is unbelievable. Phillip is a soap opera villain with no redeeming qualities. He is manipulative and self-centered yet manages to con three women into enduring emotional and physical abuse. As his crimes multiply, he emerges as totally evil. That one woman continues to believe his lies for years and years makes no logical sense. Conveniently, he is a policeman and the police force is stereotypically portrayed as being more interested in protecting one of its own.

Imogen is not a convincing character either. She is so stupid at times. She doesn’t check why Phillip is not at work though she knows his job is his raison d’être?! She is so gullible for so long that her transformation into a strong, confident woman is just not credible.

The pace is uneven. The novel starts slowly but then picks up speed once Imogen takes action. Unfortunately, some of the events are just so preposterous that I found myself looking to see how much more I had to read to reach the end. The supposed plot twists are predictable; I just kept hoping the author wouldn’t go in that direction, especially considering Iris, but she surely did. Then, the ending, when it does arrive, leaves much unexplained. For instance, the fire at the house is never investigated?

The novel deals with the important topic of domestic abuse and shows how controlling men can manipulate vulnerable women. The problem is that the absurd plot makes it difficult to focus on the sober elements. The suggestion of romance – not just for one but two women – undermines any message about women being strong and independent.

Readers will find themselves rooting for the women and taking satisfaction in Phillip’s comeuppance. Unfortunately, so much suspension of disbelief is required that any emotional satisfaction is short-lived. I like my psychological thrillers to be less far-fetched.

Note: I received a digital galley of this book from the publisher via NetGalley.

Imogen is separated from her husband Phillip and is trying to just get a fair settlement out of her divorce. But Phillip is abusive, controlling and is making things difficult for Imogen and her young son. He shows up one night, lets himself in and demands that her and her son be moved out of the house by the end of the month. In a moment of insanity, Imogen does something only a desperate woman would do. She’s in control for the first time in her marriage and she’s desperate to protect her and her son from Phillips abusive ways. Imogen is surprised when Phillips new girlfriend and ex-wife show up and get tangled up in her plans.

This book starts off at Phillips funeral and goes back in time to a few weeks before the funeral and shows us how the whole situation plays out. I absolutely hated Phillip and honestly was glad the book started with his funeral because then at least I know at some point he is going to get what he deserved. I liked having the book told through Imogen and see what she had to go through in her life with Phillip and what drove her to this point. I also really liked that Phillips new woman and his other ex-wife got involved because it just showed how he treated all of them and I loved that after everything was said and done, they became the best of friends.

I loved the twists in this novel and how believable Phillip could be even when he was lying. Right up to the end of this book there are twists and turns that I didn’t see coming and I loved that about it! We find out some pretty despicable things that Phillip has done to keep his women “in line” and I usually love to hate a character, but Phillip was just another level of hate. I absolutely was addicted to this book and couldn’t put it down until I knew how Phillip met his fate. I definitely recommend!

Pick it up September 11th!

This book deserves a solid 4-1/2 stars! I was totally hooked from the first chapter on! There were so many twists and turns that make this book exciting to read! I would definitely be looking for more from this author!

I would like to thank the author, the publisher and NetGalley for a advanced copy of this book in return for an honest and unbiased review!