My Lovely Wife is about a couple with an unusual hobby, killing young women. The book explores the effects their hobby has on their children and their lives in general. It's an unusual premise and I was excited to read it. I was involved and enjoying the book but found myself disappointed by the book's resolution. Character motivations made little sense and the ending only further confused things.

A dark, twisted and compulsively readable tale that will keep you on the edge of your seat! The seemingly perfect couple next door are anything but in this debut thriller by Samantha Downing,

Wow!! This book is fantastic! I have to say it may be in my top 5. It is twisted, dark, and will leave you speechless. I honestly could not put it down. The shocks and twists and turns... I can't say enough. I am not easily surprised and was very surprised and loved every minute of this story. The characters, the story, everything! I am not easily excited and I have to see I will definitely be stalking Samantha Downing to read anything she writes in the future!
I would like to thank NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

I don't know how the author did it, but she made this suburban married serial killer couple likable. A huge twist at the end was the icing on the cake. I read this book straight through till the end.

This is a wonderful and very quick read! The various twists were great. A definite 3am read! It had my attention from the very first page!

I didn’t care for this book. The characters were very unlikable and It was obvious what was going to happen.

If the secret to a successful marriage is sharing common interests, then Millicent and her husband are sure heading down the road to celebrating their golden anniversary. Unfortunately, their common interest involves a deadly secret: they will kill for each other, and indeed, they have. Fast-paced and full of twists, this debut novel satisfies.

A little far fetched and over the top but in a strange way intriguing. It's like you can't help but be interested in the blatant made up story...

Great book. The story of a serial killer living a normal family life in a nice neighborhood. The narrative is from the husband’s point of view, there are lots of twists and turns. I loved the ending, I can’t stop thinking about it. I am eagerly awaiting her next book.

I couldn't finish this. I enjoyed 'Dexter', so I thought I would this as well, but the whole premise actually made me feel ill. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me the opportunity to review it. I won't be reviewing it elsewhere.

The feeling I got while reading this reminded me of how I felt when reading Koch's "The Dinner"--very uncomfortable, not sure if I should be enjoying this. In a few words, this book is what happens when crazy meets crazier and they come up with a plan. The story is all from the husband's point of view, and while he seems "normal", he's really not. Nothing in this book is normal. I almost gave the book 3.5 stars, not 4--there were a few grammatical errors that really threw me out of the book. I know it's an ARC, but some of them were egregious in my mind. Hopefully, they are fixed when the actual book is released.

If you're looking for a thriller that's going to make you question relationships and people and life in general, you might want to read this.

One of the most intriguing reads of 2019, My Lovely Wife, has it all...engrossing plot and great characters. Pick up a copy!

This is not a story you’ll easily forget! They look like any other suburban family- 2 attractive, fit parents, a teenage son and daughter. Except what you see is not what is true. While the kids are like most other kids their age, their parents, unbeknownst to them or anyone else, are serial killers. They didn’t mean to become killers. In fact, they sort of accidentally fell into it, and then realized the thrill of it was something they wanted to continue together, as a team. Until someone is betrayed.

This psychological thriller is just okay. The storyline was not logical or believable. The concept is clever with many twists. Millicent and her husband's extracurricular activities did not ring true. I found the teenage son irritating. This book just wasn't for me.

This is a difficult book to review without spoilers! I tore through this book in one day, completely unable to put it down. From the first chapter, there was something unsettling about the narrator and his marriage, and the story only became more gripping as it progressed. I picked up on small details that the narrator was unaware of, which felt very intentional on the author's part and made for even more drama as I watched the story unfold. What I found most interesting about this novel was my own perception of the narrator; while I knew he was involved in terrible things and was a deeply flawed character, I found myself unintentionally rooting for him. Just as things were beginning to settle down in the last few chapters, the final paragraphs threw me for another loop. This was a truly riveting story and one that I would recommend to anyone with an interest in thrillers.

I TRULY dread writing reviews for books I don't particularly like, so Ive put off writing this for a minute now. I honestly was intrigued by the description, but I could not even get through this novel. I found it extremely difficult to relate to the characters, and was pretty put off by their "hobby"of killing seemingly random women. I would have probably liked the story a bit better if the people they were killing were actually horrible human beings, but no..... I just couldn't with this book. I didn't finish it, so I do not intend to give a review anywhere other than here, and I also do not forsee myself recommending this book to others.

I finished this book because I knew there was going to be a twist at the end, and I wanted to see of it was going to redeem itself. It did not. The problem is that the husband and wife are not sympathetic characters at any point in time. The husband is supposed to be the one you relate to, but he's a cheating, smarmy jerk. The wife is inscrutable, which works to keep you guessing what her deal is, but when the deal is revealed it is ultimately so unsatisfying that it makes you angry.

*Begin Spoilers* Yes, they are murderers, but they are not vigilantes. The basic premise is that they kind of unintentionally kill a couple of people and get a taste for it is completely undercut by the premise that the wife was abused as a child. If the couple were hunting and killing abusers, then sure, everybody understands vigilante justice even if they don't approve of it.. But they are hunting innocent women. I kept reading because I was thinking that there would be some explanation beyond the two of them thinking it's sexy and spices up their marriage. The people you really end up feeling bad for are their poor children. Everyone else is terrible and you don't care what happens to them.

How do I even begin reviewing this one? First off, thanks to NetGalley for approving me to read this ahead of its release date. It's my first and I have been so excited about it. Next, My Lovely Wife is a great title but I think it could also have been Parenting Tips from Serial Killers. Just saying! I had a few plausibility issues with it at first but then in the Christmas spirit I let go and just enjoyed the ride.

Millicent and her husband have an intriguing marriage and are devoted parents. They just enjoy killing people to keep things fresh. Okaaay. It took until almost halfway through the book to find out how this all began for them. Not really first date material, right? Once things get started, you realize how very dysfunctional they are but are quite impressed by how they are able to keep up such respectable appearances. Thereafter, you realize one might be more culpable than the other, but why? Just keep reading... it all unfolds very satisfyingly. Right until the very last page!! Loved it and am looking forward to more from Ms. Downing.

Oooh what a creepy book! I flew through this one because it's the kind of book you just can't put down... Even if it enters your nightmares while you're trying to sleep! It definitely has a Dexter feel to it and creeped me out on the same level as Dexter did. Beware...

It's tough to share too many details without spoiling anything, but basically, it's about a husband and wife who are loving parents, professionals, etc. who also share a very disturbing hobby. The scary thing is that the longer you read, the more "normal" their hobby seems to the point that you may freak yourself out by not being more disturbed by it. You might also freak yourself out by who you find yourself rooting for in the book (at least I did!).

There were a few things in the book I didn't find totally realistic (I mean, I hope the whole premise isn't realistic enough to actually happen, but I mean more within the realm of this world) and the ending felt a bit rushed to me. But overall, I have to give Samantha Downing a ton of credit for coming up with this crazy idea for a book and executing it in such a fabulous way. But man, I still feel pretty icky about it.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC.

This book missed the mark for me. I wasn’t impressed by the plot, and honestly it took me weeks to get through it. If you like manipulation, lies, drama, murder and betrayal, this is the book for you.