I’ve been drooling over this book since I saw it! This hard-to-put-down, twisty suspense is bound to be one of the best psychological thrillers this year!

Thank you to NetGalley, Park Row and Kimberly Belle for this ARC, in exchange for my honest review!

After reading “Dear Wife” (my first book by this author), I understand all the praise and hype around Kimberly Belle. This was intense, riveting, hilarious at times and full of suspense and twists! 🖤

The characters were well-developed and fascinating, but a few really stood out. Miss Sally was a total hoot. Beth and Sabine were both strong characters that I really admired. I even liked Jeffery at times...mostly his prickly relationship with Ingrid, who wasn’t afraid to stand up to him.

This is the best book I’ve read this month...and one of my top reads in 2019! I will be snapping up Ms. Belle’s future books immediately upon release! I love her wicked sense of humor!

Sabine is missing and Beth is on the run from an abusive husband. Are they the same woman? I wasn’t sure. When reading the point of view of each character, their identity/connection was a mystery, but I was fascinated by their stories and couldn’t stop reading! I was able to figure out a few of the twists, but not until just before they were revealed. This is one that keeps you on your toes!

<b>My Rating: </b> 5 ⭐️’s
<b>Published:</b> June 25th 2019 by Park Row
<b>Pages:</b> 384

<b>Recommend:</b> YES!

<b>Excerpts: </b>
<blockquote>“Why doesn’t she just leave? gets asked in living rooms and courtrooms across the country, when a better question would be, Why doesn’t he let her go?”

“Only an asshole stands in the way of soul mates. But we’ve already established that I am a bitter, bitter man.”</blockquote>

Alternating points of view (Beth, Jeffrey, and Marcus) tell an intriguing story of domestic suspense. Beth is on the run from her violent husband. She has been living in fear, and has carefully planned her escape. Jeffrey has returned home from a business trip to discover his wife, Sabine, is missing. As Jeffrey learns more about what was going on in his wife’s life, he also becomes the prime suspect in her disappearance. Marcus is the detective working Sabine’s case. He’s following all the leads to find the missing woman.

Strong, well-developed characters. All of the characters are smart, interesting, and secretive. I enjoy a good unreliable narrator story, and this one kept up the suspense.

A clever and absorbing psychological thriller. This is a page-turner that will keep you guessing. Dark, intense, and complex.

I received a free advance digital copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Wow! This was a shocker. This novel was not my first Kimberly Belle to read and it won’t be my last. Realtor Sabine is missing and no one knows where she is. The path to the truth is twisty, the book holds nothing back. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to be an early reader in exchange for my honest review.

Dear Wife by Kimberly Belle was not what I thought it would be. I thought it would be a typical abused wife on the run tale. I was so wrong! This story is far from typical or average. I thought I knew what was going on several times and was wrong! You should definitely check this fast paced thriller out! Thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Holy wow. I’m a huge fan of this author and I was impatiently waiting for this books release. I was lucky enough to receive an advanced copy from netgalley. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and had a hard time putting it down. This book is not what you think. You think you figured it out but you didn’t. Thrillers are my fav and it’s pretty hard to stump me. This one did. I highly recommend this book.

This is a difficult book to review without giving away the intricate and deliciously devious way it is constructed. So, I will just say it’s a great read and although you may guess where it’s going it’s still a gripping read where you fly through the pages to find out what’s reall,y going on with the missing woman ( or is it women) hurtling towards the extremely satisfying ending. Told from multiple points of view you realize more is going on here than the story first revealed. Only grievance is how a trans character is written and treated.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Belle leads the reader down a road of danger and suspense. Who can you trust when your abusive husband is a cop? Delve through the anger, the lies, the truths but hold onto your seat because it could be a rough ride. Enjoy! 📚

BLOWN! A-WAY!!!

This is a fantastic domestic thriller with an ending that totally surprised me. I really enjoy reading books with different POV's and this one had three: Beth, the abused wife who changes her identity and goes on the run to escape her abusive husband; Jeffrey, the husband and primary suspect of the missing wife; and Marcus, the detective assigned to the case. I was engrossed in this book from the very beginning, not wanting to put it down at all because I really, really wanted to get to the end. The writing is spot-on, the characters flawed and not all likable but that's what makes this story so darn good and believable. Dear Wife is just brilliant!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the review copy.

Belle stumped me on this one. I kind of thought I knew where it was going – but I was wrong. I knew precisely when I realized I was wrong – as a sliver of cold ice seemed to pierce my lungs. Suspenseful and intriguing, it was really hard to put down. I just wanted to lose myself in it.

The characters are believable as they all have their flaws. Each is relatable and garners an emotion from the reader whether the emotion be good or bad. Sorting them out can be difficult. Domestic abuse, secrets, lies, stealing, manipulation, betrayal – these are just the surface of what is in store for the reader.

The story is told from the perspective of three of the characters – Beth, Sabine’s husband, and Marcus the detective. There are subtle clues hidden within and are easy to shrug off. Until near the end and those clues suddenly start to have meaning. I loved the ending. There are many books being written now with that “major twist at the end” that just didn’t work. This is NOT one of those books. There are “minor” characters that really shine and without them the story would lose some of its luster. With Belle, every character matters.

I received an advance copy from the publisher, but all opinions expressed are my own.

4.25 I cannot put it down, it is glued to my hands, imprinted on my mind, this book is sooo good stars!!!

It was one of the most enjoyable time I`ve had by reading this fast-paced , mind-bending, gripping, fascinating book. You know the feeling, you had work to do but you want to grip your book and read it in one night! Unfortunately you have obligations but in the meantime you cannot concentrate on your work because your mind is stuck on the book’s story, you ask yourself “what’s gonna happen next?”,” Whodunit oh dammit” kind of frustrating questions! Yeap, that what I felt because I had to finish it in 2 nights!!!

The story is told through 3 POVs.

Jeffrey, is a prime suspect of his wife Sabine’s disappearance! They have marriage issues. They can’t have children. Jeffrey has hard times to financially support them. They had fight. She pushed him and he slapped him. They were estranged for a long time. And guess what, Sabine had a relationship with a doctor and she was about to talk to him she wanted divorce before she disappeared. So Jeffrey really needs a lawyer!!!

Marcus is police officer who investigates Sabine’s disappearance. He thinks she’s dead! She tries to nail the husband. He seems like a good guy, having a great connection with children, so doing a good job to find the leads about the investigation.

And Beth, runaway, abused wife, changing her appearance, getting a fake ID and moving to another city for fresh start, suffering from nightmares because of things her husband did to her. She was agitated, tense, waiting for the shoe drop and somebody could find out her secret.

As we continue to flip the pages, learn more about the characters ,we realize nothing is as it seems. The good characters may be the evils, the worst ones may have some noble, live saving purposes, the weakest one may be the wicked and smartest one! Because our three characters aren’t telling the whole truth about themselves!!!
Get ready for twists, `Oh Nooo!`, `WTH`, `Really!`, `Wow didn`t see it coming` moments!

I loved the ending so much. I cheered up and finally put down the book which was glued to my hands for hours to give a big applause!! Yayyy!

This was one of the best thriller books I’ve read on 2019. Smart, entertaining, unputdownable and highly recommended!

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me ARC copy for exchange of my honest review.

Psychological thrillers with more than one narrator are my absolute favorite kind of book, because you just don't know who to trust or what to believe, and this book met those standards for me! I loved Belle's "The Marriage Lie" so I was very excited when I saw this book! Make sure you have plenty of time in your day to read this, because once you start it, you won't want to put it down! Thanks to Net Galley for the chance to review this!

2.5 rounding up. I read it because I wanted to see the plot play out but I think the language was overwrought and the characters were not my favorite.

This book gripped me from the first chapter and didn't let go until its amazing ending. Dear Wife is such an Mesmerizing story with such great thrill and suspense. Keeps you reading to find out what's going to happen next! This novel had everything in it. The thrill, the suspense, the psychological, and the twist is crazy. Every page, every chapter was a page turner. I highly recommend everybody get this book and read it. Five star rating!

This is absolutely the best domestic thriller that I have ever read! This book is like a runaway train; you get your ticket and you just can’t believe how wild the ride is! Beth is an intelligent young woman who is escaping an abusive husband. She methodically sets about establishing a new identity, taking cash with her and hiding out from her abuser. Meanwhile, back in her hometown of Pine Bluff, Arkansas, Sabine, a successful real estate agent is reported missing. What is the connection between Sabine and Beth? Are they the same person with different identities? Who is the abuser? Fans of domestic thrillers absolutely have to read this book! It is an eye-opening look into the life of a woman who is abused and desperate. It also depicts well the quest of the detective who is trying to find Sabine and the plight of the two men who claim to love her. I identified with Beth, gasped over the revelations at the end, and closed the book with a sigh, wishing that the thrill ride were not over yet.

Dear Wife releases June 25th and is a wonderful mix of mystery, suspense, and intrigue. With one woman, Beth, on the run and another, Sabine, missing there is plenty that kept me on my toes.

The characters are flawed, believable and even unlikeable - this is a story of dysfunction and abuse, of relationships, secrets and fresh starts. I read this one in a matter of days and again Kimberly Belle did not disappoint, she kept me glued right till the last page.

My thanks to the publisher (via NetGalley) for an advanced digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

My my my.... Kimberly Belle has done it again!

There's Beth, Jeffrey, Sabine, and Marcus. A woman is on the run from her abusive husband, and changes her identity to stay hidden. Where did she go? How far will she go to keep her identity a secret? Who exactly is she hiding from?

I really cannot say any more in order to avoid spoilers, but I will say that this book is a page turner for sure, and I absolutely DID NOT SEE THE ENDING COMING! Talk about a twist. I actually had to re-read the page revealing the twist 3 times to make sure I was understanding what was going on.

I am a huge fan of Belle's, and Dear Wife is a very close runner-up to The Marriage Lie as an all time favorite of hers. HIGHLY recommend. :) 5 huge stars!

3.75 stars. A decent book with a somewhat surprising twist. I say “somewhat” because I was getting suspicious! Two missing women and a cop looking for them. One who just disappeared and the other on the run from an abusive husband. The ending seemed a bit contrived but works.

Holy Shooty Balls!!! Thrilling, highly compulsive, & mind-blowing stuff!

Oh my goodness what did I just read? An absolutely fabulous thriller that’s what! This book was incredible and I am so thrilled to say that this book is my new favourite!!!

DEAR WIFE by KIMBERLY BELLE is a gripping, suspenseful, dark, brisk, and twisty thriller that was absolutely unputdownable. I was immediately sucked in and devoured every single page of this spellbinding entertaining book. Once I started reading it I was hooked and so absorbed in the storyline that I was flipping those pages as fast as I possibly could.

KIMBERLY BELLE delivers quite the impressive, clever, intriguing, tension-filled and well-written read here that was extremely well-plotted and flowed effortlessly. I was feeling every emotion possible while I was reading this book. These characters were brilliantly written and those subtle clues were perfectly interspersed to make this such a satisfying and fulfilling read.

Expected Publication Date: June 25, 2019

* Traveling Sisters read *

Norma’s Stats:
Cover: Love this simplistic and classy cover. It is such a fabulous and fitting representation to storyline.
Title: Appealing, clever, suspenseful, intriguing and absolutely loved how the title played so brilliantly into storyline. I might have squealed a little bit when the meaning behind the title was revealed to us.
Writing/Prose: Well-written, engaging, enthralling, fluid, efficient and effortless.
Plot: Clever, intriguing, dark, twisty, intense, suspenseful, riveting, fast-paced, absorbing, enjoyable and entertaining. An absolutely fabulous storyline!!!!
Ending: An explosive ending that left me feeling totally fulfilled and satisfied! Fabulous!!
Overall: It was such an irresistible, enjoyable, fun and thrilling book to read. I thoroughly enjoyed the reading experience!!! Would definitely recommend!

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Harlequin / Park Row Books and Kimberly Belle for my complimentary copy. It was an absolute pleasure reading this novel!!

I've always admitted that I'm a sucker for the unreliable narrator. The thing is, there isn't an unreliable narrator in Dear Wife by Kimberly Belle. It is the reader. You are the unreliable one. She makes YOU unreliable. Ok. Let's be fair to ourselves. As readers we have ALL been there. We have all thought we had a book figured out. We thought meh. This is an ok book, but I already know what is happening, what is going to happen blah... blah... blah. And then BOOM! You realize you are a complete idiot and the author is the author for a reason. 

Yeah. No. This is NOT what I mean. I can't really say more than I just did. In fact, I should just tell you the following embarrassing story and then tell you to GO PRE-ORDER THE BOOK and just end the review. Because to do anything else would just kill the whole thing. But since I've now rewritten this review a good FIFTEEN THOUSAND times. I'm going to tell the promised embarrassing story and then TRY to give you some bits and pieces that spoil nothing and demonstrate some serious writing chops of one, Ms. Belle.



Thank you to Harlequin Books, HarperCollins, Park Row Books and Netgalley for the Arc in exchange for an honest review.
AND DON'T FORGET! You have until midnight eastern time tonight (America and Canada) to enter for a chance to win an autographed ARC of Dear Wife from Kimberly Belle! See her Q and A for details!

Embarrassing story (I swear on the boys): You might as well just plan to read Dear wife on a day you have nowhere to go and/or a night when you don't have to get up the next day. Yes, I can be one of those readers who says.... eh, just one more chapter and ends up reading till 4 A.M. But being a lifeguard is tiring and I couldn't put my Kindle down and Kindles hurt. So, when I was holding it and didn't realize I fell asleep until the sucker hit me square in the nose? Yeah. It hurt. That takes the whole making reading a contact sport to a whole new, literal, level.

Now, here's what I can tell you without spoiling anything. Dear Wife, is a thriller, without a doubt. It is a quick read that shoots out the gate and doesn't let go. Told from three points of view- Beth, Jeffrey and Marcus- it is an agonizing race against time.
Here's the thing. Within the thrilling suspense you expect from a domestic suspense novel, Belle masterfully utilizes flashbacks cover more than the obvious aspects of domestic violence.

She does a deep dive on sensitive subjects the PTSD it causes, the family dynamics of those related to both the abuser and the abused. Furthermore, shedding light on questions that society often asks: why doesn't she just leave? Why does she stay? What is wrong with her? Even if Belle can't always provide answers, at least the questions are raised.

I learned another lesson that day, one that in the end, was much more sinister: my leaving was not just about me. You would mow down anyone who got in your way.

It isn't a snap decision. Finally trying to break away and even when the attempt is made, you don't just make a clean break.



The PTSD that Belle emulates throughout the stories shows how years of abuse at the hands of a spouse can make it torturous at every turn. The doubt, the fear, nightmares. Simple human nature such as trust being stripped away with every punch, slap, threat and blow over the years makes it difficult to make a plan to get away from the person that caused the pain to begin with. Belle takes readers through every terrifying nightmare, chipped away piece of humanity and desperate decision with honest and raw authenticity.

Lastly and maybe most surprisingly is the appropriate timing and utilization of sarcastic humor and wit. There are very well-placed times where characters are so flabbergasted at themselves, at the situations they are in that the dark humor comes out in ways that are very relatable. Maybe I found it relatable because dark humor has always been a coping mechanism for me, but I can see it happening. I have seen it happen. And I think if overly done it would take away from the gravity of the issues and thriller genre at hand. Badly timed and it would be ludicrous. Belle has the knack for both the timing and the balance. I would love to quote one or two but no... can't do that either.

Truthfully, I'm surprised I could tell you this much. It did take 15,000 edits (including some right up till this morning) and one embarrassing whack by my Kindle. But I hope it is enough. Dear Wife is a thrilling, heart-pound read that also speaks to essential issues (a couple I haven't even mentioned- because spoilers) at its heart. It is my first read by Belle. It will not be my last.

Rating: 3.5/5

When I first started reading Dear Wife I immediately got sucked into it. Kimberly Belle is a great writer and she knows how to weave a taut thriller. I didn’t want to put it down! For a while, at least.

The story centers around the disappearance of a woman named Sabine. Her husband, Jeffrey, is desperate to find her. He and Sabine’s twin sister, Ingrid, do their best to track her down. Eventually a detective named Marcus is assigned to her case.

I don’t want to reveal much else and risk giving away the novel’s twist because it was fairly well done.

But around the halfway mark, the plot sort of fizzled out. It was around the time a church was introduced that I began to feel my desire to continue reading waning. The story began to drag and there were side characters added I didn’t care about.

Even that, though, is not my biggest issue with Dear Wife. No, my biggest issue with this novel is that it is rife with racist and transphobic descriptions. I mean some of the moments were so bad, so glaring, I can hardly believe a publisher approved it. Mind you, I was sent an ARC so it’s possible that some of these moments could be fixed before the novel is published but it’s worth mentioning.

I haven’t read Belle’s other novels but I understand she is highly praised in the book community. I’m not sure if this is a common trend in her books.

Literally every non-white character in this book is reduced to a racialized stereotype. It’s not subtle either.

Should you read Dear Wife?
In terms of thrillers, it is one of the best I’ve read this year, even if I felt disappointed by the second half of the story, I can still recognize its strengths. I understand why it is so highly praised by the book community. If you’re a big thriller fan, odds are you’ll pick this up. But personally, I’d rather recommend a book without such outdated and callous remarks about minorities.