4.5 Stars

Well, Tarryn Fisher delivers a total mind-blanker (and you know what word I’m actually thinking of) with this book! Holy hell, that was a wild ride and I loved it! Three wives, three lives, one husband. What could possibly happen, Tarryn will blow your mind, that’s what!

I’m not going to say much about the actual story, this is a book that has to be experienced. It was intriguing and twisty and I couldn’t put the down! There were times when I didn’t even know what I wanted to happen. These characters are unique and their story takes a lot of twists and turns. This is definitely a must read for those moments when you want something different and dark that is just going to play with you! Great read from Ms. Fisher for sure!

The elevator pitch:
Big Love makes a woman lose her mind


Read/Skip:
Read!

Sign this writer up to teach a Masterclass course, like, right now! I read a few thrillers similar to this one the past year, all of them trying to be the ultimate mindfuck. But to be good at this twisty paranoid genre, you have to respect your reader, think of him/her as Holmes/genius/ New York Times puzzle solver, and bring it on on a whole other level. With The Wives, Tarryn Fisher takes charge of the reader; she has you exactly where she wants. In her Masterclass, Tarryn could explain how to create an invisible minefield, ( And I have just watched the Circle, so let me insert lots of mind-blown emoji.) Tarryn is a misdirection Master.
Fisher creates a compelling first-person voice by lingering on ordinary details that are well-defined, making the scenes feel genuine. Her style lures you in, that and the absurd premise that is so discombobulating that when you finally realize what is happening, it's too late. Kudos, if you were able to predict what would happen next. For the first time in months (that means lots of books), I was deep in the fog with this one. And I loved it.
I am vague. I know.
Let me just say, this what thrillers should do. It's uncomfortable, tantalizing, mischievous, and excellent at hiding its truth. Tarryn Fisher must be one of those excellent liars, impossible to read. This book is not. It's as seductive as Seth, one of the protagonists, a man able to make three women lose their minds.

The gist:

Thursday has a bizarre arrangement with her husband, Seth. She doesn't understand how he convinced her, but Seth has two other wives. She calls them Monday and Tuesday. They don't live together like one big happy polygamous family; in fact, Thursday has never met the other wives. But when the haze of infatuation, and boy is she in love with her husband, lifts a bit, Thursday starts wondering who they are. Then she finds a piece of paper with one other wife's name. A revelation that will blow her whole life to pieces.

This one just wasn’t for me. I loved the first part, but as the plot thickened and the mental aspect was coming to the foreground, it went downhill do me. However, I could see how some could love this!

I enjoyed this a lot and was so eager to find out what was going on. It’s a real page-turner!
......................

Ok. What in the hell did I just read?? This book has my mind seriously twisted. When The Wives begin, we meet Thursday. She is “Thursday” because that is the day of the week that she spends with her adoring husband, Seth. Thursday knows that she one of three wives that Seth has. She does everything in her power to be his favorite to ensure that she gets the majority of his love, affection, and attention.

Soon she begins to develop jealous tendencies of the other wives. The rule is that they are NOT to talk to or know about each other. One day all hell breaks loose when Thursday finds a note in Seth’s pocket with the name of one of the other wives. Thursday decides to take a road trip. She meets the other wives and gets way more than she bargained for. She tries to be a savior to one as she is getting played by the other.

While reading The Wives, I kept thinking, “What is the backstory?” Why can’t they know about each other (The Sister Wives do)? Why is Seth so hot and cold with Thursday, and why does she have so much damn time on her hands?

There were so many twists and turns it is hard to give a review without spoilers. I have so many questions. Did I read the ending, right? The beginning started slow, but halfway through, you will begin doubting your sanity. The end was explosive and mind-bending. The Wives was the first book I read by Tarryn Fisher, but it definitely won’t be my last.

Thank you, NetGalley, Harlequin, and Graydon House Books for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

I give this 3 stars, because it did keep me on the edge of my seat. However, I really hate the unreliable narrator trope. By the end I was rolling my eyes.

Thank you to Graydon House / NetGalley for the digital copy in exchange for any honest review!

Story:

The reader follows an unknown narrator, but she is referred to as Thursday, since that’s the day of the week when her polygamist husband, Seth, comes to see her. She cooks him a delicious meal; they have sex, and he moves on to one of the other two women—Monday and Tuesday. Monday is his first marriage, and Tuesday is pregnant—Hannah. Thursday finds a doctor receipt on the floor, accidentally left there by Seth, and it has Hannah’s name on it, hence why we know her name so early on.
She meets up with Hannah, and she notices some bruising on her arm. She suspects that Seth is laying a hand on her and that seems to be so unlike him. The catch to the meeting: Hannah doesn’t know who Thursday is or who she is married to.
She would also like to contact his first wife—Monday. It’s difficult when her husband won’t tell her anything, and his phone is totally bare of any juicy details connecting him to the other women.
What’s actually going on?
—
I enjoyed the book all the way up to a certain point, probably the 70% mark. Then it pretty much stayed at a three-star rating for me. There was a lot of information thrown in during a short time span. It almost felt like the first half of the book took too long, so the ending had to be rushed. The last page was pretty intense, and I really enjoyed that part.
I did love how unreliable the narrator was. That always makes me question what’s actually happening. It makes me pay attention to the details a little more. You never really know.

Characters:

There wasn’t a single character in this novel that I liked. I think that I knew what was somewhat going on. The main character, Thursday, was extremely redundant. I had hoped that it would switch narrators, but that wouldn’t be conducive for the main twist at the end.
I honestly didn’t like Seth from the beginning. If I say anymore about him, then it would pretty much spoil the story. Bad vibes across the board with him.
They are all portrayed in multiple ways that it was hard to keep track of.

Writing:

The writing is what I think to be good thriller writing. It’s simple and straightforward. It’s nothing I haven’t seen before.

Overall:

This was average for me, but I would recommend it to readers who are just entering this genre. I think it would catch them off guard. The story was a little repetitive at times, but it’s nothing unbearable. Even though I won’t be purchasing this for my collection, I am still interested in other novels by Fisher.

I will add that there are problematic elements to this novel. I don’t want to spoil anything here, but if you’re interested, please go check out my review on my blog. It will be up either later today—1/19—or tomorrow—1/20. The same goes for Goodreads.

Looking for a weekend binge read? The Wives was a twisty, fun puzzle of a thriller that’s, as advertised, impossible to put down. The less you know going in the better so read the Goodreads blurb if you must and then dive in! The short of it - Thursday’s husband has 2 wives and although she agreed to this arrangement, she’s having some issues with it. Soon, things start to go very wrong, very quick for her. ⠀⠀
•
I thought this was fast paced and unputdownable, so if you’re looking for an afternoon binge read this is it. My only criticism is with the last quarter of the book. I’ve read other reviews that say this part up until the end went off the rails and I agree. It felt far fetched and somewhat cliched. I wished for something different to end what was an addicting read. 4

The Wives is an insanely intriguing, gripping, action-packed, psychological thriller that sends your mind on a tailspin from the very first chapter. I was constantly trying to figure out what was going on, where the story was headed, and who exactly I could trust. I didn't move from the time I picked the book up until the time I put it down. Even then, I stared at the wall for a good ten or fifteen minutes thinking about what the hell I just read!

The suspense was intense! My heart was pounding with every turn of the page. I even caught myself holding my breath from time to time. Tarryn Fisher certainly knows how to keep you on the edge of your seat!

The story opens on a Thursday with the heroine waiting for her husband, Seth, to return home after a long day at work. Unlike most couples, they don't get to see each other every single day. Thursday is the first night they spend together every week. You see, their relationship is an conventional one. Seth splits  all his off time between her and his two other wives.

All of his spouses live separately, but they're aware of one another's existence. He spends a specific day with each wife every week. Other than that, the wives don't know much about each other. In fact, they don't even know each others' names, referring to each other only by the day of the week Seth spends with them.

Thursday was once happy with this arrangement, but not seeing her husband everyday and not being able to be seen in public with him began to wear on her. It made her more curious than ever before about the other women in Seth's life, Monday and Tuesday.

When she finds a receipt in his pocket with what she believes is one of his other wives' real names on it, she decides to do some investigating. That single slip of paper sets off a change of events she could have never seen coming. Is Seth the man she thought she married? Does she know him like she thinks he does? Is her life at all what is seems?

The Wives is a thrilling rollercoaster ride of intrigue, excitement, uncertainty, twists, and turns until the very last page! I had an amazing time reading this story. Tarryn is such an unique author. I never know what I'm getting when I open one of her books, and that's what I love most about her!

Overall, I greatly enjoyed my reading experience. The main issue that prevented me from rating this book any higher was the ending. I won't say anymore than that, because this is the kind of story you don't want to be spoiled. At the same time, I can easily see someone loving the ending we got. You can't please everyone, right?

If you're a fan of thrillers or this author's previous work, I recommend giving this one a shot!

“But when I switched gears and contemplated what made me happy, I was unable to come up with a good answer. I know what makes Seth happy, and I know that I feel happiness when he does, but doesn’t that point to the fact that I’ve completely lost my own identity with him? I’ve become that woman -- the one who is made happy by the happiness of others.”

Thursday Ellington’s husband visits her on Thursdays, only. The other days of the week he spends with his other wives, women in a different state, where he spends time with one career-oriented wife that orders take-out and never has enough time for him; and one young, pregnant wife with which he’s starting a family. Thursday only knows the things about the other women that Seth decides to share -- he doesn’t want any of them in contact with one another. Thursday loves Seth, and this arrangement is one she agrees with -- until a revelation that causes her to seek out these women with whom she shares a husband.

Tarryn Fisher’s The Wives is seductive and totally unputdownable. Read over the course of 24 hours, the first 60% or so of this novel confused me, intrigued me, and kept me guessing. After that point, the “shocking twist” takes a turn, and it’s hard for this reader (and maybe readers, from what I’ve seen) to get on board with.

Fisher does an excellent job of using Thursday’s perspective as 1 of 3 wives to stir distrust, jealousy, and mystery -- the reader wants to know about Seth’s other wives just as much as Thursday does -- who are these women that would agree to this arrangement? What make Seth so special that these women would give up monogamy?

All those questions are answered, but at a price. The premise of this thriller is what makes it different and interesting, and that premise goes through some changes by the end of the novel. I read this book quicker than I’ve read anything recently, but it fell flat in the end.

For readers looking for a page turner that leads with far more questions than answers, and gritty, somewhat crude (but all the more honest) prose, The Wives will fill that need. For readers looking for something that truly shocks and awes, I’m afraid you won’t find that here.

P.S. Fisher’s depiction of a strict disciplinarian librarian and an outdated, grundy library was personally offensive to this librarian. It added nothing to the plot, and only aided depictions of libraries as an outdated authority. Boo.

The Wives description had me excited for a thriller involving polygamy. I raced through the first half of the book, hopeful for what was to come but, ended up disappointed. In the end, this book was just not for me. I have serious issues with how post partum mental health was portrayed in this book.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Harlequin Graydon House Books, and Tarryn Fisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest book review of The Wives. My thought and opinions are 100% my own and independent of receiving an advance copy.

Once again, I am against type and did not enjoy this story. Well, let me modify that statement a bit. First I was really really looking forward to this one and so excited that I got an advance copy. There was a lot of positive buzz and people really were freaking out over it. The actual read was smooth and easy. The story flowed, or so I thought.

**Mild Spoiler**

Let me just say that for the most part, I don’t enjoy books where the narrator is either unreliable or straight up lying. I think that most authors use it as a cop out to create a “surprise” or “shocking” ending. No, when you deliberately mislead me through the whole story where even the premise is incorrect, then it isn’t shocking. I felt used, betrayed, and rather pissed off. There are only a few, of the really best authors, who can tell a story and slowly parcel out the facts that are, in the end, not what you expected. This takes true talent and knowledge of the craft. That didn’t happen here.

I’m not going to even tell you the premise because it won’t help. Like I said, I’m in the minority. By the time the big reveal happened, I felt a little crazy myself! For having spent my time reading this. No, thank you. Too bad because I was hoping for a different experience.

Thursday's husband sees her on Thursdays. On other days of the week, he is with his first or third wife in another city. Thursday doesn't know anything about the other two. But one day, she decides to go see one of the others.
Several twists. Enjoyable book! Thanks to Netgalley

This was a wild ride, but not one I'm sure I loved by the end.

It's been a hot second since I've read a thriller with an unreliable narrator and I forgot how much I can enjoy a story told this way. For me personally, unreliable narrators need to either be a really terrible, but fascinating person or garner sympathy to hold me in the story. Lately I have found too many of them center on self-medicating, either through pills or alcohol, too heavily to do much more than sleep and cry. This behavior gets old and my sympathy and patience runs out quickly .

I found the perspective in this one refreshing because while she did a little self-medicating, she was hyper-focused on her goal and searching out Seth's other wives. I loved those developments and her search for information.

I admit, the first 50-60 percent I was fully on board with this one, but once one of the twists happens I started to lose some steam. I do read a lot of mysteries, so maybe I just expected this to go in a different direction and that detracted from my personal enjoyment. I found the ending a little too ridiculous, but I loved most of the book and couldn't put it down once I made it around 10 percent in, so Fisher is a talented writer because I was glued to it even when I didn't love it.

This was my first book by this author, but have gotten recommendations for a couple others I plan to seek out. If you like unreliable narrators, then you should definitely read this because it's one of the better takes I've read recently.

The issues of mental illness and mental instability and infertility were handled carelessly in this book. It was disturbing.

I received this book in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley.

This is a smart thriller that I really enjoyed. My main issue with thrillers is that they often lack smart writing and character development, and I thought this book did a good job defying that stereotype. The Wives is dark and twisted, and the plot kept me interested the entire way through. I am not the best at figuring out the twist in these things, and the ending parts of the book were a little messy (I’m sure there’s a plot hole somewhere?) but I liked the very end. Definitely recommend for suspense fans!

The life of Seth Arnold Ellington is extremely complicated. The story is told via a first-person narration from Thursday, Seth's second wife -- the one he spends Thursday nights with. She relates how they came to be in what she describes as a polygamist relationship. His first wife never wanted children. But Thursday lost the child she was carrying, and she cannot get pregnant again. So, since Seth wants children, he has taken a third wife who is pregnant with their first child. The other two wives lives in Portland, Oregon, but Thursday, a nurse, resides in Seattle, Washington. Seth divides his time between the two cities as he runs a construction firm with his partner, Alex.

Thursday describes how she prepares for and anticipates the nights she spends with Seth, devoting herself totally to him, his needs, and pleasing him. Fisher explores how stressful and unsettling plural marriage can be. Thursday compares herself to Seth's other wives, and worries about how she measures up. She acknowledges that she "chose this life and it's not about competing, it's about providing, but one can't help but keep a tally when other women are involved." She feels that she "shouldn't wonder, but I do. How does a man love so many women? A different woman almost every other day. And where do I fall in the category of favor?"

Thursday's anxiety is magnified by the fact that there are no sister wives in this family. Seth has decreed that his wives must have no knowledge of each other. But Thursday looks forward to hearing about the others -- it is "the highlight" of her week -- and it her curiosity that propels the story forward. She has thus far "respected his wishes not to snoop." However, she finds a scrap of paper. It's a doctor's bill made out to Hannah Ovark in Portland and Thursday begins investigating to determine if, in fact, Hannah's is Seth's pregnant third wife.

Fisher slyly and cleverly lays the groundwork, but abruptly brings everything Thursday has revealed into question, suggesting that nothing is as it has thus far been portrayed. Is Thursday a reliable narrator? Or is something else entirely going on with Fisher's characters? The story takes off at a dizzying pace as Thursday embarks on her quest for information about Seth's other wives. Suddenly she is on a quest for the truth about Seth's background, admitting that she foolishly asked few questions about his history because she was so smitten with and eager to marry him. She seeks details about his relationships with the other wives, his true feelings about her, and his motivations for his surprising behavior. She strikes up a friendship with Hannah which becomes unsettling when she notices that Hannah has bruises on her wrists. Seth has never exhibited any propensity for violence, but events push Thursday to fear for Hannah's safety, as well as that of her unborn child. She also seeks out Regina, Seth's first wife, in an effort to confirm what Seth has told her about their marriage.

The Wives is replete with surprising plot twists. Fisher includes expertly-timed clues about the real nature of Thursday's relationship with Seth, as well as his machinations and manipulation of Thursday and his other wives, along with plenty of red herrings. Fisher's storytelling is meticulously planned and executed, and her characters intriguing and compelling, if not particularly likable. Thursday is, in many ways, empathetic and identifiable. She is intelligent, independent, and accomplished, yet still insecure and full of self-doubt. She feels that she needs Seth's love in order to be complete, even though she is repulsed by the way her mother dotes on, takes care of, and subjugates her own needs to please Thursday's father. Thursday sees herself as deeply flawed and damaged . . . yet uncontrollably mired in her devotion to Seth. She recognizes that she was detached from her family, devoted to her studies, and "secretly longing for a connection" when she met Seth. "I was waiting for someone to see me. . . . I was willing to accept anything he had to offer just to be loved by him. I'm ashamed to think about it." Fisher says notes that was "breastfed into the patriarchal model" that women are rebelling against. "But in order to collectively gather our female voices we had to be pushed to a breaking point." Fisher intentionally pushes Thursday into "uncomfortable realities" until she reaches a breaking point. And then delivers a shocking conclusion to her creative, absorbing, and highly entertaining first thriller.

The first half was a solid 5 star read for me. I could not figure out what the heck was going on. I felt so connected to the characters and couldn't wait to find out how everything was going to end. But then it took a turn that I didn't like, nor believe and I started to lose interest. I would still recommend this book to friends because it's definitely unique-which I appreciate in a world of thrillers that are all aspiring to be the next Gone Girl.

I love an original premise. The topic of polygamy immediately caught my attention. And how that would play out in a marriage instantly drew me to this book. As I dove in, it was a pretty quick read for me, which tells a lot about the nature of the writing. Easy read. Interesting plot. Sense of mystery throughout--who is lying? Who is telling the truth? Can we trust our narrator?

What I felt was missing, however, was the Seth appeal. And why Thursday would have agreed to polygamy without a religious component to drive it. It basically went like this: girl meets boy, girl falls in love, boy says I have other wives, girl says okay. Without a strong conviction about it, what woman would agree to it (unless she also was benefitting somehow, which Thursday wasn't and had never been)? What about Seth made him so irresistible that Thursday would agree to the polygamy arrangement when dating him? Usually a strong religious element would drive the willingness to accept such a marriage. This is a crucial element to the believability of the story, which I felt was missing.

Aside from that, however, I enjoyed the book. The writing was simple and fluid and it held my attention throughout. It's a great pick for fans of slow-burning psychological thrillers.

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy. I voluntarily reviewed this book. All opinions expressed are my own.

The Wives
By: Tarryn Fisher


*REVIEW* 🌟🌟🌟🌟
The Wives has so much hype that I have been hesitant to read it because hype often disappoints. This book, however, definitely delivered the promised allotment of crazy and what just happened moments. If your husband had two other wives that you knew about, would you want to meet them? Thursday decides to find out all she can about the other two wives of her husband. Her quest for truth and clarity turns into a psychologically thrilling crazy train that goes off the rails and nosedives into a deep ravine where it then explodes. It's just bizarre insanity at every turn that will keep you riveted. I was slightly disappointed with the ending, but my overall impression remains favorable. This story is a strange experience that stays with the reader. Is that a good thing or a bad thing? Seriously, just read it for yourself.