Cover Image: The Last Wife

The Last Wife

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Member Reviews

I really enjoy this authors books and i love her style of writing so i was really looking forward to reading The Last Wife.
Ria grew up in foster homes and all she ever wanted was a family of her own but 5 years previously her husband walked out on herself and he daughter Shelley. Now 5 years later she receives an email threatening to expose the Parker family’s secrets. Afterwards members of the Parker family start having accidents. Bring a journalist Ria doesn’t believe they are accidents and she sets out to discover the culprit.
I absolutely loved this book and i was hooked the whole way through, i really enjoyed all the inter family bitchiness, manipulation and drama and the outcome blew me away!

Thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture and Nicola Marsh for the ARC of The Last Wife my review is honest and unbiased.

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Very well written, characters developed in a manner that makes you need to know what’s going to happen. Many twists, turns, chills, thrills, and shocks are sure to be gotten when reading this book! Will definitely be looking for more by this author and BOOKOUTURE, since most (like this one) are absolutely AMAZING!!!
Will make sure I buzz it up!

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I really found this book hard work . I liked it enough to want to find out the ending but it took me so long to read and was quite repetitive. I didn’t really enjoy the style in which it was written .

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This is a new to me author. Ria receives threatening emails about her 3 sisters-in-law and as an investigative reporter, she cannot help but to find out who sent these emails. I loved the multiple POVs and the author did a great job with making it perfectly clear whose POV it was every time she switched. The whole plot was a little far fetched like a soap opera, but it drew me in and I could not put this book down! I will definitely read more by this author. Thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture for the copy. All opinions expressed are my own.

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The Last Wife is a mystery novel involving around prestigious and powerful Chicago family - the Parkers.

The novel starts with an intriguing email that contains scandalous info on all-female members of the Parker clan, the information that can not only ruin the family's relationship but also their public reputation. The mysterious email was followed by a chain of accidents that harmed each member of the Parker tribe. And for the first time in years - Parkers unite in order to find the person responsible for the family's misfortune.

The novel had such great potential. I was hooked to the plot from the first pages, however, the "big twist" I was so anxiously waiting for and the ending of the story was quite dissatisfying. It was a great build-up of the storyline, I wish there was the more fascinating finale. Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture publisher for an advanced and free copy of the novel.

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This story centers on a woman trying to give her daughter the best life she can, much better than the one she had. She marries into a wealthy family...for love, not money. But too soon, she finds herself living as a single mother and must count on her in laws for help taking care of her child. When she receives compromising information on her family's past, she must decide whether to act on it, or even to believe it. Told from the family member's individual point of view, you'll see their lives through the perspective of many. A good read that has many surprises and will not end the way you think.

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This was one of those books that keep you guessing all the way through. About a family that I truly despised to no end. They in my opinion were somewhat cruel, despicable, uncaring and just all around horrible.

I didn’t like many of the characters but did think they fit their parts in this story. It was so well written and a page turner for sure. I think this is one of the best books of the year.

Thank you #NetGalley, #Bookouture for this book. This is my honest review.

A big 4 stars and a high recommendation from me.

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Thank you SO much for this ARC!

I read SO many books. This was hands down the best one I have read in a while, I loved reading this from the point of view of members of the family. The amount of drama and suspense was perfection and it had me guessing until the very end!

I will definitely be reading more of Nicola Marsh. Highly recommend!

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The Last Wife is a fantastic thriller that I could not put down. This book will never make you complain about your family once you read how crazy and nasty this one is. Well written and great characters.

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4 stars for The Last Wife! Nicola Marsh created characters in this book that could easily have each had their own novels. She did an incredible job building them in such a way that you can relate to their struggles and motives.

The Parker family is untouchable. They have more money than (clearly) they know what to do with. Like most wealthy families, their lives are dotted with lies and deceit, cheating, and secrets. When one of the daughter in-laws receives incriminating emails and members of the family are targeted with random acts of violence, things escalate quickly. Ria becomes desperate for answers but continues to uncover more secrets and lies. Ria tries to connect the dots without having to reach out to her ex-husband but one of the secrets involves him as well.

This book kept my heart pumping and my eyes jolted from one page to the next, one perspective to the next. I thought I had figured out who was behind the incriminating emails but in the end, I was wrong.

This one is a page-turner and I recommend it. I gave it 4 stars because I felt that there was a lot of repetition about what it was like, "being a Parker." The repetition seemed to make some paragraphs a bit painful to read, since I felt I had just read the same from a previous character. I typically don't like books that have lots of characters with their own chapters. But, Nicola is obviously skilled with using different perspectives to contribute to the overall suspense and mystery in the book.

I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. Thank you @Bookouture and @Netgalley. And, a big thank you to @nicolamarshauthor for this fun read. #suspense #thelastwife #fortunefamily #readabook #finishedreading #sendmethebooks #bookreviews #bookreviewer #4stars #booksofinsta #weekendisbooked #booklover #booknerd @oakcitybooks

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Sometimes you read the description of a book and the reviews and think 'it cant love up to its ratings... can it?'

Well this one most definitely did. I was completely off balance the whole way through, second guessing every presumption I had and not moving apart from turning each page!

Nicola Marsh has a special knack if keeping you totally enthralled with each and every character, I love the fact that there are no 'filler'characters, so each and every one stands alone in their own right.

A story of deep embedded family secrets, malicious deceit, betrayal and forged friendship.

I pretty much held my breath in shock at the BIG REVEAL... totally unexpected!

Superb read, fast paced, thrilling & completely unputdownable.

Massive thank you to netgalley and Bookouture for the ARC.

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Lots of books claim to be page-turning thrillers with unbelievable twists. Some live up to the hype, and some don’t. In The Last Wife, all of the characters had secrets of some kind. The author did a fantastic job of keeping me off-balance and wondering which secret was affecting which character. In fact, there were layers upon layers of lies that unraveled throughout the story. There were a couple of writing issues that seemed jarring to me, but overall I thought it was a well-done thriller with an original (and unexpected) twist. Yes, this one did live up to the hype. For a full review, please visit my blog at Fireflies and Free Kicks Fiction Reviews. Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for a complimentary digital ARC of this book.

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Fast paced suspense and drama. I liked this a lot and was hooked the entire time. Thank you publisher and netgalley for this arc in exchange of an honest review.

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The Last Wife is a 3.5 ⭐️ for me.
Ria Parker is a single mum after Grayson deserted her five years ago, she works and stands on her own two feet but she doesn’t have to as she married well and her mother-in-law makes sure ready money is available at all times. All the family gave access into this lucrative bank account but Ria is the only one not to depend on it. All the in-laws are a nightmare to be honest and they got on my nerves a bit towards the end. Ria receives an email showing her what all the women in the family are hiding. Not knowing what to do with it she does nothing but slowly all the women in the family end up in hospital due to mishaps and accidents, but who is behind it? The ending I didn’t see coming so early this book a star and it was a good ending I just found it a little boring at times. The characters were well formed even if the majority were unlikeable.
I would like to thank Netgalley and Bookouture for this ARC I received in exchange for an honest review.

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A mix between a family drama and a psychological thriller. A good paced read. An array of characters with some real flaws between them all. I enjoined the affluent Chicago setting. A good whodunnit with an unexpected ending.

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Truth be told, I didn't really enjoy this book. I found it a little boring and didn't want to finish it. I did feel the ending was good though. I liked the alternating character POV in the chapters. It was an entertaining thriller and family drama but just not for me.

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I thought this would be a thriller. It'seems more of domestic drama taking out of a Lifetime Movie.

The Parkers are a wealthy family in Chicago. When Rialto married into this family she knew she was going to have trouble fitting in. Nothing prepared her for what she would have to endure.

I have to say that this story did not do it for me. I did not like any of the characters unfortunately, and seriously this read like some thing out of a Lifetimeven movie.

Thank you Netgalley and publisher for a copy of this digital ARC in exchange for my honest review

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The Last Wife was my first book by Nicola Marsh but it will not be my last. I enjoyed the author’s fast paced writing style. The Last Wife is packed full of secrets, lies, and a family fraught with complicated relationships.

This story has many plot twists, some I guessed right away while others had me in the dark. The author did a commendable job creating tension and developing flawed characters while still allowing them to be understood and in most cases likeable. Ria was by far my favorite.

If you like fast paced suspense and drama you will enjoy The Last Wife.
As an aside, I will say having read the story I don’t find the cover relates at all.

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I received an ARC copy of this book from Net Galley in exchange for my honest opinion of it. I was so looking forward to reading this one but could not relate to the characters at all and was so hard to get through.

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A highly recommended mystery with plenty of suspense.

Ria Parker has remained close with her mother-in-law, May, for the past five years. Ever since Ria’s husband, Grayson, abandoned her and her daughter. That cannot be said for Grayson’s siblings. She finds them pretentious and hurtful. They clearly think Ria is beneath them. The only two that seem to at least like her are Shamira and Justin. The others are always frosty.

Growing up in foster homes, when Ria married Grayson, she anticipated a loving family. But they are rich and he she was poor. When Ria receives shocking emails showing the various Parker’s sins, she doesn’t know who to trust. When suspicious injuries begin to befall the family, Ria knows she must do something she vowed never to do. She needs to try to contact Grayson.

This is a mystery that will pull you in several directions at the same time. Just when you think you have figured out who the threat is, a new bit of evidence sends you spinning.

It is well written, with strong characters. You may not like most of them but you have to admit they may be a victim, the perpetrator, or both. The book is full of events that you thought you saw coming, then a surprise twist is thrown at you.


I received an ARC from Bookouture through NetGalley. This in no way affects my opinion or rating of this book. I am voluntarily submitting this review.

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