An interesting story. I liked the main character Nina and her daughter Maggie a lot. D.J. Palmer’s writing has a way of drawing you in and holding your attention.

This book was reminiscent of other books/movies I have read/seen, but it was still quite the thrill ride. I was anxious to get to the end to see how everything panned out. If you're looking for a psychological thriller, you won't be disappointed with this one.

Nina’s husband Glen has mysteriously disappeared and is presumed dead (which we learn in the prologue to this “I couldn’t put it down” book) when, two years later, we meet her and Simon, the man with whom she has bought a house, and her children Connor, who’s about 15, and Maggie, who’s about 12. While Connor enthusiastically welcomes Simon to the family, Maggie is downright antagonistic.

Simon teaches at the middle school Maggie attends, and seems to have a lot more money than one would expect from a teacher’s salary, and he’s adamant that Nina not return to her work as a social worker, which she does despite his objections. She also, unbeknownst to Simon, enters therapy.

Maggie is especially miserable, having been shunned for no particular reason by the “cool kids” she used to hang out with, but perks up when Ben, a sweet and brilliant guy on the autism spectrum befriends her. Things just kind of go on relatively okay for a while, until strange things start happening. Simon cuts Nina off from her friends, claiming he’s sick. He wants her to stop working, claiming that Maggie needs her at home. He’s very elusive about his first two wives, one of whom he claims committed suicide.

And then Maggie starts getting texts, even a phone call or two, from her dad. And the story gets very dark and dangerous until it reaches an exciting climax at the end.

I enjoyed this book, which I received as an ARC from the publisher and NetGalley. It’s well written, the characters, including Daisy the dog, seem real and relatable (except Simon, who truly has a mind so twisted it’s hard to imagine where the author found the internal fortitude to create such a sick and nasty villain), and the suspense builds at a perfect pace. I’d like to read more by this writer.

Fun, twisty, chilling and extremely creepy read! I was mentally screaming ‘look out’ from about page seven. Nina, her daughter Maggie and son Connor are picking up the pieces after Glen, the husband/father disappears. Into their lives comes sweet Simon, a knight in shinning armour. Hmmm. We know about these characters and it goes from bad to worse. Thoroughly enjoyable read, makes you put everything else on hold while you say, okay one more page. Well paced and recommended

Excellent thriller that you won't want to put down. You will feel so many emotions! Character development is strong

From the moment I began reading "The New Husband" it felt familiar. Somehow I had read this book or met these characters before, but that couldn't be true as this book has not yet been published. As I went along, Simon felt much like the baddie in many other "thrillers", Nina seemed like the about-to-become-gaslighted wife, and both clueless Connor or suspicious Maggie, the teen age children (even the dog, Daisy) were known to me from previous novels.

At a little more than half-way through I skipped to the end to prove to myself that my suspicions were right. And they were. Here, less than sadly, I gave up. Perhaps those with more patience or less reading experience would enjoy this book. Not I, I regret to report. Oh, and to the editor: Is Laura's last name Abel or Able?. Both spellings appear and here again in the role of Maggie's bully, carelessness..

This book kept me in suspense from beginning to end. Question after question regarding the disappearance of Glenn kept me completely immersed in this book. Nina and Glen were married with two children when he disappeared. After some time, Nina falls in love with Simon, a teacher at the children's school. Strange things start happening which leave Nina feeling concerned. The twists and turns in this book will keep you fascinated!

It took a while for me to become involved in this novel, but once I realized what was going on I just kept reading g until I finished!
Lots of psychology, lots of suspense!
I don’t want to give it away.
Excellent story!

This book is a thriller with twists and turns all throughout. Nina's husband Glen fails to return home after a fishing trip. She and their two children are forced to move forward without answers as to what happened to him. Nearly two years later, they are moving in with Simon, Nina's (nearly) fiance. Nina is thankful for Simon's place in her life, but her daughter wants nothing to do with him. Emotions run high as the story unravels, and you'll keep turning the pages trying to figure everything out.

I'm so sorry I really wanted to love this book but the writing drove me nuts. It felt very verbose and clumsy to me. I know that not every author speaks to every reader so I hope that I am the minority not the majority.

thanks for the ARC. I really wish i could give half stars as many books are a 3.5 or 4.5 for me, so this was a 3.5. quick read, slightly different twist than i was expecting, most of the characters were too black or white for me, would have loved more shading, more depth. the question kept being raised can you ever know anyone, can you ever trust anyone. the main character was a little too naive given she was a social worker and what she was experiencing was very basic to say the least controlling behavior from the new man in her life and she should have recognized the signs at least from her training and the warnings from her friends and daughters. but in due time, things become clear

Read The New Husband in two days. At times it reminded me of the podcast/movie Dirty John. Almost to the point I was going to stop reading.
While only certain elements are the same, the other plot points are totally different, which I was thankful for.
It had just enough description, just enough action, that it never got bogged down and read very quickly.
Highly recommend.

I really liked this book but I almost flounced it. The beginning was a tad slow but I'm glad i kept reading.

Well, I don't quite know exactly what to make of this book. It was very slow, like with nothing happened, for almost the entire first half of the story, but I kept reading because of all the raving reviews, including a couple reviewers whose judgment I trust. But boy was it painfully slow. Then, finally, the pace picked up. There was however, nothing I hadn't read in other books. I still don't understand Glen's story or Simon's plan at the end of the book. But for the heart-pounding moments—literally—I'll recommend this book to thriller lovers. I'm sure it'll work marvel as a movie.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Sorry to say I thought this was a train wreck of a story! The first half of the book I felt like slapping Nina and kept rolling my eyes. The second half got a little better but that isn’t saying much! The only good information that came from this book was not to trust anyone. Would not recommend. Thank you netgalley for letting me give an honest of this book.

When her husband disappears- presumably drowned while fishing- his secret life is revealed, including that he’d been fired months earlier and that he had an affair. This propelled his social worker wife into the arms of a caring teacher. Unfortunately, her teenage daughter is less than pleased about the new man in her mother’s life and sets out to make his life miserable as only a teenager can. To the exasperation of her mother, she refuses to connect with him, in spite of his efforts. As the dark story progresses, she may not be all wrong. An engrossing read- once I started, I couldn’t put it down. No spoiler alerts- you’ll have to find out yourself. Well worth a stormy evenings read.

***Thanks to NetGalley for providing me a complimentary copy of THE NEW HUSBAND by DJ Palmer in exchange for my honest review.***

4.5 STARS

Nina’s husband Glen vanishes from a fishing boat, leaving behind a trail of blood. Two years later, he’s presumed dead and she’s moved on with Simon, much to the chagrin of her tween daughter, Maggie who sees a darkness in her mom’s boyfriend her older brother Connor and mom do not.

From the moment Simon appeared on my kindle screen, I knew he was bad news. His subtle manipulation gave me a visceral reaction, making my skin crawl as I aligned myself with Maggie. DJ Palmer masterfully showed his escalating control in a way readers could understand why a vulnerable, yet self-aware Nina could miss the earlier signs. Palmer made Nina strong and capable of standing up to Simon by not falling for all the BS he flung her way.

Maggie, oh Maggie, was a hero. Awkward and imperfect she turned the loss of her father, strife of Simon and middle school bullies into incentives to kick ass and take names. She knew in her soul that Simon was problematic, never falling for the act her mother and brother bought.

Palmer’s sophomore effort was even more riveting than her debut, SAVING MEGHAN. One of the reveals stopped me cold yet made so much sense. THE NEW HUSBAND is both a thriller and a psychological thriller, satisfying from start to finish (which doesn’t necessarily mean a happy ending), in part because Palmer’s characters evoke empathy and her plot is solid. Add this to your TBR list ASAP.

This was an excellent novel that drew me in. The storyline was well developed and the characters were sympathetic and realistic.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and Netgalley for a sneak peak at this thriller. D.J. Palmer aka Daniel Palmer has always been one of my favorites when it comes to thrillers.

Nina’s husband went fishing one day and never came back. Since that day his past secrets have been revealed – his affair, his firing from his job at a bank and his draining of their bank accounts. Then Nina meets Simon and everything clicks. They buy a house together so she and her two children have a place to live. They plan to marry. But then Nina’s world changes and she’s not sure why.

D. J. Palmer didn’t disappoint this time either. He knows how to keep the reader, not only engaged, but to keep them reading to find out what happens next. He’s slow to uncover the villain, so the reader isn’t sure who it is until late in the book. I highly recommend The New Husband to all my GR friends.

I was able to read this book thanks to NetGalley. I absolutely love thrillers and I loved this book.
Nina is a mother to two children who’s husband disappeared a few years ago and is presumed dead. She had a new man in her life, who is a teacher at her daughter’s school, and he seems perfect. They move in together and everything seems wonderful. Her daughter does not care for her boyfriend, Simon, and sets about proving to her family that he is not the good guy they all believe him to be. Over time Nina learns more about his two wives and notices he seems to be controlling. What will she do? There is an amazing twist to this book and I devoured it in two days. I highly recommend it! Thanks again to NetGalley.