WTH??? What a thoroughly twisted, evil little tale this was! Some of the revelations made me rejoice in the sisterhood, others sent shivers down my spine, and some made me want to have a shower. This book is definitely not for the faint hearted.

THE GILDED CAGE was my first book by Camilla Lackberg, but it won’t be my last. With a penchant for dark, Nordic noir, I am wondering why it has taken me so long to pick up her books?

The reference to the gilded cage relates to Faye, our main protagonist, as she finds herself trapped living the life of a rich man’s wife – she may have all the money she can possibly want at her disposal, but her marriage is far from healthy. As Faye’s confidence is slowly being eroded by her husband’s emotional abuse, she is also harbouring suspicions that he is cheating on her.

If the theme of rich arrogant men trading in their wives for younger models (and making a point of mentioning to their wives that they have become too old, fat and boring to be worthy of their love) makes you wild, then you will have steam coming out of your ears like the Hogwarts Express reading the first half of the book. Do not despair, because vindication is nigh. Although I must say that it is more twisted than sweet, and I felt slightly sullied by each and every character in this book. That doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy the ride though, and it was truly a crazy journey.

THE GILDED CAGE is as steamy as it is dark. I soon felt myself swept away by this tale of love, betrayal, revenge and the force of a woman scorned. Lackberg has a unique writing style that fits well with the Nordic noir theme I love, and I am very eager now to read some of her other novels.

I recently got a chance to read this book after being too slow to download it. I'm so glad I finally read it!

It was a fast paced thriller with twists and turns. I really enjoyed the plot and the characters were well written.

Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a copy of this E-book to review via Netgalley.

This book is certainly entertaining and it was so fun seeing Faye rebuild her life but The thriller aspects were glazed over and the main focus is Faye’s journey.
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This is a good one for those who like a strong main character and backstory.
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Thank you netgalley and harpercollinsaustralia for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

One day and one sleepless night and I read the book in one go, in one breath.

I love Camilla Lackberg to begin with (Ice Princess) but this book tagged at all the springs and pushed all the buttons I did not want to be pushed. It spoke the language of pain, suffering, revival and resilience.

The Gilded Cage is just this - a story of trophy wife who has everything a woman can possibly dream of but who is empty and dead inside until she can be dead no more. Faye is all other women envy and hate. She has the house, the husband, the kid, the credit card and entry to all the prestigious do's... But she does not have 'herself'. She does not have her own life, story, even face...

This novel by Lackberg is a take of 'winning power back' full of all the 'right' ingredients: drugs, alcohol, casual and rough sex, younger lovers, mistresses, cruel but week men and beautiful but empty women.

Faye gets her life back. She gets her revenge. What I found a bit off in this book is the detailed description on just how Faye gets her revenge. I think 'business plan' and detailed reports on business were off putting.

Also offputting was a volatile cocktail of all the 'trendy baddies' including pedophilia. I thought this part was and afterthought and did not sit well within the story.

But all in all, Faye story is interesting, suspenseful, intriguing, uplifting and encouraging. I read it and I felt it. I felt it and it turned out just how I hoped it would.

I wish to thank Camilla Läckberg, HarperCollins Publishers Australia and NetGalley for the advanced copy of The Gilded Cage in exchange for an honest review.

Set mostly in contemporary Stockholm, this story is narrated by the protagonist Faye von Essen who is intelligent, gifted and married to a controlling abusive partner. Faye is submissive in an attempt to appease her husband and sustain their marriage for her daughter’s security. The story is also set during Faye’s childhood; her father is also violent and abusive. In the second part of the novel, Faye finds her strength and her secrets begin to emerge.

This is an important work of literature portraying domestic violence is one of the most developed countries in the world; it is a call for gender equality and cultural change. It is the first book by Camilla Läckberg I have read, suspenseful and thrilling it kept me up late, totally captivated by the story. I’ve have enjoyed Scandinavian fiction in the past and I’m excited to read further books by this writer.

I have greatly enjoyed a number of previous books by Ms Lackberg. Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for a copy.

I did not know anything about this book before launching into it and I think that enhanced my enjoyment. I'm not going to rehash the plot, or even mention characters as unpacking it all was part of the fun. It was quite different to the Patrick and Erika books, but with the same compulsive readability.

My one comment about the plot with not too much detail, I really didn't understand why the main character concluded her relationship in that manner. I don't think it was necessary for the character development and left me with a horrid taste in my mouth.

But aside from that, I totally enjoyed this book. I would recommend this book for anyone after a dark, gripping read.

I loved this! The Gilded Cage of the title refers to the situation that many trophy wives find themselves in. Groomed to perfection, pampered and entitled, these wives of wealthy men are caught in a trap of their own making, striving to remain young and yummy while their balding husbands shop around for younger models. Faye Adelheim had a very traumatic childhood. She also did some things she would rather forget so she is determined to put all that behind her and make something of herself. She was smart and enrolled in an economics/business course at university. There she met Jack, whom she later married, and her best friend Chris. When Faye and Jack became an item, she put her course on hold to help him set up the company he started with his friend, Henrik. As the company took off and the money rolled in, Jack encouraged Faye to take a back seat and focus on their home and their daughter Julienne.

Cut to the present and things seem to be cooling between Faye and Jack. Faye does everything she can to make life easier for Jack and remain attractive, but he is increasingly disparaging of her and spends more time than ever at work. This is a marriage in big trouble. When she comes home early one day and finds Jack in bed with his young assistant it is all over. Faye thinks - fine, she can get on with her life now but when Jack refuses to provide for her and Julienne, with all his wealth that Faye helped him to accumulate - the red mist descends! Faye reverts to her former persona and vows to crush Jack. And now it gets really good.

This is not a thriller as such nor even much of a mystery because you kind of know where it is heading. I guess you could call it a revenge drama (who doesn’t like one of those?) and in that guise it was outstanding. Normally I need a faster paced story. This was slower but oh so compelling. For me it was a real page turner. I had to know how this played out. This book is quite a departure from the author’s previous books, the fantastic crime thrillers featuring Patrick Hedström. But if you enjoy seeing the downtrodden get payback on their oppressors, you will love this story.

Thankyou to NetGalley, HarperCollins Publishers Australia and the author, Camilla Lackburg, for the opportunity to read a digital copy of The Gilded Cage in exchange for an honest and unbiased opinion.
I thought this book provided a good read. The storyline was imaginative and well written.

I’ve read one Lackberg book previously, The Ice Princess, and had found it a little hit and miss. And, unfortunately, I finished this book with the same mindset.

The Gilded Cage is a domestic psychological thriller which in many ways reminded me of Gone Girl, especially in the way it started out strongly but the ending didn’t really work for me.

The book follows the life of Faye who's an ambitious and intelligent young woman who’s married to Jack, the co-owner of one of the most successful companies in Europe. However, we soon learn, there’s a lot of darkness in their seemingly perfect marriage. Lackberg also, gradually, reveals the truth about Faye’s life before she met Jack and the lengths she is willing to go to keep those details secret.

Like in Gone Girl, the leads are not particularly nice people and neither has any real idea of what romantic love is. Jack is one of the most abhorrent characters I’ve read about for a while. I seriously can’t think of one redeeming feature he possessed at the moment. The times I sympathised with Faye and cheered her on were about equal to the times I disliked her and thought she was a psychopath.

I did enjoy Lackberg’s style. The book had a bit of a surreal quality about it. I’d even say it had a Hollywood feel to it. As I read I could imagine most scenes being played out like a movie, with the characters flaunting their wealth.

I remember The Ice Princess’s writing was pretty clunky and I assumed this had to do with the translation. There seemed to be no such issues with The Gilded Cage.

The book was also fast paced. I never felt bogged down with the writing or bored with the plot, and I finished it in a couple of days. I couldn’t say the twists were a surprise though. I guessed two of the major ones early on. One problem I did have was there was no explanation as to how the one twist was achieved by the character in question. (This was my issue with the ending, which felt really rushed.)

If you like to read books which are relatively clean, I don’t think this would be the book for you. There was a lot of sex scenes. Some really unnecessary ones too and none pleasant or sexy. They were more about power and control than love and I’d actually classify a lot of them as rape and/or domestic abuse. I don’t want to spoil too much but, apart from the sex scenes, there's also another couple of unpleasant abusive moments which some readers might find upsetting.

Overall, the book had some really great moments that I liked. It seems a shame that there were also those parts I've mentioned here that lessened my enjoyment. I will still probably read Lackberg again and I would still probably say that if you like this type of book (especially, as I said, if you're a fan of Gone Girl), you should give it a go.

3 and ½ out of 5