Y’all! This is the kind of crazy train wreck domestic psychological thriller I love! I binged on this book and loved every minute of it! I was engrossed in the story from chapter 1 and just could not get enough!
This is one of those thrillers where you think you know from pretty much the beginning where it’s heading but then the twist at the end shows you no girl! You were wrong!
Tish was one of THE most unlikeable characters ever! She was such a selfish, materialistic, self-serving, gold-digging, man-eater and all around dispicable woman that I just just seething at the whole time!
This was a binge worthy read, I flew through thirty chapters in the first sitting! Definitely a great storyline and so highly recommended!!

Special thanks to Netgalley and Thomas & Mercer for the advance copy of this book in exchange for my review!

Plan to stay up all night to finish the page-turner, “Next Wife” by Karia Rouda.

First wife and co-founder of EventCo., Kate, is stunned to discover her husband, John, is cheating on her with her apparent replacement, Tish. John is facing a mid-life crisis because of a medical condition so it was easy for him to fall for Tish’s charms. Meanwhile, Ashlyn, Kate and John’s daughter, cannot forgive her father for leaving her mother nor is she feeling kindly toward Tish who feigned a friendship with Ashlyn just so she could get to her dad. Yet, when EvenCo.’s IPO launch succeeds, Tish fears John may consider going back to Kate and Tish decides to resort to almost anything to keep that from happening.

The novel is told in the point of views of Kate, Tish, John and Ashlyn. Talk about unreliable narrators. While it’s hard to find any of these characters likable, it doesn’t stop you from wanting to know what happens next. Karia Rouda is quite skilled at building tension and suspension. Do not expect “Next Wife” to be anything substantial and I did find certain reveals to be somewhat predictable, but it’s a quick read and good example of a guilty pleasure. If you’re finally heading on a vacation after fifteen months of not being to travel, this would be a great novel to pass the time on the plane or while at the beach.

Three stars

Thank you to the publisher, NetGalley and Karia Rouda for my advanced copy.

For much of the first half of this book I thought it was a very thinly written domestic thriller, I was wrong. As I continued I couldn’t help but agree it “isn’t easy being the next wife”.

Tish, a wrong side of the tracks woman, hauls herself up to nearly the top of the food chain in a tech company by any means possible. She’s prepared to lie, cheat, steal and even murder to get what she wants. What she doesn’t know is that the “first Mrs. Nelson” is plotting her revenge.

What a tangled web these two tie themselves up in. Involve the daughter, Ashlyn, and you’re not quite sure who’s the good or bad guy.

I especially liked the last chapter, from Tish’s viewpoint, where she gets a shock that tends to solidly her “confession”.

Thank you Net Galley for an enjoyable read.

I was really hoping for psychological thriller but this one missed the mark for me. The plot was pretty basic and the tension between the characters was catty, not thrilling. I think I hated all three women so much that it was impossible for me to enjoy the plot. A quick read that can be finished in a sitting or two but not one that will stick out for me.

Thank you for the chance to read this. I flipped a coin between this book and another choice as my first read in April, and I’m glad to get to read this. What a story! Full of twists and turns that keep you guessing. Some of the pieces fell into place for me earlier in the storyline, but I still didn’t have it all figured out. Great story and I will look for others by this author.

Keira Rouda knows the formula well - two sharp, devious stop-at-nothing women square off, originally for the man, then over the company he co-founded with Kate, the first wife and Tish, the second wife. Add in Kate’s daughter, equally sharp and devious, and we have a battle worth reading. You actually feel for all of them during their narratives, even if you really do not like or respect them. A really fast read, alternatively suspecting each of thrm murdering him, and in the end you could happily accept any of them being a killer.. Oh yes, he died, early on in the novel.

John and Kate started EventCo fifteen years ago. They were married for twenty-three years. They built a life together building a family and a business. Over the years they allowed their marriage to take second place to the business. This made it easy for someone to come in and disrupt it all.
Three years ago John hired Tish as his executive assistant flaunting and flirting with her around the office causing a scandal. He left Kate to marry Tish. After the engagement John insisted Tish quit. Ever since John married Tish there’s been a power struggle between her and Kate.
John launched the biggest deal before he retired making EventCo public. Immediately after he began to have second thoughts about his marriage to Tish and his retirement.
It’s no surprise that the first wife and second wife didn’t get along. Tish was half Kate’s age and four years older than Ashlyn. Tish was making plans to replace Kate.
The story focuses on the fighting between wives in this suspenseful thriller. The story is told from three points of views. Three women with a point to make. There are secrets and lies and plots of revenge. There are two parts to the story. Part one before and part two after. An epilogue concludes The Next Wife. This is a standalone thriller.
It was a straightforward story with plenty of motive. It was an easy read.

Traveling With T's Thoughts:
Kaira Rouda has a gift for writing narcissistic characters. Sometimes these characters are funny as hell and sometimes they make you want to throw something against the wall- Looking at you Jane in The Favorite Daughter.
But I am always entertained.

What I liked:
The cover is SO good. And I have to giggle about the sunglasses (you’ll know why I giggle when you read it!)
The rivalry between Kate and Tish. Both of these women were entertaining as all get out in their respective wife roles.
The ending. SO delicious. Kaira Rouda- you killed me (in the best possible way) with that ending.
Bottom line: I’m not sure if this would technically be classified as a popcorn read- but for me- pass the popcorn and the wine- because this book entertained on multiple levels.

The Next Wife begins with the relationship dynamics of Tish and John. Tish is the second and much younger wife of John, who has the cliché aspirations of being a shiny trophy wife, spoiled and doted on by her smarmy, patronizing husband.

But John has become nostalgic for the time he had with his first wife, Kate and their daughter, Ashlyn. Sending secret texts, making late night phone calls, and sneaking into his ex-wife/business partner's office when Tish isn't around has become both thrilling and has filled John with yearning for his old life. He's making big plans to cut ties with Trish, but one more romantic weekend is in the books. John just has to make it one more time...

But of course things don't go as smoothly as planned. Kate finds herself embroiled in a tug of war for the company to built with John. Ashlyn is digging up any and all dirt she can find on Tish and her spotty history. And Tish is bound and determined to sink her claws deeper and deeper into the life she's fought to win.

Who will prevail?

Frankly, I thought the writing was less than stellar. Rouda's style lacks depth and color. It reads like a very bland rough draft of a story. I thought the characters were flat and didn't sway me one way or the other. None of them were particularly interesting. The story line was a bit cliché and started to bore me 1/4th of the way through. I skimmed through the rest of the story and could not get finished with it quick enough.

Terror, mystery, twists and turns are all on board with this thrilling thrill ride of a thriller. Grab a beverage, put on something comfy and prepare for intrigue. Kaira Rouda knows how to entertain.

The Next Wife is a quick and exciting read. I read a lot of psychological thrillers and this one really stands out to me. The author’s writing style is unique in a great way. I loved the characters and their big personalities. The ending was shocking that left me saying “wow.” I highly recommend this book!!

The Next Wife - 
"Do you like Dark, Twisty, Psychological Thrillers? 

Thank you Thomas & Mercer for my copy of The Next Wife by Kaira Rouda, in exchange for my honest review.  This title was released May 1 2021.

Read the book - 

- If you like fast-paced, twisty Psychological Thrillers. - If you enjoy narcissistic characters once in a while in books and if you want to find out how smart and dangerous women can be. - If you like short chapters and a simplified writing style. This quality made it easier to consume the whole book flawlessly. - If you’re looking for a fluffy, soap opera-ish thriller in a summer afternoon. 
OK - that cover...I really liked it!

This was such a different kind of thrilling book that I couldn’t put down! I finished it in less that 24 hours. It was fun and quirky and dare I say kind of a cute mystery game.

John and Kate started a big successful company together but John ends up leaving Kate for his executive assistant named Tish. Tish seems to believe she always has the upper hand but is erratic and starts to feel like she needs to put up a stronger fight against Kate. Kate is call an collected and the victimized ex wife with power of the company. And her daughter Ashlyn wants to dig and know who Tish truly is.

There isn’t much to say without giving things away so going in as blind as possible makes the story more fun! It isn’t a deep cringing anxiety type of story but it’s intriguing and fun and I enjoyed it!

Thank you to netgalley and Thomas & Mercer for the arc in exchange for my honest review.

John died while away with his second wife, Tish. His first wife, Kate, and daughter from his first marriage know Tish ruined all their lives as soon as she entered the picture...

But could she also have had something to do with John’s death?

The author told a decent story considering the limited number of characters, but I will admit none were likable! Which works if you like books such as The Girl On the Train.

Overall, I kept reading but there was no big twist, and I was also able to see the ending coming a mile away.

Thank you NetGalley for this advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Twisty and clever. I enjoyed this read and felt like I was watching a Lifetime movie -- in the best possible way.

Wow this book was AMAZING! It’s chilling and so satisfying. The huge twist at the end is one you will never see coming. It sticks with you while you read it and honestly you don’t want to put it down.

Thank you to Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

The Next Wife by Kaira Rouda is a twisty domestic thriller that will appeal to fans of Gone Girl or The Girl on the Train. The story revolves around three women and alternates chapters among them. First, there is Kate, an older woman who is John's ex-wife and his co-partner in his business. Next, there is Tish, a younger woman and gold-digger and John's next wife" of the title. Finally, there is Ashlyn, John' s college student daughter from his marriage to Kate. All three of them have a story to tell, but one or more of them may be unreliable. The conflict starts when Tish takes John away on a romantic getaway, and without spoiling too much, I'll just say that things escalate from there.

Here is an excerpt from Chapter 1, which is from Tish's point of view:

"Despite popular notions to the contrary, it isn't easy being the next wife.
I mean, sure, I have the benefit of his success without struggling through the "early day," whatever that means. But I also don't get to enjoy the open spaces of possibility - the opportunity to create a life together, baggage-free. So as we gather in the conference room to celebrate EventCo's big news, baggage invades my space.
I note one of the pieces of baggage standing just outside the conference room door: Ashlyn, the opinionated and overly dependent twenty-one-year-old daughter."

From that excerpt, you can see things from Tish's point of view. She wants John and she wants his money, and she won't let his ex-wife or daughter get in her way. As we alternate between the perspectives of the three women, it gets difficult to choose who to root for. Do we root for the ex-wife or the next wife? The characters are morally grey, and there are no clear-cut answers.

Overall, The Next Wife is an enjoyable domestic thriller full of twists and turns, I did take off one star because it got a bit repetitive in the middle. I was tired of the gossip, drama, and one-upping, and I really wanted to see more action in this thriller. If you're a regular reader of thrillers like Gone Girl and The Girl on the Train, I highly recommend that you give this book a try. It was released in stores on May 1.

To be truthful, I did not finish this book. I didn't like any of the characters and I never really got into the story. The author's writing style is just not for me.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this book to review.

The Next Wife is a great domestic thriller about a woman, her husband and his family. John and Kate had the perfect life with a successful company and a daughter, Ashlyn. John left Kate for his young assistant, Tish. A few years later John isn’t happy and thinking about leaving Tish. On a romantic getaway, the unexpected happens and everyone is trying to figure out what actually happened. Ashlyn is convinced Tish is guilty and will do anything to prove it even putting herself at risk. The Next Wife caught my attention from the first page and left me guessing the whole time. The story is told from multiple perspectives which help the reader understand the characters. There are many flashbacks which gives more background on the characters. I found all of the characters interesting, and I liked how all of the characters had flaws. The drama and tension between the two families added to the story. I recommend The Next Wife to fans of domestic thrillers.

Thank you Megan Beatie Communications and Amazon Publishing for The Next Wife.

While I have heard great things about Kaira Rouda’s previous books, “The Next Wife” really falls flat to me. There is not a lot to like about this book – the characters aren’t well developed, the internal monolog is incredibly repetitive throughout, and the dialogue is juvenile. As far as thrillers go, there was nothing thrilling about this book.

Thank you, NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for my copy.