This was an entertaining soap opera-ish story full of drama, backstabbing and so many twists. The story is told through the point of view of the three trophy wives, Georgia, Brooke and Erin. It was a bit hard to connect to any of the characters because they are all somewhat unlikeable, but it didn’t take away from the fun of the story. The first half of the book is a bit slow as the plot begins to unfold. Once things begin to pick up though hold on to your seat as the twist and turns take you for a wild and crazy ride. There were some things I felt like I still don’t fully understand and others that came together a little too perfectly, but it was an entertaining and quick read. I would recommend going in blind to fully enjoy the book!

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House - Ballantine Books for providing me this eARC to read and review.

TW: domestic abuse

I loved this book. It was a fun, Desperate Housewives meets murder mystery with salacious characters, big reveals, and lots of neighborhood gossip. It alternates between the perspectives of the two characters, Brooke, navigating her way as the new girl in the gating community, and Erin. The novel immediately caught my attention from the first chapter. Thanks for the ARC.

At first I wasn’t going to give feedback for this book because given the title, I should have expected the characters and the writing to be quite shallow. I suppose this is an okay palette cleanser.

This book was a page turner and kept me guessing until the end. A little romance, a little sex, a lot of guessing games. The characters drew me in, and I couldn’t put the book down! The book sets the scene almost Desperate Housewives - esque, but segues into so much more. At first, you think a news anchor, a Black Widow and a mystery writer have nothing in common, but when they all become neighbors in a quiet neighborhood, you realize how much their stories intertwine. I love a book that takes me to a reality that I could never be a part of, because it transports me to a universe where I feel like I could fit in with the ladies in the book...someday. If you’re looking for just a nice, easy to read novel, here you go!

In the words of Great British Bake Off’s one-time host Mary Berry:

Oh ... that was scrummy!

I love her, and I loved this book. It’s a delicious, over-the-top, soap opera lite, Real Housewives of … in this case, San Francisco, confection, and I ate every last bite with a smile on my face. Oh, is that a crumb? I’m eating that one too.

The trio of women at the heart of this book are trophy wives Georgia St. Claire, Erin King and Brooke Davies, all of whom are married, or in Georgia’s case, engaged to older, successful millionaires and residing in the prestigious gated community of Presidio Terrace.

Georgia has a reputation as a Black Widow, since her previous two husbands died under suspicious circumstances, and now all eyes are on her husband-to-be, Robert, whose life I’m sure all the oddsmakers are setting bets on.

Erin is a well-known, prima donna anchor on a local news station, married to a prick of epic proportions, Mason. She’s becoming increasingly aware of her aging appearance, especially when younger and seemingly perfect Brooke moves into the neighborhood.

Brooke is a mystery writer, married to almost fatherly tech mogul, Jack. She’s always kind and supportive of her two new friends, but as a writer, she’s also got one eye out for her story at all times.

Suffice it to say, where these three are involved, you get a bizarre and tasty cocktail. All of them have motivations and secrets, which Miller sprinkles glimpses of throughout, enticing you to follow the breadcrumbs she’s scattered to the yummy end.

The story itself, told in first person POV by each member of this transfixing trio, primarily explores the eventful days leading up to Georgia’s scheduled wedding, with a more brief examination of what follows after, but I’m going to leave any plot points vague, because this book really is so much better if you go into it blind. All I can say is the ending is the icing on this tasty wedding cake, and I’d love more. Seconds, please?

★★★★★

Thanks to NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, and author Kristin Miller for this ARC in exchange for my honest review. It will be published July 20,2021.

Will the Black Widow strike again? The Sinful Lives of Trophy Wives is about a group of friends in a gated community in California and focuses on three wives – Brooke, a new resident and mystery writer, Georgie St. Claire aka the Black Widow, a resident whose past two husbands have died unexpectedly, and Erin, a local news anchor host. The neighborhood is preparing for Georgia’s upcoming wedding to husband #3. Georgia is rumored to be the “Black Widow,” though charges have never been filed in the death of her past two husbands. Will her future husband meet the same fate?

I absolutely LOVED this book. It is an incredibly quick read and would be great to read next to a pool or on a beach. It feels like a Desperate Housewives psychological thriller. There is a bit of camp, humor, and lot of page-turning thrills and twists. The pace is excellent in this book.

I felt like the amount of character development was appropriate for this type of thriller. It was enough to make us care about the characters. I would have loved to have a bit more time with Georgia and Brooke.

There are some plot holes and character development gaps – but I just didn’t care because this book is so much fun. It was engaging and made me read way past my bedtime.

I think this book would make a great book club selection for summer to discuss the antics with a group of friends! I had the most fun reading this book. I think this is going to be a huge must-read of the summer.

I “wished” for this book on NetGalley and was granted a wish. If you are a NetGalley reviewer – I can’t recommend this highly enough.

ARC provided to me by Ballantine Books, via Net Galley, in exchange for an honest review.

Title: The Sinful Lives of Trophy Wives
Author: Kristin Miller
Genre: Thriller
Publication Date: 7/20/2021

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book. Brooke didn't know what she was in store for when her rich husband Jack moved to Presidio Terrace and became friends with the other trophy wives on the street. When Robert goes missing everyone knows The Black Widow did it. But did she? Miller’s writing was great and her story was captivating. I promise you will be left gaping at the ending. Fans of "Big Little Lies" will love this one. Out Jul 20.

The novel centers around 3 wives in a gated CA community. The story is told through the POV of all 3 women. One of the characters is known as the “Black Widow.” Both her first two husbands died in suspicious ways. With an upcoming nuptials, the plot unfolds.

Unfortunately I ended up not liking any of the characters. The plot wasn’t innovative or grasping. Maybe it’s because I’ve read too many mystery novels, but unfortunately this just didn’t do it for me.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Thanks Netgalley for allowing me to read this book. Living in San Francisco's most desired community are Brooke,Erin and Georgia. Georgia who is on marriage number three is rumored to have killed her previous husband's. When Georgia was in a car accident, the community believed she wanted to murder her current husband. I enjoyed the many characters in this book.

These ladies make the real housewives look like rank amateurs. Erin is a newscaster married to Mason, a plastic surgeon. Georgia is the neighborhood (an enclave so selective it isn’t on the map) “Black Widow” because two of her husbands died under less than normal circumstances and she is considered to have killed them for their money and gotten away with it. She is currently living with her fiancé and preparing for her next wedding. Brooke is twenty-eight and recently married to Jack who is fifty. She came from a poor home environment and is looking for a father figure. Jack loves the idea of a beautiful young wife at his side enhancing his image. When these three ladies and their spouses get together a major explosion ensues and some don’t survive it! Telling more would only lead to spoilers. This will make great beach reading or, based on today’s world, quarantine reading. Thanks to Net Galley and Random House for an ARC for an honest review.

Talk about things not always being what they seem! Presidio Terrace is the most exclusive neighborhood in San Francisco. Brooke Davies is married to a tech-billionaire, Jack, and they are the new residents in the neighborhood. Remember high school with the cool kids, and then the others? There are remnants of that here. There is a definite pecking order, and Brooke works to fin it with the community. There is an interesting dynamic in Presidio Terrace, and it turns out, what you think you know, is not what you actually know. This book is a definite page-turner and will keep you engaged until you learn the truth—about all of the residents. Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for the opportunity to review this book. I loved it!

Campy, fun, and twisty, if a bit far-fetched.

I personally love voyerism into the lives of the rich and superficial, and this book had plenty of that! I also like a good ‘whodunit’ story, with multiple POV, short chapters as this book had.
Thank you to NetGalley and author Kristin Miller for the advanced read!

Brooke is looking to move into a new neighborhood with her new billionaire or a husband. Brooke is used to the moves, she moved constantly throughout her childhood. Relationships haven’t meant much to her, until now. Upon moving into the lavish and over the top neighborhood, she immediately meets Erin a TV reporter along with Georgia, darkly dubbed the “Black Widow”. Georgia is planning her third wedding, which is set to take place this weekend. Given her nickname, her previous two husbands have tragically and mysteriously died, leaving their fortune solely to Georgia. Brooke finds herself caught up in the unraveling mystery of the neighborhood and the black widow herself when she befriends her in her new neighborhood. Shockingly, Georgia’s husband disappears just a few nights before their wedding & all eyes are turned to Georgia.

Review
🌟🌟🌟🌟
This book grabbed your attention from the very beginning! Major desperate housewives vibes here! They had it all, the money, the glamour & of course the murder! I thoroughly enjoyed the character development , and let’s all be honest, we are fascinated with how the 1% lives & spends their time. I enjoyed living through each characters story line & watching how their individual stories turned out as they blended together.

Buckle up for a twisted ride that is bonkers, fast-paced, and highly unputdownable!

Meet the ladies of Presidio Terrace:

Georgia St. Claire has been married two times, and both husbands met unfortunate demises. Although Georgia says she’s innocent of any wrongdoing, many people call her the “Black Widow”. She’s about to marry for a third time. She’s never been so in love. Maybe third time is the charm?

Erin King, Georgia’s best friend, is a news anchor and is also head of the Presidio Terrace Homeowner’s Association. Fed up with work, she walks out of her job and decides to spend some time being a trophy wife to her hardworking husband, Mason. Too bad he rarely has time for her.

Brooke Davies is the new gal on the block. A mystery writer, she is quickly welcomed into Georgia and Erin’s inner circle. Brooke and her husband sleep in separate rooms. She also has some secrets she alludes to. You would never know this by looking at her. She seems perfect.

In fact, all of these ladies and their lives seem perfect...but looks can be deceiving. People can be deceiving too. Georgia, Erin, and Brooke will find that out at a pre-wedding celebration that sets off a chain of dramatic, and possibly deadly, events.

Apologies for being a bit vague, but it is best to go in blind here. This book is just what I needed right now. It’s devious, scandalous, and wickedly delicious! I ate it all up and was still hungry for dessert. Told from the POVs of the three main characters, it is easy to get to know each of them...and easy to suspect each one of unsavory secrets. And secrets galore there are. Author Kristin Miller superbly reveals them throughout the story.

Some plot elements are a little over the top (not a surprise with a title like this one), but I was here for it! I wanted the drama. I wanted the intrigue. I wanted the twists. I got them all! Do these friends have any redeeming qualities? Read it and find out. This may not be for everyone, but I had a blast reading it. It would make a succulent movie or TV series.

4.5 stars

Thank you to Ballantine Books for providing me a widget to download this book through NetGalley. It will be published on: 7/20/21.

Review also posted at: https://bonkersforthebooks.wordpress.com

DNF @ 50%
I was so excited for this one because it sounded a lot like desperate housewives (one of the GREATEST shows of all time) but this really fell flat and i couldn’t even finish it. It starts out promising enough but I really did not like the writing - it was very basic and juvenile and the dialogue was so insufferable and unrealistic.

4⭐️

This book was consumed in less than 24 hours. I could. not. stop. reading. I finished this book and stared at the wall for a good 10 minutes because my brain was genuinely short circuiting from the twist. It’s not often that I’m caught off guard but this book does an absolutely fantastic job of keeping you guessing. Little nuggets of information are dropped as we start to get to know our three trophy wives Erin, Georgia, and Brooke. Georgia, otherwise known as the Black Widow, due to 2 husbands unfortunately meeting an untimely death, is getting married for a third time. They say the third time is a the charm right? Some would say yes, but in Georgia’s case that’s just not true. Girlfriend could not catch a break. I loved the banter of these characters. I loved the secondary characters and the parts they play in the unfolding events leading up to Georgia’s wedding day. I gave this one four stars simply because I want more! Honestly if you haven’t already added this to your TBR, you are missing out! The Sinful Lives of atrophy Wives hits shelves July 20, 2021!

Recommended for: March Murder reads, Desperate Housewives Energy, Mind Blown vibes 🤯

As always- thank you to @netgalley and @Ballantine books for allowing me early access to this ARC!

Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced digital copy of this book in exchange for my review.

This is a fun "palate cleanser" to read between heavier more realistic books and for that I liked it a lot!!

Three women live in an ultra-secure gated community with rules for EVERYTHING. Well, everything except murder and mayhem!!

One, the so-called Black Widow, has buried two husbands, both incredibly rich, and is about to marry a third, the richest of them all. Another is a local TV personality whose ego is being battered by the sad fact that she is getting older - and it shows. The third is the brand-new wife of an uber wealthy older man with whom she had an affair which ended his long marriage.

The original two are "besties" and soon adopt the newcomer, which leads to several unbelievable and improbable situations.

Again, a GREAT palate cleanser when you just need something light and not requiring brain power.

The Sinful Lives of Trophy Wives by Kristin Miller is one of those books that I’ll be talking about for a long time! It’s absolutely addicting! I loved the characters, the twisted plot, & the shocking ending. This book deserves more than five stars!

3.5/5 Despite this being a soap opera-esque, highly dramatic story, I still enjoyed this thriller that was centered upon three wealthy women in Northern California. I appreciate thrillers told from multiple perspectives, so I enjoyed reading from the viewpoints of both news-anchor-turned-stay-at-home-wife Erin and newcomer/shiny new trophy wife Brooke. That said, both of these narrators felt very flat and their storylines, particularly Erin's, left much to be desired. On top of this, both of their husbands were completely unlikeable. Regardless of my inability to connect with a character, I couldn't put the book down! This is a testament to Miller's writing, which was fast-paced and left me wanting to figure out what was happening and what the truth was.

Although I felt there were some unanswered questions and that some things came together too easily or perfectly, I still enjoyed reading this story. The plot and details that moved the story along were ridiculous and completely farfetched at times, but the fast pace and quick turns of events towards the end helped push my rating up. I was far from bored while reading and would definitely pick up another book by this author.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for sharing this digital reviewer copy with me!

Loved it! This book is like watching any of the Real Housewives...a wonderful guilty pleasure! Colorful, beautifully flawed characters and a who done it you’ll never figure out. This would make a great movie! Grab a copy for you next beach read!