Interesting thriller with some great twists. A very creepy premise brought to life nicely. Some further polishing of the writing could make it even better. The narrator does a great job of bringing the characters to life. Overall, a good read.

This story really pulled me in right away, it is very relatable for any busy parent. The main character Nora is a lawyer who is up for partner, has a toddler and is also pregnant with her second child. Her husband helps out somewhat but she doesn't think it should be called "helping" for him to take care of his own child and home. When they go house-hunting in an exclusive suburban neighbourhood, they meet a group of moms who really do seem to have it all, with husbands who are so helpful, they seem like a male version of stepford wives. Of course this got my spider senses tingling.. and things unfurl rapidly when Nora is asked to represent one of her new friends in a wrongful death case and discovers all kinds of secrets. Allyson Ryan did a great job of expressing the voices and personalities of all the different characters in the audiobook, and kept me on the edge of my seat right up until the final word.

Thank you very much to The Walking Book Club, Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the opportunity to review this audiobook!

This novel is like the Stepford Wives, only the husbands are the creepy cookie-cutter zombies, made to be the perfect men for their significant other.
Nora Spangler is a busy working wife and mother who would just like some help from her husband. She is expecting their second child while trying to make partner at her prestigious law firm.
She also packs the lunches, schedules the doctor appointments, knows where the extra paper towel rolls are, and designs and orders the holiday cards. How is that fair?
When the Spanglers go house hunting in Dynasty Ranch, an exclusive suburban neighborhood, Nora meets a group of high-powered women with enviably supportive husbands, because "they work so hard." When she agrees to help with a resident’s wrongful death case, she is pulled into the lives of the women there. Everything seems easier in Dynasty Ranch. The women there are not ready to crack.
But as the case unravels, Nora uncovers a plot that may explain the secret to having-it-all. One that’s worth killing for. A must-read for the summer! And a tricky ending will not disappoint. :)
*Special thanks to McMillan Audio and NetGalley for this early e-audio version of The Husbands.*

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for gifting me with an advanced audio copy of The Husbands by Chandler Baker. In exchange I offer my unbiased review.

This book started off so strong. From the opening paragraph I was hooked by the wonderful witty writing and biting social commentary. We meet Nora, an overworked under appreciated wife, mother, employee. While Nora & her husband each have a profession outside the home, somehow all the everyday tasks fall on Nora. Whether it’s paying the bills, picking up the dry cleaning, preparing meals, carpooling, buying birthday gifts or arranging date nights while her husband seems to always get a free pass. When Nora meets a group of ladies who all seem to have the “perfect” husband, she silently wishes her husband could be “programmed” to change. Well, don’t we all know the saying…be careful what you wish for.
This was a fun take on the Stepford Wives but it unfortunately fizzled midway through the book. The story became campy and absurd. Almost too exaggerated and silly. I found myself losing interest. There’s a slight mystery and some hints of a twist but when all is revealed there isn’t much of a surprise.

The audio narration was really well done and I thought the author raised some really important issues about expectations, equality, parenting and responsibility. Is it possible for a woman to have it all? This would be a perfect summer time bookclub pick and would especially appeal to women who are managing young families and careers.

I think tighter editing could have turned this from a good book to a GREAT book.

Wow, what an interesting story. It is a well crafted, creepy, ominous gripping story. Women can have it all, but not all at once. Same goes for men, except they generally leave it all to the women in their lives and are clueless when they ask for help doing things like raising their own children, feeding them and heaven forbid having to do a load of laundry. The nerve of us to expect help, because aren’t they the more important ones even though both in the relationship hold jobs outside of the home. Nora and her sweet, but oblivious husband are looking for a new gone. It drew me in immediately. Nora and her sweet, but oblivious husband are looking for a new home for their growing family. They look in a neighborhood that is filled with strong empowered women who have husbands who seem to spend their days living to make the lives of their wives better, easier and more satisfying. What are they doing differently than she is? As she becomes more involved with the women and even represents one of them in a serious legal matter she has more questions, concerns and wonders if what is happening is legal. It is more combo slow burn mystery/thriller. Interesting and will draw you in with the concept. It does get a bit wordy and at times takes too long to get to a point, but it was a good and interesting listen.

The Husbands is a fictional look at the inequality of the genders when it comes to just about everything, but it pays particular attention to couples raising a family. While the plot is indeed a mystery, it is at the same time a critical commentary of the many roles women play in order to "have it all." I think readers will especially enjoy the "creep factor" and Stepford Wives reverse modern retelling that this novel takes on. I found the narrator to be a wonderful fit for the material, and as a reader, I was thoroughly engaged. The pacing of the narrator's speech was spot on as well. This is not a passive whodunit novel, but one that will cause the reader to really ponder if the means truly does justify the end. Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced listeners' copy of this audiobook in exchange for my honest opinion.

This was a great audiobook. The narrator did a great job (not sure how she kept it straight alternating her voice for all the ladies in the neighborhood!) and the story is quite funny. I could totally relate to Nora and her frustrations but some times I wanted to shake her for not seeing what was happening in front of her.

Perfect book for the summer!

This book was an enjoyable read similar to Baker’s previous books. Parts were slow but overall the book had some good comedy and domestic thriller vibes. I enjoyed the narrator and really getting to be in the head of the main character.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for a copy to honestly review!

This was an intriguing audiobook and was definitely different from anything else that I’ve read. I have to say that I couldn’t really relate to the parts where the wife was lamenting that her husband did not do much around the house or take care of the children. My husband does just about everything. I liked the narrator a lot and felt that this had a nice flow to it. The plot was unique although implausible.

The narration by Allyson Ryan was excellent! The Husbands itself fell flat for me. I just couldn’t find myself enjoying the story. I liked the idea and what the author was trying to get across, it just wasn’t enough to keep me involved the story. Unfortunately this wasn’t my favorite.

The Husbands by Chandler Baker explores the husband/wife dynamic in a modern world. Nora Spangler, is a lawyer with a toddler and a baby on the way. Nora juggles work and home and the never-ending to do lists and just wants her husband to help her out. Her husband, has a successful career too, and thinks that he does enough around the house to help. He even offers childcare assistance to help with their daughter but all that Nora wants, all that she needs, in a husband that will split the workload 50/50.

When an opportunity to buy a home in Dynasty Ranch comes along, Nora is excited to move her family to the suburban neighborhood that offers more space and friendship in the other wives in town. As Nora gets to know the women in Dynasty Ranch she begins to see that their husbands are incredible helpers around the house, Nora's dream. Will moving to Dynasty Ranch give her the life she always wanted?

Chandler Baker has done it again with a novel that portrays modern women in the workforce. This book sucks you in from the beginning and you are left excited to find out what is really going on in Dynasty Ranch. I really enjoyed this novel and especially loved the narration since I was offered the audiobook edition in exchange for an honest review. Many thanks to NetGalley and McMillian Audio for this fantastic story.

This book is a must read and available on August 3, 2021.

I liked the idea of this book with the strong female lead & this perfect place Dynasty Ranch, but it laid somewhat flat for me. It didn’t hold my attention as an audiobook because it was hard to follow along with, but I will most likely try to purchase in hard copy.

Reviewing
The Husbands
Chandler Banks

If you are looking for a juicy summer read full of powerful women, deception, mystery, family drama, and the solution to achieving marital bliss, this one’s for you!

Readers will have a hard time putting The Husbands down and an even harder time trying to decide where their loyalties lie. Among a cast full of unsavory characters, Banks leaves readers pondering just where to draw the line between right and wrong.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ four stars with a PG rating

The Husbands by Chandler Baker (Author), Allyson Ryan (Narrator)

I enjoyed The Husbands and thought it was funny while also thinking that I was glad this wasn't me as the wife. I think the narration helped me enjoy this because it made me feel like I was in the head of Nora, wife of Hayden, mom of one, pregnant with another. Her stream of consciousness made me laugh even if I felt that I shouldn't. It's not fair that a mom, working a full time job as a lawyer, also has to be a full time mother and wife while her husband gets to put his job first and "babysit" for an hour or two here and there, before handing back the kid and getting on with his life. I see all of this as a bystander, never having had kids, but it sure doesn't make me envy the frazzled lives of full time moms with full time jobs.

Everything is hitting Nora at once although really, everything is always hitting Nora at once. As much as she hopes she will be able to have a normal hour, day, week, month, this really is her normal. Being way behind all the time, struggling to keep up with a mile long to-do list that is never done and having a husband that thinks that the fact that he takes out the trash once a week and mows the lawn means he's done his manly chores. What more does she expect of him? Stop nagging woman!

When Nora finds a house for sale in an affluent suburban neighborhood and the women of the neighborhood are all high powered career women whose husbands do more than their fair share of helping out around the house and with the kids, Nora is more than intrigued. But, at the same time, something seems off with the place and the people. This place seems to be the answer to her prayers but is it too good to be true?

I actually enjoyed being in Nora's head more than in her discussions with her husband. As she slowly pushes them towards this new neighborhood, she also has her doubts and suspicions. But at the same time, who has time to think about all of this, except for the part where she has been hired to research a neighborhood death, when she has to juggle all her wifely, motherly, lawyerly, duties and she's behind in almost all of them. It'd be a relief to just get approved for the house and moved into this supportive neighborhood of women, who cherish her for the career woman that she is. And their husbands are such good examples for her husband Hayden, the way they throw themselves into childrearing, housework, cooking, all the things Nora has to do every single day. Something is weird here but maybe Nora could go for this kind of weird if only she didn't have a nagging feeling that weird might not be right.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for this ARC.

Hmmm I’m going to be thinking about this one for a while. Would I have taken advantage of this when my kids were little? I think I was desperate enough to have wanted to try, that’s for sure!

Special thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the chance to listen to this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

This book grabs you and doesn’t let go. I was intrigued to see what would happen with Nora and her husband. I can really relate to Nora as most women with men and kids in their life can. I thought that Nora was insightful into what qualities she liked about her husband and what she didn’t want to change. She was protective of him. I also felt it was very true that men in our lives taking on some of the non-paid work really makes women happy – and it doesn’t take much! I recommend this book and enjoyed it. It would be a great book club book as there are many topics I want to talk about with others who read the book and to discuss the choices we would make if we were in Nora’s shoes.

Thank you to @macmillan.audio for this ALC of The Husbands in exchange for an honest review.

Nora is a successful attorney and mother who's seemingly on call 24/7. She'd love more help at home from her husband - but he's not interested in providing it. When they look at a new house in Dynasty Ranch, Nora meets the high-powered women of the neighborhood, and she later becomes closer to them as she investigates a deadly fire. She discovers their calmness isn't just a facade - these women do have it all - but the reason they do is their very special husbands.

I really enjoyed Chandler Baker's previous novel Whisper Network, so I was excited to read this one. Like Whisper Network, this book is meant to make you mad - Nora's husband was just so clueless. Their relationship was a microcosm of the unequal division of household labor. Comparing his ad hoc chores of lawn mowing/taking out the trash to her everyday care of their daughter - come on man, get a clue! I don't have kids, but I definitely felt for Nora in this situation.

The women of Dynasty Ranch were just the right amount of creepy - you know there's something going on, but you have to wait for all the secrets to be revealed. Narrator Allyson Ryan did a great job expressing Nora’s confusion and disbelief at her findings - I really enjoyed listening to her narration.

I wish the mystery hadn't been quite so drawn out (and also partially spoiled in the book blurb), but I cared enough about Nora to stick with the story. I think this mix of social commentary and suburban drama is a good read for summer. And you may find yourself thinking that your problems aren't so bad after all!

Review published to Goodreads and Instagram on 6/25/21

I really liked The Whisper Network but The Husbands isn’t a favorite; not bad but not great. I saw this described as The Stepford Wives but gender reversal and I completely agree. If you enjoy tons of social commentary and drama in your mysteries then definitely check this out! Available 8/3.

Thanks to Chandler Baker, Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the advanced listeners copy! I love Allyson Ryan ♥️

The Short Version: The Stepford Wives meets Get Out in Texas’s suburbs for a thriller about what equality for Women really looks like and the lengths some women might go to to get it. A tasty read that goes down easy at first, but don’t forget your pepto, because if you think on this one too much, some things won’t sit right

The Long Version: I got to listen to the audiobook version of this novel thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio. This is an audiobook I was very excited to get into based on the description. I was drooling over the prospect of nefarious secret dealings in the upper crust suburbs. The book didn’t quite deliver on my hopes but it was enjoyable just the same.

The book starts out by painting a picture of Nora’s life. She works at a law firm and is fighting to make partner this year. She’s married to Aiden, he’s a modern father, he helps out around the house, he’s a good and loving father, but while he believes they’re putting equal effort into this marriage, it’s clear Nora and Aiden’s visions of equality are vastly different. Everything is made worse when they look into buying a home in Dynasty Ridge where the husbands all seem so much more helpful than Aiden, like true partners. Then, Nora is asked to investigate a recent house fire and as she digs, she starts finding out answers she doesn’t want to find.

This story is tightly bound into a logical and compelling narrative. The plot moves along briskly and avoids sagging at any point. The prose is crisp and fits the main character snuggly. You can feel the overworked under-appreciated mom frustration dripping from page.

The action simmers up until and through the ending which I absolutely loved. It wasn’t a fairy tale ending and it felt more true to life...very satisfying conclusion

The narrator’s performance was also very solid in this audiobook. She varied the women’s voices well to create distinct characters, and channeled the emotions of the scenes deftly. She embodied the narrative and added layers of richness and depth to make the overall listening experience very enjoyable.

While the overall listen was enjoyable and this is a title I can recommend to other readers, there were some serious issues as well.

First, and maybe I’m being a little nitpicky, I think creators need to stop riding Jordan Peele’s Get Out coattails. He absolutely demolished that idea and everything since has been derivative to the point of uninspiring. This has some serious Get Out undertones, though it isn’t about race. I wish the author had dug a little deeper to find a different method through which the big twist was being executed. I could think of several off the top of my head, so it felt a little lazy.

Second, for a thriller, the big twists weren’t that twisty. It was relatively apparent early on what was happening generally so the big surprises hit a little more like “huh, didn’t catch that earlier”. The tension never really boiled…it was more of a low simmer the whole time. This is another area where changing the villain’s methodology could have done wonders to obscure the reality. The book blurb also wasn’t a help to this one. It was a little too on the nose…sadly a problem I’m seeing more an more often in books and movies…save some suspense for the read/listen/viewing!

Nora’s character arc was also a problem for me. She starts out over-worked and under-helped. The author goes to great lengths to show how thin she is stretched, how her needs aren’t being met, how being asked to be super mom is turning her into someone that’s not really her and just how unfair that is. From there however, she doesn’t really grow. There are actually several moments where the script flips and she becomes the self-centered “lazy passenger” in the relationship. She doesn’t seem to learn anything, and the conclusion of her arc seems to suggest a marriage can’t have two highly successful participants, one person will always have to make the sacrifices that will be held against them at work, fair or unfair. I didn’t dislike Nora as a character overall, though at moment’s she was a little annoying, but her arc wasn’t fulfilling.

The biggest problem by far however, was how the theme got muddled into a mess. The book seems to start by saying “Men should contribute equally in a marriage and what men view as equal is really more like 70-30”. That’s all well and good, and something I can definitely get behind. The book was very effective in making me re-examine my own behaviors as a husband and my views on the contributions my wife and I make to our household, etc… The trouble comes in that the women who obtain that equality become every bit as awful as the stereotypical men portrayed in this book and then push that equality into subjugation based on the premise “Mother knows best”. The women in this book become the typical caricature that politicians use to fight against equality measures “They don’t want equality, they want to overthrow everything and make us subservient”. I think the author tried to balance this by having all the husbands retain their successful jobs, but by taking pains to show Nora had BS things held against her like picking her daughter up, you’d have to imagine those decisions would stifle the ambitions of the husbands in their jobs when asked to do those things instead of being one of the guys and going out for drinks, etc… In the end, the message seemed to devolve more into the classic “Power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely”, which would seem more likely to reinforce the male defense of the patriarchy instead of spurring a thoughtful examination of what equality really is. This was a huge miss based on the premise and tone to start and I think it really hurts the overall success of the novel even though it doesn’t make it unenjoyable to read.

Overall a 3.5, I went back and forth which way to round but ultimately settled on rounding down because the execution of the theme was such a miss and for a mystery/thriller the twists and turns weren’t twisty or turny enough. Still an easily digestible novel and one I’d recommend to anyone looking for an interesting examination at the balance of power within households as well as anyone who just needs a safe title to read…this one is hard to hate.

Component Ratings
Concept/Idea: 3.5 out of 5
Protagonist: 3.5 out of 5
Antagonist: 2 out of 5
Supporting Characters: 3.5 out of 5
Character Development: 2 out of 5
Plot: 4 out of 5
Pacing: 4 out of 5
Tension: 2.5 out of 5
Narrator’s Performance: 4 out of 5
Prose: 4 out of 5
Dialogue: 4.5 out of 5
Theme: 1 out of 5
Ending: 4.5 out of 5

A completely entertaining novel billed as a thriller but which has a lot of humor. I think that fans of Where’d You Go, Bernadette? would enjoy this one. Good narration. Great fun.