A good domestic thriller that I enjoyed via audiobook.

The Wife Upstairs tells the story of Sylvie, who has been hired as an aid/sitter for author Adam's disabled wife. Through a found diary, we gain an additional perspective and timeline told from the wife, Vicky's diary. Perhaps the diary entries are where I disconnected with the book most. After awhile, the diary entries began to slow down the story instead of propelling it forward. However, I felt satisfied with the twists that inevitably came towards the books end.

I would recommend this book to lovers of domestic thrillers and those who appreciate a Long Island and Manhattan setting.

Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for a copy of this audiobook. All opinions are my own.

This one was just ok for me. You get two POVs here. Sylvie present day as she’s taking care of Victoria who suffered a terrible head injury after a fall. The other POV is Victoria’s diary that Sylvie found. Sadly, I couldn’t stand either character…. Victoria back and and Sylvie now. I give this one three stars because I still felt like I wanted to know how it all played out but I was also disappointed in the ending.
CW: abusive relationship

🎧BOOK REVIEW🎧 🌟🌟🌟🌟
PUB DATE: Nov 23 2021 / 10 hours

Freida McFadden is an author I haven’t read before and I love discovering new-to-me authors that are this good. This book was a page-turner and I loved it! I’ll be reading more by the author.

The main characters in this book tell the same story so completely different, that I honestly didn’t know who to believe. One of them is an evil psycho and I it was so much fun trying to figure out which one!

Is it Adam? A bestselling author. He’s handsome and charismatic and still devoted to his invalid wife, who is a shell of her former self after a terrible fall down their stairs. He’s hired Sylvia to keep Victoria company, read to her and help with her feeding. He’s still doting and madly in love with his wife and doesn’t want to put her in a care facility.

Then Victoria gives Sylvia the journal that she’s hidden away. It describes her life with Adam before the accident. And the Adam that Victoria describes is a monster and nothing like the sweet Adam that Sylvia has come to know. Sure, there are a few things Sylvia doesn’t necessarily like about the way Adam does things, but that doesn’t make him a monster.

Thanks to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for this audiobook. All opinions are my own.

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A twisty domestic suspense thriller that kept me guessing right to the end! Highly recommended for fans of Liv Constantine or Rachel Hawkins. Much thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my advance review copy!!

Great story! It may be hard for some to read, especially if you’ve ever been in an abusive relationship of any kind. So just a heads up.

As you follow along, things are perfect. Too good to be true usually is, right? Is it true though? Could it really be?

Just when you think you know what’s happened, when you tell yourself, “Oh, I knew it!”, “predictable”, you’ll be kicking yourself, and questioning EVERYTHING!

I’ve said it before with other books, (as I am also a movie lover), but THIS, would make a GREAT movie if done right! I would see it in a heartbeat!

Thank you so much to #NetGalley for providing a space to receive prereleases, and to #Dreamscape #DreamscapeMedia for approving my reading of said book.

Thank you to #FreidaMcFadden for the story and #AngieKane for her narration.

The Wife Upstairs
By Freida McFadden

Thank you to Dreamscapes and NetGalley for the copy of this title for my honest review.

Victoria had a fabulous life as an ER nurse practitioner, a dreamy author husband and great friends. Until her husband buys a huge house on the tip of Long Island. They make plans to fill the house with kids until the accident that leaves Vicky bed ridden and almost comatose.

Sylvia is fleeing her ex-husband Freddy and takes the job of being a friend and taking care of Victoria. In trying to communicate with Vickie, Sylvia finds Vickie’s journal which tells a frightful tale. Was Victoria’s accident really an accident? Or is Victoria just telling a tale?

I really appreciate enjoyed listening to this story. The narrator Angie Kane did a wonderful job with this story. She kept my interest peaked throughout the story.

Thank you again to Dreamscape and NetGalley for the advanced copy of this title.

A horrifyingly troubling story about a young woman who has been disfigured and paralyzed by an awful accident. Her handsome husband hires another young woman to help take care of his injured wife, and soon the the husband and the caretaker he's hired begin having an affair. The wife, described by the husband as completely intellectually disabled, actually appears to be quite alert inside her withering body, especially when she manages to avoid the many medications she is forced to take. She manages to communicate to the new caretaker that she has a hidden journal she wants her to read. Unfortunately, the caretaker is a very slow reader! (This seemed a bit maddening to me; wouldn't you want to rush through a book someone in a wheelchair managed to hide and had to grunt and point for you to find and secretly read? But the caretaker says she rarely reads books and is actually a bit put off reading so many pages about how in love the woman is with her handsome husband-to-be, as the caretaker has a crush on him and the woman's blathering on about how perfect he is is making the caretaker jealous.). Anyway, she finally keeps reading and sees things were not always as idyllic as we were first led to believe. The arc of the main couple's story is predictable and easy to see coming from fairly early on, but there are a couple of other twists that did surprise me, and the story was definitely gripping from start to finish. I'd recommend this book to anyone looking for a good domestic thriller.

I think it is so interesting that this author is a physician who works in brain injury. She did a great job portraying the character Victoria with these effects. This book was a quick and entertaining read, although it is similar to the book Verity. I’d really like to read more by this author!

This was very Okay. I can't say that I was wowed by it, but it was entertaining for what it was. I do think that the consistent references to current pop culture things are going to cause it to not age very well, certain shows and what not. There were a few that I was only vaguely familiar with, and in a few years time no one is going to remember those. Again, I think that it was entertaining. The audio quality was well done and the narrator was good! I would recommend for someone that enjoys domestic thrillers. I think it would translate into a good film as well.

This was truly one of the worst books I have ever read/listened to. That's a very bold statement, but a true one, unfortunately.

Victoria has a great job, just married her dream man, and moved into a beautiful house he bought for her. She has it all - until she has an accident and loses just about everything.

Sylvie a young girl down on her luck who just so happens to cross paths with Victoria's dream man. He's hiring and needs help taking care of Victoria. Well what do you know, Sylvie needs a job asap. Why not move in with this strange couple?

Sylvie discovers Victoria's secret journal and slowly learns the truth about this couple and their life leading up to the accident. Sylvie realizes she doesn't know these people at all - and she's in danger.

Let me start by saying the first 1/3 of this book was mostly decent. It had potential. But then you hit a point where you know exactly what is going to happen before it happens. The characters are so one dimensional and have zero development. And I am TIRED of authors writing women as so naive and senseless. Stop making your readers want to side with the bad guys because your "victims" are just plain STUPID.

I haven't read Verity yet, but a lot of other reviews say this is an exact copycat. I will not be reading anything else by this author.

When Sylvia meets Adam, the attraction is instantaneous! As they talk, he discovers she is looking for a job and he offers her one…working for his wife! Sylvia desperately needs the income so she stifles her attraction and agrees to consider the job. The next day, she rides with Adam two hours away to an isolated area where he owns a beautiful house. Sylvia discovers Adam’s wife, Victoria is confined to a wheelchair, and is mentally impaired. She must rely on others for her every need. Sylvia agrees to take the job.

Sylvia soon discovers Victoria is able to communicate with limited unclear words and Victoria leads Sylvia to a journal, chronicling her life with Adam. Victoria describes a different Adam. He is dangerously cruel and controlling. As Sylvia reads the journal she becomes more and more terrified for herself and for Victoria.

My thoughts: I listened to this story as an audiobook and it kept me entertained. The action moved quickly and there were enough red herrings to keep me guessing! As a thriller, it had characters and a plot that drew me in, twists that kept me guessing, and a slight chill factor at the end.
The narrator, Angie Kane, did a great job!

My thanks to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for my audiobook in exchange for an honest review.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

⭐⭐⭐⭐+
Victoria Bennett was once a very beautiful young women who had it all ~ handsome husband, an amazing large home; plus ready and anxious to start a family. However, she recently had a very serious fall in the home and is confined to a wheelchair. She is paralyzed on one side, only has use of one arm and hand, she cannot walk and cannot talk but does utter a word or two ~ she lives on the second floor thus the wife upstairs.

Adam Bennett meets Sylvia Robinson in a restaurant when she saves the life of an elderly woman who is choking. The women believe Sylvia was actually attacking her and throw her cup of coffee at Sylvia. Adam sees the whole thing and tells Sylvia that she did save the woman’s life. She agrees just states she has ruined her chances for a job with an outfit that is stained with coffee. Adam tells her that he is actually looking to hire someone. He offers her a job caring for his wife.

Sylva cannot believe her good luck as this job will pull her out of the financial hole she is in.

Sylvia is impressed with how loving Adam is to his invalid wife.
One day Sylvia finds Victoria unusually alert and is actually trying to communicate with Sylvia. Sylvia doesn’t understand her but is guessing by the way she is pointing that she wants Sylvia to get something out of her dresser drawer. Sylvia finds a notebook hidden and Victoria is excited that she found what she wanted her to find. When Sylvia opens it she discovers that it is a diary. Suddenly they hear Adam’s footsteps and Victoria has a panic look and Sylvia hurried and puts the notebook back where she found it. When he is gone, it is clear that Victoria wants Sylvia to read it and not to show it to Adam.
Sylvia is curious and does take the notebook to her room. She starts to reads a few pages and discovers that it is a story to their future children on how their parents met. Sylvia is sad to read this as they were so happy and now Victoria is so damaged.

I read a lot of psychology thrillers and I know to expect twists and turns and also to suspect everyone!! Author,: Frieda McFadden did not let me down. Additionally the audio narrator did a great job in performing the characters!
Loved the ending!!!!

Want to thank NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for this audiobook. This novel has been out for a while but just release as an audiobook on November 23, 2021.

This one started slow for me. Sylvia gets a job, in an isolated location, helping Adam care for his wife, Victoria. Victoria had an accident that left her partially paralyzed and unable to speak more than one struggling slurred word at a time. Victoria wants to tell her story though and is able to indicate to Sylvie where her diary is hidden.
As Sylvie begins to read the entries in the diary, I felt like Vickie was overly sweet and naive while gushing about her soon to be husband Adam (Mr. Perfect). But as the entries continue the suspense begins to build and the atmosphere becomes more and more intense. Should Sylvie believe what she is reading about Adam or believe what she is seeing of him with her own eyes? This story was well worth waiting until the conclusion of the journey. I couldn't wait to see what would happen next.
Thank you to Netgalley and Dreamscape Media for the opportunity to enjoy this intense Audio-ARC ride.

The Wife Upstairs is about Adam and Victoria who had the perfect life, until the didn't. After a terrible accident strikes and leaves Victoria unable to car for herself, Adam hires Sylvia to help take care of her.

When Sylvia first meets handsome Adam, she feels nothing but attraction to him. After he makes his offer to her, a good paying job, a free place to live and use of a car, Sylvia thinks it's too good to be true, and her gut agrees.

Victoria and Sylvia both made me want to bash my head against the wall with how much they put up with when it came to Adam. Victoria put up with his attitude, anger, and controlling issues for years before her accident. Sylvia comes in and gets swept up by how "sweet" a man he is and falls hard and fast. As Victoria and Sylvia get closer and Adam's past starts to catch up to him, will the women be safe?

There were some plot twists in this book that I did not see coming! I think the last twist really pulled the book together for me and helped to make it better. 4 🌟!

I'd like to say a huge thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

#reading2021 #fallreading2021 #booklover #booksofinstagram #audiobook #netgalley #plottwist

This one drew me in from the start. Sylvie is down on her luck when she is hired by Adam to work in a remote Montauk home caring for his wife. She’s suffered a fall and is unable to care for herself.

This is my first read of the author’s but I keep seeing her books pop everywhere with rave reviews and I’m on board now, too. This won’t be my last. It is unpredictable with twists and turns until the very last page.

As we navigate life with Sylvie, we watch her relationship grow with Adam’s wife Victoria while the sparks fly between Sylvie and Adam. And as the facts unfold about Victoria’s accident, the more information you receive, the less sure you are as to what happened. Sylvie has Adam’s word and Victoria’s diary that chronicles what led up to the accident.

Angie Kane narrates the audiobook and does a fantastic job of drawing you in and voicing Sylie’s thoughts.

I recommend this listen as I had many OMG moments as I listened.

Really good!!! A lot of twists especially with the ending! I was thrown for a loop! I had a couple suspicions but I didn’t expect the turn it took!

The storyline was utterly griping. The audiobook which was expertly told. I highly recommend this story of jealousy, lust, and madness. Will you know who to trust?

Fans of Verity, this ones for you!

As soon as I started this one, it gave me immediate Verity vibes as the general plot is very similar but there are definitely lots of differences as well!

I was pretty hooked immediately and flew through it! This is certainly a suspenseful and creepy psychological thriller that has an abundance of twists and turns. I loved the rotating POVs of Sylvia’s current timeline and then getting Victoria’s earlier days perspective through her diary and I found this incredibly entertaining and engaging!

While I’d say the ending can be shocking, I was hoping for just a little bit more!

Assume nothing while listening to the magnificently performed audiobook The Wife Upstairs by psychological thriller author Freida McFadden. I almost got whiplash changing my mind on who to believe was telling the truth.

Sylvie is about to be evicted when she serendipitously is offered a high paying live in job caring for the invalid wife of a successful thriller author.

Sylvie starts to have feelings for her new boss the handsome Adam who is so kind to his wheelchair bound wife Vickie. Barely able to speak Vickie gives Sylvie her journal to read that tells the love at first sight story of Vickie and Adam. The journal ends right before Vickie's fall down the long winding staircase.

Reading about their romance Sylvie realizes that maybe Adam isn't so perfect. Or maybe Vickie is being over dramatic in her writing. After all Adam shows no signs of the man described later in their marriage. Then again, when Vickie finally speaks the one word she has been trying to say since Sylvie arrived everything changes.

Narrator Angie Kane is brilliant portraying Vickie struggling to articulate her needs to Sylvie. I also enjoyed hearing Vickie before her fall as her journal is being read.

Being an avid thriller reader I thought I knew where this story was going and let's just say I was half right. My biggest frustration was both these women originally being strong and independent but then doubting their own concerns. Granted not everything was as it was first presented but Sylvie knew someone was lying and it wasn't safe. Trust your gut is the lesson of this twisty unreliable protagonists thriller.

I received a free copy of this audiobook from Dreamscape Media via #NetGalley for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

2.5 stars. I don’t know how to feel about this book. On one hand, it did keep me interested the whole time. On another, I mostly was reading to make fun of it and the characters. I hated all the characters, except maybe Victoria. The main character, Sylvia, was very unlikeable even though I felt like the author tried to make her likeable. She was really weird towards her thoughts and perceptions around Victoria and kept commenting (at least to the readers) how beautiful she was before and how horrible her accident was, implying she’s ugly now. I just felt like there was a lot of ableist takes. Narrator was pretty good though, easy to listen to.