I enjoyed this suspenseful and fictional tale of life in Washington D. C. as a member of Congress. Told in alternating perspectives of the major characters, I quickly turned the pages to see how it would all turn out. Unfortunately, I fear there were many true-to-life aspects of political life addressed within the story. Thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the advance copy to read and review.

THE WIDOW is a political drama centred around congressman, Martin, and his wife, Jody. Just before the weekend of their only daughter’s wedding, a scandal of Martin’s is exposed and everything changes .
I liked the premise of this but unfortunately I just don’t feel it was executed that well. Considering the title of this book, Jody doesn’t become one until well into the book.
All of the characters are unlikeable and harbouring secrets, but there is too much build up and not enough drama. I needed to feel more tension!
Thank you Thomas & Mercer for the digital copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Hmmm what to say,..did I enjoy this book no not at all. Had to drag myself through it. The characters were unlikable and no excitement was had in the book in my opinion. A political bore fest.
Hope you enjoy it more than I did just wasn't got me.

Thanks to the author, the publisher and NetGalley for an early release of this book.

Well…I read this as one who definitely dislikes politics and would never choose to read a political book. However, Kaira Rouda has written a book involving politics that even I can appreciate! Corruption, deceit, bribery, and blackmail are all portrayed in this book…and what a ride the story is! Enjoyed it and read it all in 2 days!

The synopsis summed it up nicely - marriage, privilege, and lies. Who is telling the biggest lie? Who can be trusted? Who will remain on top? Set in Washington D.C., Martin and Jody are a golden political couple. Martin has been in politics for a long time! They are the Ashers after all and nothing can bring them down! They have money, a beautiful daughter, a long marriage, and appear to be on top of the world. Then a journalist starts asking questions, and it appears that all that glitters is not gold. There is talk of an affair with a younger member of staff and that is just the tip of the iceberg.

Both are feeling the heat and the pressure. Martin does not look well, and Jody just hopes that their daughter's wedding goes off without a hitch. But it goes off more like a bomb when Martin dies. Jody is now in the catbird seat (she always has been, just ask her) and ready to start over! But will the future be bright or is her legacy tarnished?

This one began strongly for me, and I enjoyed learning Jody's thoughts - they are devious, conniving and show how power hungry she is. Martin (think Bill Clinton) is a charming man who has gotten his way and does what he wants to a degree and well, he is in the middle of a mess in the beginning of this book. Mimi, a powerful member of their staff, also shares her thoughts which provides more insight toward the end of the book.

The characters are a mess, but they are supposed to be. They are not likeable, except the daughter who came off as very naïve to me. This is lifestyles of the rich and famous Kaira Rouda style. We get to see into a political family’s lives, see their inner workings, their faults, messes, arrogance, deviousness, and thirst for power. Consequences be damned, they are going to do what they want when they want with a fake smile plastered on their faces.

Sounds good right? I thought I would love, love, love this book! The description sounded so enticing. I also enjoyed the words of advice that Jody had for spouses throughout the book. But this went from a 4-star read to a 3-star read. Why? I can't pinpoint one single thing; it just became more like a tv movie of the week. It went off the rails a little and although, I still enjoyed it, it failed to wow me. There are a few twists at the end which I did not see coming. Will I remember it in months to come? I'm not sure.

Jody Asher defines her life by her husband, Martin, a well-known congressman. She loves the status that comes with his position. Jody is throwing a wedding for their daughter and it's about to be the event of the year. But everything changes when scandal hits Martin--there's a rumor he's sleeping with a young intern and has dirty political ties to other countries. Then Martin dies and Jody truly stands to lose everything.

Ugh, I hate when I do not care for a book, but I just did not like this one! I almost DNF'd this one, but I kept hoping it would improve. And it did pick up a bit near the end, but things never truly gelled for me. THE WIDOW featured stilted writing, despicable characters, and--worst of all--nothing happened for the first half of the book! It's called THE WIDOW, but nothing happens to Martin until the halfway point (despite it appearing in the book summary and title). I just kept waiting and waiting for something exciting to happen!

Jody is billed as a psychopath character, but THE WIDOW did not take it far enough for me. If you are going to go that path, own it! The plot jumps around, trying to play spy thriller, lobbyist saga, and then tossing in their daughter and her wedding occasionally. Even better, somehow everyone went to school together! Martin, Jody, the Vice President, his wife went to college together, and then magically, Martin and their daughter's father went to high school together. Oh, the coincidences abound! It was way too much to believe.

There was a decent enough wild twist here at the end, but it couldn't redeem this story. There are boring "tips for congressional spouses" thrown in between every chapter that I eventually started to skim.

The Widow was just ok for me. I managed to finish it but I skimmed through the last half. Kaira Rouda’s books are usually 5 star reads for me but this one just didn’t reach that.

This is an amazing, diabolical, delicious work of art by Kaira Rouda!!!!!!!!!! This one will keep readers reading well into the night as I did.

It was so good that I was sorry when it was over. This is a story of a woman that knows what to do and it is determinated to reach the maximum. It is not all easy and is really needed a lot of patience to do right things at the right time. I guess it takes a lot to be a good politician and even more courage to be a woman in politics. Living that way has become also the lifestyle of this woman and she wants to remain there also after her husband dies. Using everything and everyone she did a great job in better and worse.

Thank you Thomas & Mercer, Thomas & Mercer and Netgalley for this arc.

Jody has been the wife of Congressman Martin for fifteen terms. It's a job she enjoys and does well. When a reporter reveals that Martin may be hiding a few things, including an affair with a young staffer, Jody takes it in her stride. What is scandal if not used as publicity? But when Martin suddenly dies and the reporter is still sniffing around for more of the story, Jody takes it upon herself as the widow, to secure her future.

I'm not big on politics at all. I don't really follow it and I don't like to talk about it. But can I just say, I absolutely FLEW through this book. I struggled to put it down. I kept wanting to know what Jody would do. The politics side was uninteresting, but I was all up for reading about the dirty games played, how family played a part and generally reading behind the scenes of how a campaign works. Fast paced, short chapters, multiple POV's, lots of twists, juicy secrets - this book has everything you want in a good thriller!

*****Publishing December 1, 2022*****


⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Do you love a fast paced Domestic Thriller? This book has unexpected twists that will keep you guessing until the end!

This book alternates between Jody and Martin who are married. Martin is a U.S. Congressman who is not always faithful to his marriage, which doesn’t particularly bother Jody as she knows it comes with the territory. Martin is informed by his chief of staff that the Washington Times is writing a story about his alleged involvement in a scandal. Not what he needs before his daughter’s wedding. During the rehearsal dinner, the groom’s parents have turned it into a political event for the candidate who is running against Martin, the father of the bride. How will Martin and Jody take it?

At their daughter’s wedding, Martin collapses and dies of a heart attack. Jody as often spouses do when a death occurs, will run in a special election In order to finish out their spouses term. Will Jody have what it takes to win? What will unfold? What secrets will be revealed? How will she handle it?

This book will have you shaking your head about Martin’s political and personal mistakes, feeling sorry for and rooting for Jody, and in the end there will be an unsuspecting ending! A fast paced book that will keep you entertained from the first page to the last!

Did you know this author’s husband had been a U.S. Congressman? Kaira Rouda highlighted Widow’s Succession in this book that allows the spouse to run in a special election to finish out their husband/wife political term.


Thanks to Thomas & Mercer, I was provided an ARC of The Widow by by Kaira Rouda via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Shortest review ever!

Um - where do I start with this? I did like the cover. And I enjoyed an earlier book by the author, Best Day Ever, but that’s kind of where it ended for me!

Okay, it wasn’t too bad until the death occurred. With that title you would expect someone to die right? But - oh my, the main character, Jody, was one of the most insufferable, selfish, mean, toxic people you could ever meet. And boring - it was all about her and I couldn’t even finish it without a break to read something more interesting!

I don’t know what else to say. I didn’t like this book. At all. I felt tainted by Jody’s meanness and selfishness. When things didn’t go her way what did she do - plotted revenge, eye roll. I imagine some people enjoyed it but it but I wasn’t one of them. Many thanks to Netgalley and Thomas & Mercer for the much appreciated arc which I reviewed voluntarily and honestly.

Jody is married to Martin. He's the perfect congressman. She's the perfect wife. Starting from there, the reader will discover a new world: Washington DC, potitics, business... and betrayals.
This case in particular includes family all of the above.
The author has a very clear intention from the very first paragraph: to describe that world with detail, their members, their qualities and their lack of them.
The story is very well written and the pace is good. It was an interesting journey.

Thank you NetGalley for the chance of reading this book in exchange for an honest review.

💥 Pub Date: 12/1/2022

Available now as an Amazon First Read Pick!

⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

• entertaining political drama
• loved the "Tips" between chapters
• The Good Wife vibes

Secrets, lies, drama! How fitting that I finished this one during election week. Jody was so ruthless and conniving! I definitely didn't see that twist at the end coming. 😲

🗣️ Thank you to @netgalley and @thomasandmercer for the opportunity to read and review this book via gifted eARC! All opinions are honest and my own.

The Widow is an ok political drama / wanna-be thriller. There are zero likable characters and the whole thing is a bit over the top mega-emphasizing all of the bad characters in DC and politics. It is a quick page turner and I did almost chuckle a few times but unless you absolutely love books centering on DC, you will likely only find this one o.k. as well. Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for an advance copy in exchange for my honest opinion. The Widow will be available on 12/1/22, although if you are an Amazon prime member, it is a free First Reads selection for November.

Thank you to NetGalley, Thomas & Mercer and Kaira Rouda for an ARC of “The Widow.”

This political-drama novel has me feeling a bit conflicted as I was reading. Although I felt mostly engaged, there were certain periods throughout the book where I was beginning to lose interest. Despite this, I finished the novel and the ending somewhat tied it all together, but it was not an earth-shattering ending. Regardless, I would still recommend that people read this book; it just wasn’t entirely for me.

This one reminded me of Scandal - and it's equally entertaining, in part because Rouda has personal experience as the wife of a US Congressman, albeit not one she has killed. Or who had a long term affair. Washington watchers might find themselves playing guessing games about true identities and circumstances. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A guilty pleasure.

Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for an honest review.
Expected publication date: December 1, 2022
Jody Asher is the perfect political wife; she has stood by her husband, Martin, while he held a congressman spot for fifteen congressional terms. Even when his reputation was slowly sullied by rumours of payoffs, dirty business deals, and sordid affairs, Jody was convinced her and Martin would remain the Golden Couple of the Hill. Even though Jody was slowly poisoning him, she is surprised when Martin drops dead the night of their daughter’s wedding, and soon Jody is trying to fill Martin’s shoes. Jody battles political allies, enemies and staffers to ensure her rise to the top remains unsullied, and she will stop at nothing to achieve her personal goals.
Kaira Rouda newest political suspense novel, “The Widow” is chock full of political intrigue, conspiracy and manipulation. I enjoyed Rouda’s novel, “Somebody’s Home”, but I didn’t know what to expect going into this one. Being a Canadian with a different political structure than the one featured, I wasn’t sure how invested I could be in a story based entirely in U.S governmental politics, but Rouda did not disappoint.
Jody is a sociopath and openly admits to spending time mimicking those around her, trying to learn how to feel (or at least make it look that way). Martin is her perfect match, willing to take the direction and occasional ire of his wife to ensure his success continues. These two are Democratic representatives from Ohio, but they could, in truth, be from any party in any locale.
Both Jody and Martin narrate the story and, after Martin’s death, Jody continues on, with her confidante and political ally, Mimi, telling her side of the story. There is a lot of politics, obviously, with different congressional meetings, representatives, and governmental shindigs, but underneath it all there is scheming, manipulation and just plain evil plotting- and I loved it.
Somehow Rouda manages to throw a totally believable and unexpected twist into the plot, which left me gasping. I even ended up rooting for Jody, and cheering her on in all of her underhanded schemes. “The Widow” is a deep dive into the nitty gritty world of U.S politics, told from a fictional insider’s perspective, and it is completely believable in every way. I didn’t expect to enjoy this novel as much as I did, and I applaud Rouda for her creative talent.

The Widow is a fun political thriller. The Widow focuses on Jody Asher, wife of Martin Asher who has been in congress for 30 years. Her husband has been a naughty boy, taking money from China and having an affair. But Jody is not your typical wife, when she gets mad, she gets even.

It seems that Martin's time has come as the press is circling and rumors of wrongdoing are becoming louder on the weekend of his daughter's wedding. It is to be the event of the season. But as the rumors are at their loudest, Maritn dies unexpectedly at the reception. Jody has a plan to stay in DC and pick up where Martin left off in his term using the "Widow's Mandate."

This was such a fun entertaining read. The characters are everything you would expect in Washington. There is so much backstabbing, vying for political favor, greed, deception, secrets and so much more. The characters themselves are not likeable but you can't help but root for them to get the upper hand.

One of the other fun parts of the book is the excerpts from what is written in a somewhat 1950's era helpful Hanna like voice about what to expect while their husbands are in office. It reminds me of the movie "A League of Their Own" when the women are being taught how to be a ladies, totally hysterical.

All in all, it was a fun read, not what I expected at all.

Wow! Kaira Rouda wrote another winning book. I was hooked from beginning to the very end. I absolutely loved the advice to its at the beginning of each chapter. This book has gotten quite a bit of attention because Kaira was a Washington DC spouse at one time. If this attention means more people discover this amazing read, it’s perfect. It was exciting to read an ‘insider’ view of DC, no matter if it was fictional or real. I’ve visited the Congressional offices on vacation and I could picture the building as I was reading. This is a must read book!!!