Loved the title, cover and premise so I was excited to read this one. But ultimately it wasn't for me - the varying points of view (the wife, the best friend, the husband) - didn't reach the level of drama I was hoping for.

The Three of Us is a story filled with tension told over the course of one day from the perspectives of three different people. A husband, his wife, and her best friend. There's this level of intensity throughout that gives off this uncomfortable feeling. The plot is original and fast-paced. I enjoyed the psychological tension. Highly recommended!

I appreciate this novel for what it is: a question of what makes us ourselves, whether it be a collective past between best friends or a hypothetical future created with a partner. Where does our main character actually exist; who is she, when she’s not playing the referee between her husband and best friend? Overall, I enjoyed the concept of the novel but the delivery was difficult to get through. I found it extremely repetitive, a little boring, but still quite clever.

Confusing. book. A lot of my friend, my other friend, my husbands friend., it just got repetitive. and confusing.. Unfortunately the book wasn't for me.

Thanks to author, publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book. While I got the book for free, it had no bearing on the rating I gave it.

This felt a lot like "No Exit" to me. It was like a three-person play where everyone is trapped and they keep going round and round saying the same things, but nothing actually happens. I kept reading thinking there was going to be some Big Reveal, but there really wasn't. Not for me.

Rating: 4.5

Review:

Thank you to Net Galley and Putnam Penguin Random House for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

The Three of Us by Nigerian writer Ore Agbaje-Willams is a fantastic debut novel I loved that this story is told in three parts, each from the perspective of the the main characters, the married couple and the wife's best friend. I found the push and pull of the two relationships of the wife very interesting. Her character is almost like an empty vessel that is only assigned meaning by the person she is interacting with at the time. This book explores the idea of how one loses their sense of individuality in any kind of relationship as well as what we want for ourselves verses what society expects of us. I found this short 193 page format to be the perfect length and can also imagine this book being adapted as a three act play, I can see how the ending will be hard for some people to accept as everything is NOT tied up in a neat little package, but I respect this intentional choice. The story is thought provoking and there several concepts to mull over for one's self long after the reader closes the book. I get the feeling I will be thinking about this one for a long time and can see myself doing a re-read in the future.

It's due to come out in May, 2023

Official Description:
Long-standing tensions between a husband, his wife, and her best friend finally come to a breaking point in this sharp domestic comedy of manners, told brilliantly over the course of one day.

What if the two most important people in your life hated each other with a passion?

The wife has it all. A big house in a nice neighborhood, a ride-or-die snarky friend with whom to laugh about facile men, and an affectionate husband who loves her above all else. The only thing missing from this portrait is a baby. But motherhood is a serious undertaking, especially for the wife who has valued her selfhood more than anything.

On a seemingly normal day, the best friend comes over to spend a lazy afternoon with the wife. But when the husband comes home and a series of confessions are made that threaten to throw everything off balance, the wife's two confidantes are suddenly forced to jockey for their positions. Told in three taut, mesmerizing parts—the wife, the husband, the best friend—the day quickly unfolds to show how the trio's dented visions of each other finally unravel, throwing everyone’s integrity into question—and their long-drawn-out territorial dance, carefully constructed over pivotal years, into utter chaos.

At once subversively comical, wildly astute, and painfully compulsive, The Three of Us explores cultural truths, what it means to defy them, and the fine line between compromise and betrayal, ultimately asking: who are we if not for the stories we tell ourselves about ourselves, and the people we’re meant to love?

I'm not even sure where to start with this one. This is the story of a married couple and the wife's best friend told from each point of view. I am not sure that I have ever hated a character in a novel as much as I hated the wife. I mean from post perspectives she just seemed like the worst person and I was hoping the husband would figure it out and find someone else. Although that's pretty deep for this book because the story pretty much involves one evening and the history of each relationship.

I enjoyed the uniqueness of the story, although it can be a little dry because nothing is really happening. I also have to give kudus to the author because I think it take skill to write characters that readers become so personally invested in.

Again this isn't a action book. Its a slow afternoon build up and then a cliffhanger.

Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This book is uniquely formatted and free of page breaks and quotation marks to make it a stream of consciousness between past and present. I found parts two and three, from the husband and friend’s point of view, more interesting than part one. Mostly I was glad to not be in this situation- the intensity and tension was real!

I would like to thank Putnam Group and Net Galley for the opportunity to read this book as an ARC. This is a short well written book about 3 people, a husband, a wife and the wife's best friend. It takes place over the course of one day. The first section is narrated by the wife, the second by the husband and the third by the best friend. The husband and best friend do not like each other. The wife knows it, but seems not to care. It was described in the blurb as a comedy of manners, but do not go into it thinking it is funny. It is not, it is a serious look at relationships, lies and truths in those relationships.I do not want to give anything away, but will say I recommend taking your time reading this one. It builds slowly, and the end comes at you quickly, almost like a roller coaster.This is a rare book that I wish was longer, I wanted to spend more time with the characters. They were not likeable, nor engaging, but somehow compelling.

I was impressed by the author's ability to make the characters so dislikable yet readable at the same time. I enjoyed the wife's narration more than Temi's and the husband's because she was the most likable character in the story. The husband and Temi were both written in a way where you couldn't agree with either of their thoughts or motivations, but you didn't know whose side you were on if either. The pop culture references throughout the book lightened the tone without taking you out of the story which was nice. Ultimately the ending fell a little flat for me and this won't be a book that will stick with me for time to come, but it was an enjoyable read.

This was such a BRILLIANT read. I'll admit, it took me a while to get into it, however once I was invested in the characters I couldn't put it down. It was such an interesting approach to the character driven novel, one that had me switching allegiance several times throughout the novel because I couldn't quite grapple with whose side I was on. Such a genius idea.

3 stars- The author highlights the complex dynamic of best friend, wife & husband. The book is organized into 3 sections, one told by each of the trio. I enjoyed the best friend's section the most. Thank you netgalley & the publisher for the ARC!

This was a very easy read and a good in between book for me. I enjoyed reading it, however, it lacked in a lot of areas for me personally. I enjoyed reading everyone's viewpoints (the wife, the husband, and the best friend) and definitely enjoyed the writing style and how each part of the book was a different persons viewpoint.. It ended pretty abruptly with no solution to the issues there were between the best friend and husband or between the wife and husband in regards to a family though. The old viewpoints of the parents are ones that need to be addressed in real life as women aren't simply here to marry and procreate. I liked that it outlined that and basically it was a lot about being yourself, for yourself which is great! This was a 2.5 read for me as I just wish the ending was more detailed about what will happen to all three of them and I didn't really love or connect with the best friend much either.

**Thank you so much to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.**

I struggled a little with this because even though I understand it was suppose to be us getting the husband, wife and bffs pov it felt very repetitive restating the same moments over 3 times. I thought it would lead to a big climax and ending but it fell flat throughout and stayed the same level. I will write a full detailed review on good reads and ad the link here.

this was really just an okay read for me. which, was sort of nice because i realized that not every book has to be the best!

just too flat for me personally, but i think this will be a lot of people's new favorite thing.

Genuinely fantastic, in a way that I would not have expected. It is not like anything I’ve read before, and really strikes me as a title that would be a phenomenal read for an English class. First and foremost, this was an excellent observation of the impact of an additional party to a marriage. Secondly, this was such a simple but gripping story that led you trying to decide whose side you were on the entire time. This story leaves you thinking, wondering, trying to piece together the puzzle.

The book reads like a really long text message between friends, as it lacks formal dialogue and dialogue attribution (he/she said). There are so few characters in the book though that you don’t need these attributions, and it allows you to be absorbed into the story. The husband and wife remain unnamed throughout the story, which gives off major Rebecca (Daphne du Maurier) vibes, in that although the story is told from three characters’ perspectives, leaving two unnamed is intentional by the author to have you see who really holds the power.

I found myself wondering ‘What is going to happen? Why am I reading this book?’ I spent the first two thirds of the book wishing there had been a suspenseful teaser, but the lack of a teaser made it hit harder. I found myself GRIPPED, holding my breath, waiting for the big reveal at the end and it was like a cold bucket of water dousing me, leaving me completely unfulfilled when the story just ENDS and I realized that dammit this is a really good book for English class because I have to decide what happened. I have to infer, determine who was in the wrong, and what really happened.

I want to criticize the author for leaving me hanging, but instead I choose to stand and applaud this choice because the joke you don’t stop thinking about is the one with a big setup that you don’t hear the punchline to. Well done, very well done.

Thanks to Penguin Group Putnam and NetGalley for the ARC and the opportunity to read and review this title.

This book is unlike any other that I've read. It takes place on one long day during which nothing much happens until the very end, told from each perspective of the three people spending the day together (a woman, her husband, and her best friend). The main premise of the book is that the husband can't stand the best friend, who is constantly present in his marriage to the woman. I really liked that each of the characters recounts a different part of the day rather than retelling the whole day from their own perspective. Despite being set on one day, the story also covers years of context leading up to the day, interwoven throughout the current day's events.

The characters are difficult to love, but I feel that adds a welcome tension to the reading experience. The woman is too passive, the best friend is obnoxious, and the husband is boring and status-driven (yet, I found him to be the most relatable). The subtlety of the narrative rests in the things that remain unsaid between each pair of characters. There's both too much intimacy and not enough; a tense mix of overt aggression, passive aggression, and avoidance, secrecy, and lies. These contradictions sucked me in and I couldn't stop reading, waiting to see which of the characters cracked first.

And the ending...I was hoping for a twist, but I was nowhere near in my predictions. The ending makes this book a masterpiece.

The story is told over the course of a day from 3 different perspectives and how each person is dealing with the same situation. Reading the book description I was intrigued by the idea and had high hopes for the book overall; unfortunately, that didn’t quite pan out.

As much I wanted to enjoy this book, I just didn’t. For starters I found the fact that dialogue was just lumped into each paragraph as if it wasn’t dialogue, super annoying. I also couldn’t understand why we only get to learn one character’s name. I found the characters to be overly annoying and not very likable. My biggest gripe with this book was the ending, or shall I say lack thereof. I’ve read books with ambiguous endings intended to make the reader wonder, but this didn’t even feel like an ending. It felt more like the author simply forgot to finish writing the book.

Had the style of writing been different and the book had an ending, there is no doubt in my mind I would’ve truly loved this book

Thank you Penguin Group Putnam and #NetGally for providing me with an ARC for my honest review

This really lacked on so many levels for me. This is about 3 people; a husband, his wife and her best friend. It's told from all 3 aspects. However, it seems to just repeat the same events in different perspectives. When it gets closer to the end, it starts becoming interesting (for once) but then the story just ends abruptly. Like no actual closure or excitement. It's like the book ended and the author didn't get a chance to finish the story. I didn't like any of it. A good ending would've saved the rest of the mediocre storyline for me, but that didn't happen. Lacked depth, no true character development and the ending was flat with no true "ending" just felt like the story stopped mid-sentence.

I received this ARC from NetGalley and the publishers to read and review. All statements above are my own true opinions after fully reading this book.

Ahh I really liked this book! It kinda started off a little bit slower in the beginning, but once it picked up I was hooked!