Author : Rona Halsall
The Wife Next Door
This title will be released on October 12, 2022
4 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
290 pages

Description :
It was meant to be the perfect break-up…
Just because it’s over between us, doesn’t mean we can’t be friends. My ex-husband and I still care for each other a lot, and we are determined to put our sweet little boy, Toby first.
Now we’ve moved into houses right next door to each other, with each of our new partners and their children. We’ve even knocked down the garden fence, so Toby can easily run between our homes.
But it seems not everyone is happy about this big, blended stepfamily. I try to ignore the viciously-worded note in the ‘new home’ card, the red pen scrawled through my divorce paperwork, and the day I find myself locked into my house, all the keys suddenly missing…But I can’t pretend it’s all in my head when a false accusation is made against me that could destroy my life – and Toby’s – forever.Someone doesn’t like what’s happening under these two neighbouring roofs.What they don’t know is that they’re messing with the wrong person. And that hell hath no fury like the wife next door…

🛑🔪 MY REVIEW 🛑🔪

The Wife Next Door is a totally gripping psychological thriller with one jaw-dropping twist after another. I must say though, the whole living next door to your ex with both of you already in another relationship and everyone being ok with this whole thing is really unbelievable and farfetched. Another thing that got me was the fact at the beginning of the book Ben and Jess didn’t drink alcohol at all and then all of the sudden they were drinking throughout the whole book. It was also a little unbelievable that Jess continued to stay with Ben with the way he was treating her. I would have gave him the boot so fast his head would swim.

This is the first book I've read by this author and I must say I will be looking up and adding more of her books to my tbr list. This story caught my attention from the very start of the prologue with a woman who has been stabbed in the stomach and dumped in the woods to die. She is fading fast but is fighting to stay alive for her son. Them we jump to the first chapter Jess and Rob are getting a super friendly divorce. So friendly they decide to live in houses next door to each other that are connected with their new partners that they already engaged to. Why? So that their young son Toby will still have two parents close by and can visit each one whenever he feels like it. Jess now has Matt who has a teenage daughter Ruby. Rob now has Carol who has a 5 year old son Mo.. So what can possibly go wrong with this big blended family ? Alot apparently. When Jess opens a welcome to your new house card that says Welcome to your worst nightmare! And nightmare it is. I flipped the pages as fast as I could. It was one thing after another that kept happening to poor Jess. Someone was turning her life upside down but who? Nobody seemed to believe Jess about all the things that was happening to her. Is Jess mentally unstable or is someone really doing all these horrible things to her? There was times I wanted to shake Jess and yell at her. It was a little unbelievable that Jess continued to stay with Ben with the way he was treating her. As the tension Continue to build with one twist after another I found myself turning the pages as fast as I could until I reached the shocking ending. One thing is for sure, you better clear your calendar once u start because you won't be able to put it down.

******Disclosure*******
I received a free E -ARC copy of this book from netgalley prior to release. Many thanks to NetGalley ,the publisher and the author for the chance to read and review a copy of this interesting book in exchange for my honest review. I do not receive any type of compensation for reading & reviewing free books from publishers & authors. Therefore, I am under no obligation to write a positive review, only an honest one. All opinions I have expressed are my own. As always if you like the book you read please take the time to leave a review for the author in places like goodreads & Amazon. It does not have to be long. Just a few sentences saying you liked the book will do. Authors really appreciate every review they get !

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Ready to be surprised and captivated by Hansall’s new book?


In the wife next door we meet Jess who has just moved in with her new partner, her son and his daughter. Their neighbors is her previous husband and his new family. They are all friends and hope their new living arrangements will benefit. Jess feels like life is perfect, until she finds a threatening letter. That is just the start of more strange events that makes her feel like someone’s out to get her.

The book has a perfect number of suspects that might be out to destroy her lifety. I sometimes felt like the story unfolded too rapidly, there was no time to catch up or let the anticipation build. First Jess happy and thinks all is well, but after just one chapter it’s all going downhill so fast that it’s hard to keep up. The author creates a suspenseful plot where you realize that someone has a plan to destroy her family. There are many possible home wreckers, and Jess suspects everyone. When she sees bruises on her son, her paranoia increases.

The reader is also confused and wondering what might be going on. I also suspected everyone and even started to wonder if Jess had some mental health issues, so the book kept me guessing which I love. It was well-written, but I missed feeling more connected to Jess. It’s good that you can read a book in one sitting, but I didn’t get to know her personality and therefore it wasn’t easy to care about what happened to her or her family.

The twist was good and everything that happened was explained. I liked that we got all the facts in the last chapter from the culprits POV. My initial reaction from the first chapters, where everything seemed to good to be true and naive, made more sense after the ending.

Overall a decent psychological thriller. It had all the typical ingredients of the genre, but I found it somewhat lacking in character building and development. It was a lot of black and white thinking, which is understandable when you’re under duress, but I would have loved if the characters weren’t so judgmental of Jess, not believing in anything she said.


Thanks to netgally and bookouture for this ar

Wow! This is the first book I've read by this author and it certainly won't be the last. It's been quite a while since I was very very tempted to peek at the ending to discover how this book ended, or rather, who was the culprit. I resisted. I couldn't read the pages fast enough . Former husband and wife, Rob and Jess move into new homes, next door to each other, with their new partners Ben and Carol for the sake of their son Toby. What could possibly go wrong ? Thoroughly enjoyed this psychological thriller.

In The Wife Next Door author Rona Halsall has a married couple, Jess and Rob getting a friendly divorce. So friendly they decide to live in houses next door to each other (with their new partners) so their son will still have two parents close by. Things start to go wrong almost immediately. Jess no longer knows who to trust. I want to thank NetGalley and Bookouture for an early copy to review.

This was an amazing read!! 100/10 recommend!! This book had me infuriated at most of the characters then my head spinning from one twist after another! Kept me up all week wanting to finish!!!

As the description states, “ Two houses. Two front doors. One family. Nothing can possibly go wrong…Today we move into our new houses, right next door to each other. My ex-husband and me. He’s with someone else. So am I.
Now I can’t help but think someone doesn’t like what’s happening under our two roofs. Or perhaps someone doesn’t like there being a wife next door…
What they don’t know is that they’re messing with the wrong person…”


Great hook, but there were multiple problems where the suspension of disbelief made the storyline ridiculous:

>” They’re messing with the wrong person”….only in that she’s a STUPID person! Early on the reader quickly learns the psychological suspense is based on gaslighting techniques that any normal person would address. The protagonist does not address the happenings logically. Instead, she becomes manic and emotional and accuses everyone, thus losing credibility.

> They even knocked down the fences between the houses, so there is absolutely NO privacy. They walk into each other’s houses; again no privacy, no boundaries. There are no boundaries in a lot of areas! This is how they are going to make it work? 😳

On the positive side, it was compelling, even with all the infuriating poor judgement calls of the protagonist. I read it in one sitting so the pacing was fast and furious! The climax was electrifying! Even after the mystery of who was gaslighting whom was revealed, there was an astounding twist in the final resolution of the novel that was superb! (The protagonist finally used her gray matter and did something intelligent.)

I like to read about strong women. These two women are portrayed as weak and easily manipulated and duped. That fact is bothersome and is reflected in a lower rating. I acknowledge my bias. The author ‘s fantastic climax and resolution will have me coming back to read more of her novels!

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The idea of this book is everyone’s worst nightmare becoming neighbors with ur ex! Really enjoyed the book was a little slow in some parts but pretty good overall

Another phenomenal book by this Author. I can’t imagine any sane woman agreeing to this arrangement. So many twists. So many possible suspects. I should have seen the ending coming but the Author did it again and I did NOT! This book is SO good, I think I need to read it again. Thanks to NetGalley, Bookoutre and the Author for allowing me to read and review this book.

Tgis was a very quick read. I absolutely had to lnow what was going to happen. Great story with lots of wild twists and turns.

(I received a digital ARC via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.)

Well, I'm back to the land of NetGalley and when I saw Rona Halsall's book, I MUST REQUEST!
But anyway, this one's a bit of a let down for me. It wasn't bad per se, after a rocky beginning and difficulties for me to focus since I was on a trip a few days ago when I started the book, I easily got into it.

Halsall's writing was concise and easy to read, but I didn't dig the short chapters. Of course, it helps me reading more (because it only, like 4 flicks on my kindle per chapter), but it seems like most chapters could be organize into one longer chapter.

The story was alright, as the title suggests, it tells a story of two women: one ex-wife and one future wife of a man called Rob. The ex-wife was the protagonist, Jess, and the other was Carol. Jess and her new partner, Ben, decided to have a future blended family since her divorce with Rob left them with a child. Ben himself already had a teenager Ruby, and Carol was bringing her own toddler, Mo. Oh, and also, the two families lives next to each other. And if you think the arrangement seems weird, it is. And soon, Jess sweet dream became a nightmare.

Ugh, I was conflicted when it comes to any mystery thriller protagonist. They might be gullible and such, but I hate it when they have no initiative and Jess fell into this category. Everything happened to her but all she had was her emotion. She did asked around, accusing each and everyone closer to her, but I need more from her as a librarian. Other characters were so-so and when the conclusion came, it was quite underwhelming.

Wow! What a heart stopping novel. Once I started, I couldn’t put it down. I enjoyed this fast-paced, psychological thriller. Very believable characters that kept me guessing throughout the book. 4 out of 5 ⭐️

Thank you Bookouture and Net Galley for an early copy of The Wife Next Door. It started out ridiculous, they were going to date while still married?? Then the one couple didn’t drink when they met and then drank so many times throughout the book. A nine year old boy saying “Oh dear what happened” would never happen. Very unrealistic. The only good thing about this book was that it had a shocking ending and it was a fast read. I usually like Rona Halsall books but this one did not do it for me.

Jess and Rob have split. To save their son Toby from too much anguish they decide to live next door to each other with their new partners. Jess has Matt who has a teenage daughter Ruby. Rob has got together with Carol who has a young son Mo..

At first everything seems perfect if not a little strange. Childcare arrangements just slot into plan. The men are off cycling and enjoying hobbies. The back fence is removed to make a large garden for them.

However on the day they moved in Jess received a worrying new home card which later disappeared. This is to become the start of unsettling events for her. From what seem to be the perfect living arrangements things begin to happen. Who is upsetting the applecart and can they ever live happily together.

This was initially a slow start. However as you get into the book you become more invested in the story. That being said I would never of moved in next door to my ex . Many thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the opportunity to see an advance copy of the book.

I found The Wife Next Door to be unputdownable. Two houses, two front doors and one family. Jess and Rob have split up, they’re both seeing someone new but have remained friends and for the sake of their son, they decide to move into properties next door to each other and become one big blended family. What could possibly go wrong? It’s a gripping, domestic thriller that had me hooked from page one and kept me enthralled throughout. The tension built nicely with a few twists and turns thrown in for good measure. Thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture and the author for the chance to review.

Despite being apart, Jess and Rob decide to live next door to one another with their new partners to make their divorce easier on their son, Toby. They now form a large extended family. However, it soon becomes apparent that someone isn't keen on their modern family arrangement.

A real page-turning tale, one filled with deception, lies, and many unexpected twists and turns. It makes for a riveting read.

Thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to read and review this gripping book.

The Wife Next Door tells the story of a blended family - two divorced parents with new partners who move next to each other.

What could go wrong with this arrangement?

Rob and poor Jess move next to each other for the sake of Toby, their son. Jess finds a threatening note on moving day which, of course, isn' t there the next day. Jess knows that Carol (Rob's new partner) has something to do with it -or does she? Is Jess letting jealousy get the best of her? What secret is Jess hiding? Exactly how -and when- did she meet her new partner Ben? Is guilt driving her insane?

I'm trying really hard not to laugh now. I know! You may be thinking, why? Well, because I know how it ends -and it's not what you think!

Rona Halsall is great, I knew I'd love her new book! The story flows so well and quickly, I read this in one sitting!

goodreads.com/booksireadandliked
Disclosure: I would like to thank the publisher and author for my advanced review copy of the book. This is my honest review

After the first few chapters I started to assume I knew what was going on and had my 2 main suspects as to what the ending was going to be. I really couldn't have been more wrong and that's what made this book so much fun to read! I didn't see the ending coming but it does make sense thinking back over everything that happened through the story.
I thought it was well written with interesting characters trying to do their best in what is normally a difficult situation. With the very interesting final twist, I'm going to have to investigate this authors other books too!

If you are looking for a book that will keep you on your toes, Rona Halsall's The Wife Next Door is that story. With Halsall's twisty writing you will never know who is doing what or who is guilty. This book is almost impossible to put down once you start reading it. Featuring suspense and hard to love characters, Halsall's new book is a brainteaser.

Synopsis:
A couple is getting divorced. Both parties have amicably moved on in life and found other partners. Everyone involved seems to get along well. In fact, they all become close "friends". For the children's convenience, both couples agree to move and live next door to one another. (Yes, you read that right!) They all "think" this is a great idea. What could possibly happen?

The Wife Next Door is a shocking mystery that has brilliant plot twists. To fully enjoy this curvy ride, one must suspend their belief and roll with the story. While reading the book, I felt my mouth drop open several times. To be honest, I wanted to shake the main character and tell her to "Wake Up and Smell the Coffee!" Lol! The plot is so intriguing, it's crazy!

The Wife Next Door by Rona Halsall is available on October 12th.
(4.25 ⭐⭐⭐⭐💫)

Thank you, NetGalley and Bookouture, for sharing this thrilling novel with me. Your kindness is appreciated!

The Wife Next Door is only an okay thriller. The book starts very slow and the end is both predictable and anticlimactic. Jess and Rob are a recently separated couple that decide to move in next door to each other in order to make the divorce easier on their son. After moving in, unusual things start to occur around Jess: mugs mysteriously broken, cryptic notes, and items seemingly disappearing into thin air. Additionally, Jess finds her relationship not only with her new partner but also with her ex-husband and his partner deteriorating. While there were definitely parts that I found exciting, overall, the pacing was off. I also did not particularly like or relate to any of the characters. The Wife Next Door was a three star read for me.

Wow! This one twists and turns right up to the very end. The idea of a divorcing couple choosing to buy houses next door to each other, so that their son could easily commute between their two houses, might seem like a ‘good ‘ ideal initially but in practicality it might be just a little too close for comfort. Wife Next Door is a well written, true psychological thriller. I flew through the chapters trying to determine who was the mastermind behind the scheme. Unable to bear not knowing the outcome, I read in a single day.
Thank You to Bookouture, NetGalley and Rona Halsall for the opportunity to devour this ARC.