"What The Wife Knew" uses my favorite type of main character: a sarcastic, tough, cunning, and vigilant woman with more secrets than dreams. Addison is the second wife to America's favorite hero doctor. She's got a man and a plan... until she's left with only the plan when her husband is murdered. This book is a slow churning mystery, with reveals sprinkled along the way. Themes included family secrets, cutthroat ambitions, and public masks. Storytelling was done through dual perspectives, "her" and "him", both of which were effective. The plot also loosely featured some current news events, which kept the storyline relevant and interesting

What the Wife Knew
What a ride thank you William Morrow, Darby Kane and NetGalley for the ARC of this book.

If you like a domestic thriller this one is for you. The Characters Addison and Richmond both have their secrets, but someone eventually gets it.
It definitely kept me guessing and to keep going until the end!
I will for sure be reading more from the author after this awesome book.

#WhattheWifeKnew #NetGalley 🕵🏽‍♀️

97 days after Addison married Dr. Richmond Dougherty; he is dead. As a well known pediatric surgeon, tragedy survivor, and hero; Richmond is highly thought of by his neighbors, coworkers, family, and his patient's families. When the admirable doctor is found at the bottom of the stairs dead after a quick and short marriage to his new wife, fingers are quickly pointed at her. Was the fall an accident or was he pushed? Addison only has one thing on her mind, ruin the man she married even in his death.
Review: 3.5 stars
If you like family drama, revenge plots, questionable morals, and lots of twists and turns; this one will definitely be for you! It is a quick and bingeable popcorn thriller! I had a clear idea of where I thought it was going and I was completely wrong (love that)! I will say, there were certain parts that seemed drawn out, at least for me. I wasn't super invested in any of the characters. I really enjoyed the ending with all the twists and turns, it was definitely entertaining and had me saying, "WHATTT???"
What the Wife Knew is available now!
Thank you to NetGalley, Darby Kane, and William Morrow for this ARC of What the Wife Knew in exchange for an honest review!

I love Darby Kane’s writing! I always get so excited to read any book by her. Her latest, #WhattheWifeKnew didn’t let me down!

Secrets abound when the story of Addison & Richmond unravels throughout in the present & flashing back to the past. This one is a great one!

Synopsis: Addison’s husband was murdered, and she is the number one suspect. The only problem is that she didn’t do it - someone else beat her to it.

Thoughts: This domestic thriller is full of dark secrets and twisty family relationships. I’m not the best at predicting endings, but I think this would throw anyone for a loop! If you’re into psychological thrillers with totally untrustworthy characters, definitely check this out.

Read this if you like:
🔎 whodunnits
🔎 unreliable characters
🔎 family drama
🔎 domestic thrillers

4/5 stars

Thank you William Morrow Paperbacks for the advanced reading copy!

This book started and ended SO STRONG, but lost me a little bit in the middle, as it started to feel repetitive. I was, however, willing to push through after being intrigued from the start by the clever premise, and I'm glad I did. I always love a dual perspective and/or POV book, and this did not miss in that way. There were really great twists throughout that kept me going. The FMC was great, and I loved (sometimes loved to hate) the supporting characters. This one kept me guessing a lot of the time, and it was a super fun, solid thriller overall.

Richmond Dougherty is a famous pediatric surgeon with an interesting past - as a teenager he survived the killings of his parents and his brother. When he falls down the stairs in his home and dies, just 97 days after marrying Addison, all hell breaks loose. The first Mrs. Dougherty, Kathryn, the mother of Richmond’s children, is fixated on getting her hands on the substantial estate he left behind. But Addison has many secrets of her own, not the least of which is why she married Richmond in the first place. As is so often the case, the investigating detective has zeroed in on a suspect - Addison. But there is so much more to the story, including Addison’s mother who has been manipulating her daughter for years. When Addison is threatened - “You Will Pay’ is painted on her bedroom wall - she must protect herself from an unknown but obviously dangerous person or persons. There are NO likable characters in this book as everyone has their own secrets. That being said, the twists and turns of the story will keep you attention throughout. Told in alternating chapters from the viewpoint of Addison and Richmond (mostly Addison though) and in varying timelines from the present to the long ago past, this novel will grab you from the first page. My thanks to Dutton Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC of this novel.

What a twisted story that kept me on the edge of my seat. I had to know what happened next. I really enjoyed this one. Thank you so much for this ARC William Morrow Publishing.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

🤗Thank you so much to @williammorrowbooks for sending me an ARC and finished copy!

📖Title: What the Wife Knew
✍️Author: Darby Kane
📅Pub Date: December 10, 2024 (TODAY)

📖This is my third book by Darby Kane and all three of them have been fun, but this was BY FAR my favorite one yet!

🚪The reason why it was my favorite yet is because it was absolutely BONKERS 😮😮 LIKE BONKERS. If you want the craziest and most unhinged domestic thriller, make sure you grab this one!

👀There's not much I can say without spoiling things, but just know that my jaw HIT THE FLOOR at certain parts and you will NOT know what's coming 👀👀

You won't be able to put this one down!! Highly recommend!

Loved loved loved this book! Great character development and found the plot super interesting and new! I read a lot in this genre and felt this storyline was refreshing. 5 stars from me!

4.75 rounded up to 5.

Thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I read Darby Kane's first book, Pretty Little Wife, and absolutely loved it. What the Wife Knew was no exception! I think I enjoyed it just as much.

In What the Wife Knew, there were so many twists and turns, and I actually enjoyed the fact that I disliked many of the characters, including our MC Addison. However, as the tangled web unraveled, I started to really love some of these unlikable characters, and this twisted tale turned into an interesting commentary about toxic family. I had no idea how it was going to end, and I was absolutely clueless to how depraved some of these people really were. It was tense, unpredictable, and still had a great message at the heart of everything.

I feel like this is a perfect read for anyone who loves a well-rounded domestic thriller. Were some parts totally outrageous? Absolutely, but that was half the fun! I highly recommend this, as well as the author's other books.

3.5 stars, rounded up. This is a solid one from Darby Kane! The author knows how to write messed up families and relationships well, and this one is peak dirty secrets with surprises and shocks all the way through.

Many thanks to NetGalley and William Marrow for the free e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I love Darby Kane books and this one does not disappoint! The book opens at the funeral of Dr Richmond Dougherty, a pediatric surgeon, with his first wife and then yes, his current, second wife, both being recognized as the wives of the deceased, who died under suspicious circumstances...you know this will be salaciously juicy!!!

I love the dry wit and sarcasm of the characters in this well written mystery. There are plenty of twists and the pacing is fast. The familial relationships are quite dysfunctional and morally grey. The storyline is a revenge-filled, mind-blowing psychological thriller! What's not to love?!

Highly recommend this suspenseful murder mystery!

This book is told in dual timelines past and present via the wife and the husband. Addison and her husband Richmond. Upon marriage Richmond mysteriously gets unalived and the only regret Addie has is not being able to make his life miserable before he died. Throughout the book the storyline unravels and we find out Richmond isn’t as great as he was portrayed. This book did have a lot of profanity which I don’t mind in mild moderation but it had large amounts and I prefer not to read them. I skipped over the majority of it. I think the only likable character in this book was Addie.

In a book where there only one particularly likeable character, one wonders why there weren't more murders being executed.

What the Wife Knew is my first read of Darby Kane. While I won't say that it will be my last, I can say that it wasn't one that will go on my oft read shelf. The premise of the book was enticing: A woman wronged, married to a pillar of the community whom she gladly wants to kill. Jus tot keep things lively, he wants to kill her right back. Imagine the surprise of both when, after living a War of the Roses, existence, Richard ends up dead. Although the gold-digging Addison become the town's primary suspect, Addison knows the truth: she didn't kill him but she knows why. In the search to find a killer and clear her name, Addison discovers that her husband was an even worse person than she knew. Secrets unravel, true colors are revealed and the game becomes kill or be killed.

Despite the intriguing starts, the book quickly falls prey to the fact that no one is likable, so you don't particularly care who is guilty or why. Addison is ridiculous in her loyalty, in the execution of her plan, in her interactions with everyone from Richard to the neighbors, in the protection of her home...really, in every possible way. She became so annoying to me that I really wanted someone to shoot her. Richard is, of course, slimy and vile, and yet his behavior with Addison doesn't ring true. Add to that people just walking into a secured house at will and you find the book devolving into the story absurd. And yet, not the worst book I've ever read!

If you are looking for an easy afternoon read, with a reality tv sort of vibe (the suspense isn't suspenseful nor the mystery mysterious), a and you enjoy an abundance of plot twists and red herrings then this book is for you. And I dont mean that is a bad way. It is simply lighter hearted fare than the premise would lead you to believe.

Thoughts:
From the first page, I had so many questions about what was going on. It was a little difficult for me to get lost in, but I am glad I stuck with it. But the further I got into the story, the more questions I had and I still had no answers. We were about halfway through when the story started to make sense and I was hooked. I didn’t see most of the twists & turns coming. The ending kept me on the edge of my seat. This was a creepy psychological thriller that will keep you guessing until the very end.

Summary:
Dr. Richmond Dougherty is a renowned pediatric surgeon and a national hero after stopping a school shooting. He is also dead under mysterious circumstances. It appears to be an accident, but after neighbors point their finger at his new wife and accuse her of murder, the police look further into the case. He had been married to Addison for 97 days and in that time had two suspicious accidents and now Addison has inherited all of his possessions. The neighbors aren’t the only ones suspicious of Addison, so are Richmond’s first wife and his children. But Addison had a plan for revenge when she married Richmond and she won’t let his death keep her from following through on that plan. Richmond is not the man anyone thinks he is and she is determined to ruin his reputation if it’s the last thing she does.

Oh wow! Talk about a twist! I loved reading every second of this book!

Addison Dougherty was groomed for one thing since she was 18 years old from her emotionally manipulative mother without even realizing it until she was older. She broke up a marriage by blackmailing the prominent Dr. Richmond Dougherty for something he did to Addison's mom, Lizzy, while she was pregnant at 16 years old. And Addison was constantly reminded of it her whole life how she owed her.

Richmond was a famous renown pediatric surgeon, an infamous tragedy survivor when he was just 17 years old, and a cruel manipulative man; just like her mom. Addison blackmailed him into divorcing his wife and two kids and marrying her. In return, he made living with him absolute hell. But now he's dead before she was able to enact her revenge and she has no idea who killed him because she wasn't even home.

His bitter ex-wife, Kathryn, is trying to get his estate, the police are convinced that she committed the crime, and the only person on her side is Richmond's attorney. Surprisingly, Richmond left everything to her, including his attorney, Elias; who didn't like him much. But Richmond also left behind many enemies and lots of secrets that would have ruined his pristine reputation. His reputation was all he ever cared about, which is why he went ahead with this sham marriage. Surprisingly, his kids disliked their parents, but craved their love, just like Addison always did with her own narcissist, selfish mother.

Now more than ever, Addison is determined to destroy his reputation for good. But she needs to dig up those dirty secrets first. When her mother shows up in town unexpectedly, she brings nothing but chaos. But when Addison finds out the real truth behind her mother's reason for Richmond's downfall, she finally breaks her daughter for good.

A definite must read!!

*I received a complimentary copy of this book via NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This was a very fast-paced, action-packed opening, immediately throwing me into a high-stakes situation with a sense of urgency and momentum with little time to catch my breath as the plot rapidly unfolded. Whew this was a wild one!!
Thank you to the publisher for the opportunity to read this advanced copy. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Another Darby Kane book in the books and I really enjoyed it - just like all the others!

I thought this was really well done and enjoyable!

This book was well written, I thoroughly enjoyed it. It was one of them that I was confident I had pinned, and I found out I was wrong! I love when a book proves me wrong and shocks me at the end of it. I enjoyed this one!