The title says it all, I don't think Jill was ever truly happy! I honestly don't know what to say about this book without giving things away. I do want to say that Jill is the most unhinged person I've come across in a book in a while.

I feel that Jack was a little bit of a coward when it came to Jill. He still should not have been doing what he does while in his relationship. I did feel bad for him throughout at times so. The ending was kind of lackluster for me though so that's a bummer.

There were a couple minor things that bugged me about the Utah parts (we can't dance here?... we aren't in Footloose for goodness sake!) and I doubt you could stop your car in between Zion and Bryce Canyon and just get out and walk the road.

This was a great domestic suspense listen.

Not to give anything away, but I will say the title is perfect for this one. IfJill is not happy, watch your back. Jill has been obsessed with her husband, Jack, since college and nothing stands in her way keeping her man.

I liked the fact that you know that Jill is not a kind character so as a reader you are just along for the twisty ride that is Jill.

No one writes a master manipulator like Rouda. From the start I was hooked and couldn’t stop turning the pages

Damn our main character Jill is a major head-case and proud of it!!!!!!!!!!!! This book was so addictive and pulled you in so tight, it doesn't let go until the last devious page. Enjoy fellow readers!!!!!!!!

**Book Review:**
*Darkly clever and quietly chilling, this taut domestic thriller takes readers on a psychological road trip through the unraveling of a seemingly perfect marriage.* Jill and Jack Tingley may look like the ideal Southern California couple, but beneath the surface lies a web of long-buried secrets, simmering resentment, and a tragedy neither wants to confront. As Jill proposes a getaway to save their strained relationship, Jack sees it as his last act before escape—unaware that Jill has her own, far more sinister agenda. With shades of *Gone Girl* and a touch of Patricia Highsmith’s cold precision, the novel expertly builds tension as the couple navigates emotional and literal detours. Jill emerges as a fascinating antiheroine—resourceful, obsessive, and chillingly committed. A gripping read that asks: how far would you go to keep the one you love?

Thank you to NetGalley and Penzler Publishers | Scarlet for this e-ARC. I put any Kiara Rouda books at the top of my “must read list”. She writes with a dark and twisted humor that will keep you reading as you wonder what will happen next. Jack and Jill met in college and are happily married - or are they? They go on a road trip planned by Jill and highly anticipated by her. Jack is very reluctant to go, but decides it’s a perfect time to tell Jill the marriage is over. Keep reading…..!

Jill is Not Happy is the type of book that I picked up, hoped to not be able to put it down, and was not disappointed. I could not put this book down.

As I read, I wanted to know more, I wanted Jill to quit and I wanted Jack to grow a pair. Jill is the character that I just knew there was more to. Her attitude had me wondering what her real story was. Jack, how can I like him? He is a cheating push-over. I had the need to know what the secret was.

Kaira Rouda is a phenomenal mystery-thriller author. Jill is Not Happy has been added to my favorite books by Kaira. This is a book of characters that you will love to hate and a storyline that will keep you turning pages.

Some parts 3 stars, some 4, some 2. Averaged out at a 3. This is a very typical Kaira Rouda popcorn thriller with people doing terrible things and you just don't want to look away.

Jill and her husband Jack (yes, Jack and Jill) have been together since college, and now that their daughter Maggie is away at college, she has planned a road trip to Utah for herself and Jack. But Jack wants out of the marriage and out from under Jill's control. It's tricky, because Jill keeps a written record of wrongs committed by the both of them, and that evidence could sink them both. As they embark on their trip, it's a back and forth psychological battle to see who will come out getting what they want.

Oh my, this is a wild ride. Filled with awful people doing awful things. I went from rooting for Jack to get away from Jill, to disliking him and then back to rooting for him again. Neither one is innocent of misdeeds, and Jill does not let Jack forget it. Yet Jack is such a wimp a lot of the time letting her run over him.

I listened to the audiobook and I really loved Marnye Young's narration. She gives Jill the perfect amount of unhinged fervor, but also the calm, not-sure-what-she-will-do-next control that seems ready to boil over. I just couldn't stop listening!

Kaira Rouda has made a name for herself as the queen of the popcorn thrillers, and readers who enjoy her style will not be disappointed with this one.

After being captivated by Kaira Rouda's writing last year, I eagerly jumped into her latest book, Jill Is Not Happy. Rouda has a remarkable talent for portraying toxic relationships, and this one is no exception!

On the surface, Jill and Jack seem like the ideal couple living in sunny Southern California. However, with their daughter off to college, their once-happy marriage is showing its cracks. Jill is definitely not happy, and Jack is ready to walk away. In a last-ditch effort to rekindle their love, Jill suggests a road trip to Utah, hoping to revive their marriage.

Jill Is Not Happy delivers a thrilling ride filled with manipulation, secrets, and twists! The flashbacks and road trip shenanigans convey a game of cat and mouse that just keeps intensifying. I raced through the pages, eager to discover what would happen next! This train wreck you can’t look away from is the perfect summer read.

Jill Is Not Happy promises an unhinged journey with deceptive, deeply flawed, unlikable characters.

Jill and Jack met in college. While she came from a poor background, she never explained that to him. Jack, on the other hand, came from very wealthy parents. He is handsome, genuine with plans to go on to law school and then join his father’s prominent law firm. However, a night out with Jill changed that trajectory for him and he has worried ever since about being found out.

Jill and Jack have one daughter, Maggie, who is now in college. Jack and Maggie have always had a wonderful relationship, but Jill and Maggie do not. While Jill is pretty and always smiling, she just doesn’t have what it takes to be a mother.

Jill is determined to make their crumbling marriage work so she has planned a weekend trip to the Utah National Parks. Jack does not want to go but Jill brings up the past with him and he knows he has no other choice. He just wants to have a frank talk with her and set a divorce in motion.

This is a dark humor read that shows how vicious some women can be. I wanted to push Jill off a cliff and maybe send Jack along with her. He was such a wimp. However, the story is good and I think readers will enjoy it.

Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Will a long-held secret keep this marriage together?

Jack and Jill met and fell in love in college, got married, had a daughter (Maggie) together and together have built the kind of life of which most people can only dream. He's a successful lawyer and they are wealthy, popular and gorgeous. Maggie has left for college, and as can happen to many the couple's relationship is experiencing a bit of a lull. Jill has planned a road trip to the national parks in Utah to give herself and Jack time away to reconnect and have some fun hiking and more, and is sure that their relationship will be back to its usual loving state in no time. That, at least, is the story if it is Jill doing the telling....were Jack to be asked about their life together, he would have something quite different to say. He doesn't love Jill anymore, has only stayed in the marriage for two reasons (for Maggie's sake, and to keep secret a tragedy that befell him and Jill back in college which she holds over his head) and can't take it anymore...he plans to divorce her at the end of the trip. Each turns out to have some pretty shady intentions and knows more about one another's secrets than each suspects. Jack wants out of the marriage and believes there is nothing Jill can do to save it, while Jill is ready to do whatever it takes to keep him. And with Jill, "whatever" can get pretty scary...she is capable of anything.
There's an adage that says, "Happy wife, happy life", which if applied to this domestic thriller lets the reader know right up front that life for Jack is not going to be happy while Jill is not. As the two (not particularly likable) characters try to outthink and outmaneuver one another in pursuit of their opposing goals, the reader gets a good look behind the facade of these two "beautiful people". Their wealth is on the decline, Jack's recent exit from politics is tanking his law firm, Maggie can't stand her mother (and it's mutual), and that's just for starters. The narrative jumps back and forth between Jack and Jill, and never has the term "unreliable narrator" been more apropos...There is dark humor and some biting social commentary woven into the fabric of the story, and its impossible to not keep turning the pages as the scheming is brought out into the open and the suspense ratchets up. I found it a gripping and highly readable game of cat and mouse, I just wish that I had been able to like (or at least like-hate) the main characters more; they were so narcissistic that I found it hard to care who won in the end, which made it a 3.5 ⭐️ rounded up to 4 kind of book for me. Readers of Liv Constantine, Frieda McFadden and Gillian Flynn as well as those who enjoy a well-plotted tale of revenge should pick up a copy of Jill Is Not Happy to slide into their beach/pool bag, it is a fun (if dark) summer read. My thanks to NetGalley and Penzler Publishers/Scarlet Books for allowing me access to Jill Is Not Happy in exchange for my honest review.

This book was such a great cat and mouse chase! Buckle up and have the ride of a lifetime
With Jill and Jack!! Highly recommend

Not happy is an understatement when referring to Jill. Mentally unhinged? Sociopathic? Yeah, those are a bit more defined and descriptive than happy. But, oh my goodness! What a nasty twisted path she leads us down. And that means that readers are happy. Or more precisely shocked, surprised, addicted, losing sleep. Yeah, those are a bit more defined and descriptive than happy. Jill's long game is thoroughly impressive and I loved all the warped connections throughout the story. As another reviewer mentioned, I hope we aren't done with Jill. She is not finished and I am here for it!

With their daughter gone away to college, Jack and Jill Tingley (yes, like the nursery rhyme!) need to get used to being empty nesters. Jill has proposed a road trip to Utah to reconnect and rekindle their relationship. Jack reluctantly agrees in order to keep Jill from exposing a terrible secret from their past.

I don't read a lot of what are known as "popcorn thrillers" but Kaira Rouda hits all the right notes with Jill is Not Happy and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. Characters that you love to hate doing mean things to each other - what more could you ask for?! With short snappy chapters it's definitely fast-paced and a quick read. The ending is open-ended so I can definitely see a sequel in Jack and Jill's future! 3.5 Stars rounded up.

Thank you to Penzler Publishers, via Netgalley, for approving my request to read a digital ARC of this novel. All opinions expressed are my own.
Publication Date: June 10, 2025

I will read anything by this author. I always love her books and this one is no exceptions. It was a true thriller; fast paced, diabolical, crazy characters that kept me turning the pages.
Thank you for the opportunity to read this arc.

The queen of thrills and dark humor, Kaira Rouda (favorite), author of the popular Best Day Ever, The Next Wife, The Second Mrs. Strom, and The Favorite Daughter, returns with another deliciously wicked, sinister, and twisted domestic thriller, JILL IS NOT HAPPY.

Prepare for a thrilling roller coaster ride as you embark on an entertaining game of cat-and-mouse to discover which spouse will outsmart the other. My bet is on Jill, a woman who always gets what she wants, no matter the cost.

About...

Jill and Jack met in college. Jill was immediately drawn to him and was determined to make him hers, even if it meant resorting to manipulation, blackmail, and even murder. Her happiness was all that mattered to her.

However, they are now married, years later, and their daughter, Maggie, is away at boarding school. Jill still loves Jack, but it has become complicated.

However, she will fix them. She always does. She lets everyone believe they are the perfect couple. The perfect family. The charming home.

Jill is a freelance writer. Jack is a skilled communicator both with his small law firm and as a politician. Everyone at the magazine loves her stories. But Jack lost the election. There was a scandal.

But behind closed doors, Jill is NOT happy. He is not the Jack she fell in love with. They are good at getting themselves out of trouble. Jack is misbehaving. She is always one step ahead of them. She will fix this.

She is planning a road trip to Utah. They will rekindle their love. Right?

However, Jack has something else in mind. He wants nothing more than to leave the marriage and not go to Utah. With Daddy's girl safely tucked away in Santa Cruz, Daddy has turned back into Jack. Jack has drifted, and that drives Jill crazy.

Jill needs to ensure that Jack reverts to the person she fell in love with in college. They have been married for 21 years. The love of her life. Not someone else.

After all, he is the only man she has ever loved or will love. Jill dislikes anyone who conspires against her. She will not allow him to step outside the marriage. Does he realize what she has done for him?

Jill manipulates. She controls. Jack must find that notebook that could ruin him. He must be able to video record her admitting her deceit and misdeeds.

Let the unpredictable, sinister games begin. How will this trip, filled with twists and turns, conclude?

My thoughts...

A captivating page-turner! Kaira Rouda, you devil, how you skillfully capture the devious minds of the most scandalous and troubled marriages. From past to present, we hear from the perspectives of Jack and Jill, as they unravel their journey from courtship to marriage, revenge, and the tumultuous present.

A slick, edgy, sinister game of cat and mouse, and Rouda pulls out all the stops with her dark, sinister humor that will keep you entertained between this husband and wife duo.

Dark and satisfying, fans of Gone Girl (vibes), you better get JILL IS NOT HAPPY on your list. Neither party is especially likable, but naughty and witty. I do believe Jill is the worst, and I'm not sure Jack can get one over on his psycho wife.

A read-in-one-sitting, you will be assured to keep the pages turning to find out what surprises Jill comes up with next to keep Jack in line. But Jack does have some secrets of his own.

A massive fan of the author, I have read all her books. She never ceases to come up with another brilliant plot and characters you love to hate.

You must sign up for Kaira's newsletters. I get the biggest kick out of reading, and you'll laugh out loud as the characters take over the newsletter. Bonus: We also hear from her dog.

Another fabulous popcorn psychological thriller from the queen of dark humor, domestic conflict, and dysfunction in a marriage. I love her style! I hope we hear from the duo again.

Audiobook...

I had the pleasure of reading the e-book and listening to the audiobook narrated by the fabulous Marnye Young, who delivered an outstanding performance with the character Jill, which I enjoyed; however, I think it would have been even better with two narrators (male and female) for Jack's portion.

Recs...

JILL IS NOT HAPPY is for fans of the author, Gone Girl, Liv Constantine, Frieda McFadden, Jenova Rose, Victoria Helen Stone, and Kimberly Belle. The last part reminded me a little of Blake Crouch's Letty Dobesh in Good Behaviour (loved).

Thanks to Scarlet and NetGalley for a gifted advanced review copy, and to Highbridge Audio for an advance listening copy, in exchange for my honest opinion.

Blog review posted @
JudithDCollins.com
@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustReadBooks
Pub Date: June 10, 2025
My Rating: 5 Stars
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I’ll read anything written by Rouda!
Jill Is Not Happy by Kaira Rouda is a compelling and addictive story.
A roller coaster of a ride that will have you twisting and turning till the very end.
So many twists and turns in this book that kept me on the edge of my seat.
Fast paced, entertaining and intense, the storyline is taut and perfectly plotted.

I’m a big fan of this author, so it pains me to say that this one just wasn’t a hit for me. I did enjoy the first third of the book, but after that it was a struggle to connect. The main characters was deeply unlikeable, and this was a big distraction for me. I didn’t find the ending to be enjoyable or satisfying, unfortunately. I will still read this author and hope that others enjoy this one more than I did.

My thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

This is a fun cat and most story of perhaps the worst married couple ever, Jack and Jill. The story bounces between the two characters and neither of them is particularly likable. I listened to the audiobook and the narrator did an excellent job bringing the characters to life, especially Jill who narrates much of this story. Jack is cheating on his wife and planning on leaving her. He’s going to break the news on the trip to Utah. Meanwhile Jill has planned their trip to bring them back together even if she has to help things along. The story also bounces around in time showing the beginning of their story and the present. It was a quick read and very fun. A perfect summer beach read thriller.

Fans of diabolical characters rejoice! Jill is Not Happy brings an unforgettable one. I felt the pages just kept turning themselves and my eyes needed to keep up.

Jack and Jill are college sweethearts. With their daughter away at school, cracks in their marriage start to show. Jill decides they need a road trip to Utah to rekindle their romance. And what Jill wants, Jill gets one way or another!

I love a good popcorn thriller especially when it entails cat and mouse games and domestic suspense. Dual timelines and dual POV really kept me engaged. Of course there are always secrets and lies, and this book had plenty of both. I wholeheartedly hope there’ll be a sequel because the ending felt full of possibilities of it!

@thrillerbookloversthepulse crew knows what thrillers to bring to your attention - this one would make great summer reading! A huge thank you to Penzler Scarlet for my ARC in exchange for an honest review!