i loved how throughout this book my mind kept changing. was i to believe the wife. was there a bias there? or was i to believe the mistress and she made herself very plausible but also what was she hiding? no no what were they both hiding. and then, should i believe the author!? because Ellie appears to be playing game with me haha.but that was the joy of this book. as each chapter and each part fo the womans story was told i find myself thinking what was coming next or just whos side id should be on.
the book give us a wife. shes just lost her husband. awful right? what could be worse? well, a knock on the door from his mistress might just top it off. oh wait, gotcha, one more thing. shes brought a child she claims is his. so now there are questions and a whole mired of emotions at play. how can you grieve now? and how can that grief be even more compounded. plus theres always something more to hide. and these two woman have lots they arent still telling.
this is a book where i felt i was fully into the story as it unfolded. i was shocked alongside the characters and i was figuring things out alongside them too. it was a brilliant book. and i enjoy this type of thriller so much because when they are really really good they bring so much book joy!

Thank you Bookouture and NetGalley for an early copy of The Secret Mistress. The colors on the cover made me look twice, BEAUTIFUL COVER! This was a crazy plot, Maren was unstoppable and obsessed! I liked Jade and also Emmanuel, both were good characters even if I didn’t agree with what Jade did, I felt for her. Never understood how Corey died, that was a loose part of the book. I Loved the ending, perfect!

When a woman discovers that the husband that she is grieving after the loss of her perfect relationship was not only cheating on her, but had a child with another woman, she is shocked to the core.

When that woman shows up on her door step with her beautiful child the last thing, the wife expects is to become embroiled in their lives. But how can she resist, after her husband fathered this child having denied her the opportunity to have her own baby?

Dark, and at times borderline obsessive, this is a story about how people find out how much they don't know about those closest to them. The characters are well drawn and the story line gripping, with plenty of twists and turns. With this book, Ellie Monago reminded me again why she is an auto read for me!

OMG! This book was so good. I was hooked from page one. There were so many twists and turns that kept me wanting to read more. I did not expect the ending. This was such a great read and would highly recommend it. Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

I haven’t read anything by this author previously, however the blurb to this reeled me in! It started out well, however I felt the pacing was off in areas. This may be a me thing though as sometimes I’m far too impatient to find out what happens! Other people may love that. It was a very interesting story and had me hooked, while I’ve read books with similar concepts before - this one pulled it off well! I’ll definitely be keeping an eye on this author for further releases.

This is the first time I've read Ellie Monago. The Secret Mistress starts off with a really strong premise, and I was hooked from the very first pages. Written beside the book title is a promise of "a heart-stopping psychological thriller with a jaw-dropping twist." However, I'm afraid the book fell flat for me, and it wasn't heart-stopping nor jaw-dropping. The book is so slow and it got really repetitive. I kept pushing through thinking things would get better, but unfortunately that didn't happen. It wasn't gripping enough for me. The ending was rushed and incomplete.
𝙏𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙠 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙩𝙤 #𝙗𝙤𝙤𝙠𝙤𝙪𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙜𝙞𝙛𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙢𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝘼𝙍𝘾 𝙩𝙝𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝 #𝙣𝙚𝙩𝙜𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙮 𝙞𝙣 𝙚𝙭𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙢𝙮 𝙝𝙤𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙤𝙥𝙞𝙣𝙞𝙤𝙣.

For me, this book fell right in the middle with "3" stars. I felt like while the beginning of the booked grabbed a hold of me right the start. There are several twists that got me as well. However, it became repetitive and predictable. It felt like it took longer than it should have to make a point. I do like the plot overall. A mistress, a double life, dark secrets, and lies. Who doesn't love that in a good thriller? The chapters were short which always make it feel like you are making great progress within the book as well. However, this one just felt as if it dragged a bit for me.
I would still recommend this thriller to anyone who enjoys a quick read with a great plot behind it.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this arc for an honest review.

The Secret Mistress follows Maren after her husband dies suddenly and his mistress, Jade, shows up at her door. Oh, and she also claims her child is his. What?!!!

Told in dual POV, this will keep you guessing who's lying, who's unhinged, and what’s real. This is a dark, twisty psychological thriller where no one tells the whole truth!!! Excellent character development for both Maren and Jade who are impossible to love but also impossible to look away from.

Emotionally raw, sharply written and frankly, sinister! this linger in your mind long after the final page.

I finished this in one sitting. I genuinely couldn’t stop reading. It was so good. To see things from both Jade and Maren is so good because you never know who quite to believe. I was rushing through the book because the twists would not stop coming. I was in awe the whole time about the book and just can’t believe how well written it is. I can’t wait to delve into more from this author!

What a roller coaster!

I’ve had mixed feelings about this book, but there’s no denying it kept me glued to the edge of my seat.

The dual POV was convincing, and the inner monologue was brilliant. The twists threw me for a loop, and I kept second-guessing myself as to which characters I could (or couldn’t?) trust.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my e-ARC.

The Secret Mistress starts off with a really strong premise—a woman’s husband dies suddenly, and not long after, his mistress shows up claiming to have their child. That shock alone hooks you in, and as the story unfolds, it becomes clear that no one is being totally honest. Everyone has something to hide, and even the closest relationships are harboring deep deceptions and secrets.

The main characters, Maren and Jade, are both complicated and not particularly easy to root for. Each is driven by their own motives, and they both bend the truth when it suits them. The beginning of the book is gripping, but it slows down for a while before picking up again in the second half. There are a few good twists and the theme of betrayal runs deep. The narrative twists and turns, blurring the lines between heroism and villainy, keeping readers guessing until the end.

The ending felt rushed—I would’ve liked more time spent wrapping things up. Overall, it's a messy, drama-filled story about secrets, lies, and what people are willing to do when pushed. An intriguing read.

Thank you to NetGalley, Elle Monago and Bookouture for an ARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

I just finished The Secret Mistress by Ellie Monago (huge thanks for the ARC!), and whew—this one was a ride.

Right away, I was pulled in by Monago’s ability to build this low-key dread that slowly seeps in until you realize you’ve been holding your breath for half the book. She does psychological suspense so well—layered, intimate, and just unsettling enough to keep you turning pages way past when you planned to stop.

This story is about secrets, power, and the lies women tell to survive. It explores infidelity and betrayal, but not in a cliché way—it’s more complex than that. The characters are messy and flawed (which I love) and there’s this emotional rawness in the main character that really resonated with me. You can feel her spiraling, trying to grasp control in a world that keeps shifting under her feet.

The pacing is that perfect simmer—not too slow, but it gives you time to sit in the tension. And the twists? So well-placed. Nothing felt cheap or forced. Just those subtle gut-punch moments that make you rethink everything you thought you knew.

This one definitely leans more psychological than thriller, so if you’re looking for fast-paced action, this might not be it—but if you love getting inside someone’s head and sitting with the discomfort of what you find there, this is a solid pick.

Monago’s writing is sharp and emotionally intelligent, and I’ll definitely be reaching for more of her work after this. Highly recommend if you love complex women, secret lives, and that kind of tension that lingers even after you’ve turned the last page

Wow what a rollercoaster of a ride this book was I loved it so much I was gripped from start to finish. I loved the story and how well developed the characters were told from multiple perspectives it is a book of twists, turns and lots of secrets.

Your husband has just died and you are facing a life without him then a women and young boy show up says she’s the mistress and this is his son what will Marven do I thought I had it worked out but wow I was wrong.

I loved this book and can’t wait to recommend it to everyone thank you to netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this great book.

I enjoyed this book, it was a good easy read with short chapters. However I did feel that it dragged a little bit before the plot really started to get going.

The book is told from a dual POV of the two FMCs, they tell a great story and can make you feel sorry for them one moment and make you believe they are crazy the next.

There are a few plot twists that I did not see coming at all and it had me wanting to turn the page to see what was coming next.

I would recommend this book to others looking for an easy thriller to enjoy and follow.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the chance to read this arc in return for an honest review.

This book hooked me from the first five pages, and the best part is the characters flip constantly between hero and villain, and I found myself sympathizing with Maren even when she was at her “worst.” The book has a similar trope to some of my favorite thrillers and actually reminded me of Jennifer Garner's series “The Last Thing He Told Me” based on the book by Laura Dave. It instantly makes me wonder what life would be like if you found out that your entire life wasn’t what you thought it was, and how you would behave?

The characters are well-formed and fascinating. The ending wasn’t a total flip, but I wasn’t disappointed because so many twists and turns occurred in the book, and I will absolutely read any other books I can get my hands on by Ellie Monago.

Ellie Monago was a new author to me and I received this ARC from NetGally and really appreciate the opportunity to read it and review. I read this on a plane and actually got off the plane nearly last to finish it! I immediately downloaded The Divorce series by Ellie on Amazon which is free with KU.

The Secret Mistress had a great premise - a thriller about a secret mistress that comes forward after a husband's death claiming a child was his, a story riddled with secrets on both sides. I was completely sucked in at the description, I LOVE these kinds of stories. From page 1, the plot immediately dove right in....and then that was really the only action for a long time. It was the same storyline for chapters upon chapters upon chapters with a decision that could have been "solved" in way less pages. By the time the twists started coming, I had gotten so annoyed at the repetition that they didn't hit as hard. The POV switches between the two main characters almost every chapter so I found myself forgetting what chapter and having to turn back a few pages I was on because the author used a lot of "I" and "she said" sentences. I thought the more interesting storyline could have focused around the husband's death with a secret mistress rolled into that, not the death as a minor storyline.

Overall, this could be a fun, quick read for someone looking for a storyline about a man leading a double life with a secret mistress and its repercussions after his death. Unfortunately, it just didn't hit the mark for me.

Thank you to Ellie Monago, Bookouture, and NetGalley for eARC in exchange for my honest review.

I was very surprised by the amount of four and five star reviews for this book. I was intrigued and excited by the plot. After reading this book, I feel my experience does not match up to those four and five star ones. The Secret Mistress by Ellie Monago felt like a repetitive experience. From the beginning, I kept seeing the same patterns: Jade’s constant desire for money, and Maren’s struggle to find a sense of purpose. I tried to convince myself that there was more depth to the story, expecting some big twist, like Cory not actually being dead or Maren discovering she wasn’t really the wife. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. What you see is exactly what you get: two women hurt by the same man. The ending was also a letdown, feeling rushed and incomplete. Overall, the book didn’t quite live up to expectations. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

I'm still torn with my rating, unsure whether I should be giving it 3 or 4 stars. When reading it I thought 3, then from 60% in I thought 4 but now that I've had a couple of days to think about it after finishing I've settled with a 3 and I'm hoping this doesn't seem harsh as I DID enjoy this.

The story is straight to the point from page 1 which was good in a way but I was concerned that without a bit of build up, the majority of the book would be dragged on a bit. In a way i was correct although from 60% in, that was when I became gripped. I love a book that's told from different characters points of view, without there being too many which can complicate things. This was great because it was told from 2 women's points of view and literally every chapter my opinion would change. One minute I liked one, thought one was nuts, then the other one was too bitchy and I felt sorry for the other one. I was like this till the very end.

There were some twists and surprises that made me need to continue to find out what was next. Towards the end when I thought the book was done there was yet another surprise tat left me hanging.

I'm left with some unanswered questions but it is possible this was the authors intention as I'm now sat here thinking about the story and things that happened in it and trying to imagine what would or could have happened.

I'd happily recommend this book to others. A nice easy read and I'm looking forward to checking out more of the author's work.

That ending. Of course Maren was going to find some way to still be involved. This was suspensful and I didn't know who to support at times, but Corey was horrible and with friends like theirs its no wonder adult friendships can be complicated and tricks, like in this book.

Holy Moley! The Secret Mistress puts the psyco in psychological thriller! The way Ellie Manago portrays the two main characters is brilliant. You don't know if you want to sympathize with them or dislike them.

Maren's husband Corey had passed away suddenly leaving her alone. Enter Jade, the mistress, with her son Tai in tow. Claiming Tai is Corey's son, she demands Maren hand over money that should rightfully belong to Tai. At first, Maren doesn't believe Corey would have an affair, let alone a six year relationship. But she soon discovers it's true. Suddenly she feels cheated because she and Corey didn't have a child. Thinking she'd be the better mother, she soon sets her sights on having Tai to herself.

Told at a head spinning pace, the twists and surprises will keep readers gasping til the end. Both Maren and Jade believe they are fighting for the best interests of Tai, but both have an ugliness about them that makes that questionable. This is an extremely dark and disturbing thriller that I highly recommend.

Thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for the advanced copy