I was drawn to The Mad Wife by the fabulous cover and it was not disappointing, a suspenseful read with a great story and interesting characters. The whole book was very well set in the 1950’s and the attention to detail was excellent, I loved the gelatin salads scattered through the book!

I look forward to each new book my Meagan Church, as I have loved her previous stories. This one did not disappoint, This was a really eye opening account of one woman's struggle with her health, both physical and mental, in the 1950"s. I enjoyed how the author developed the characters in this story, especially Lulu, the FMC. I was so attached to her during this whole book. This was a truly unputdownable book, as I wanted so badly to know what the outcome of the story was going to be. There were little twists throughout the book, that were well placed, and kept me wanting more.

I cannot wait for others to be able to dive into this amazing story! I cannot recommend this book enough!

Thank you to Sourcebooks Landmark for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

This is my What drew me into this one right from the beginning was the 1950s timeline. I love books that are set in that time period The main character, Lulu Mayfield, a mother and housewife, has her seemingly perfect life. She has a small group of friends on a cute cul-de-sac neighborhood and her good housekeeping schedule. But when she starts to obsess over the house across the street, and the cheerful new housewife, Bitsy, that just moved in, Lulu begins to see dark truths and secrets. The more she finds out about Bitsy, the more she questions everything about her own life. Her mental health begins to spiral, and she feels like she's losing control. This book is unsettling, but in the best way. The writing was so good and the author did such a great job transporting me into the 1950s housewife life. I loved it. There is a good twist I didn't expect, but the ending was a bit too quick. I wanted a bit more there, but I gotta say…this was really a suspenseful and riveting story. I would definitely recommend it if you like a dark domestic suspense.

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the gifted copy. All opinions are my own.

I found The Mad Wife to be very interesting and extremely well written. I was interested initially by the cover. I found the book itself to be quite interesting. I love the timeline it was set it and wish there were more books like this. The book was a slow burn which I enjoyed. An excellent read regarding motherhood; marriage, and being a woman in the 1950’s.

Thank you to the publisher and also NetGalley for the electronic copy of this book.

What can I say besides I loved this one and it was unputdownable? Meagan Church writes about how poorly women were treated before equal rights was ever mentioned and this book is another amazing story. Lulu is a free spirited farm girl who goes to college, meets Henry and then is your 1950s housewife who has kids and then things fall apart. Assumed to be mental, her sanity is questioned and holy heck, the suspense and twists I didn't see coming. This book was so good! Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for a chance to read this one early in exchange for an honest review.

This book had me in its clutches the entire read. A bit of a slow burn that will still have you flipping pages like it’s a fast paced thriller. Everything about this book is so raw, and real.
We follow Lulu, a 1950s housewife in cookie cutter suburbia. As she tries to fit the mold like her elevated jello dishes, her world begins to crumble after the birth of her second child. She tries to keep a cheery housewife demeanor as she struggles to keep the balance.
There will be times reading this, you think you have it all figured out, maybe one step ahead of Lulu. You have it all wrong.
Cannot wait to get a physical copy of this wonderfully written novel!

Thank you to Netgalley and Source Books for the E-ARC

I found this in the Horror section of NetGalley and it sounded like a great feminine rage story. Let me start by saying it is not horror, at all. I wouldn't even classify it as thriller even though there was some mystery and it was thrillING, it still doesn't constitute a thriller. It is a historical literary fiction.

That being said, I found this character driven story highly compelling. Lulu's uncertainty, pain, grief, frustration, numbness, all of it was so relatable as a new mom, and something I could only imagine relating to as a woman of the 1950's. Having standards that others hold you to despite what is occurring within your household, your body, and your mind, is unfathomable to me and this book did a good job of putting me in her shoes and putting real feelings behind the writing.

This was unexpectedly heartbreaking. There is a twist in the book that I did not see coming that gutted me and brought tears to my eyes. I never once felt that Lulu's character was hard to connect with or understand, but it made everything about her even more raw and real in that moment.

The writing here is superb. While I didn't get the story I sought out, I did get a really beautifully real story of life as a mom and woman under the patriarchy, just trying to survive and love her family.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC.

This book is a a slow burn psychological thriller that surprised me. It reminds me a lot of The Bell Jar and I wasn't surprised when the author said she used that as inspiration. This book is a slow burn. Some parts were predictable but the major plot twist came out of left field. I was truly surprised at the ending and couldn't read it fast enough.
I really enjoyed this book and the detailed writing of Megan Church is amazing. I could picture everything in this book so clearly.
I would read more work by Megan Church.

The nods to Sylvia Plath and The Bell Jar added to the haunting tone. The 1950s were a dark time for women, with rigid housewife expectations and the label of “hysteria” often leading to asylum stays and invasive medical practices. The Mad Wife delicately explores the stories of that era with beautiful prose.

There were moments when I felt a little lost in the story, but I believe that’s intentional to immerse the reader in Lulu’s mindset. I definitely shed some tears for all the women whose real-life experiences mirrored those in the story.

I personally loved how the story ended. Even if it presents a more hopeful outcome than many women experienced, I like to believe it still carries a sense of realism and possibility.

A glimpse into the rigid and bleak lives of 1950s housewives and the consequences when a woman decides to not fit into that mold.

There's an uncomfortable wrongness to the story, not just in the mysterious plot but in the realities reflected in this book. I felt so much empathy for Lulu and for the real women like her who wanted more from life than to be a housewife.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The slowly building dread that laces this 1960s domestic suspense was incredibly addictive! I couldn't wait to get back to reading every time! I definitely see the comps of The Bell Jar meets Stepford Wives, so if you are a fan of those stories, you will love this feminist suspense!

Book Report: The Mad Wife

My Thoughts: What I loved most about this book was how it transported me straight into the 1960s 🕰️ from the quiet neighborhoods to the shiny new appliances…the stamp books tucked in drawers…and even the Jell-O molds and “creative” foods of the era 🍮The author captured all the small details of housewife life…and it gave the story this eerie mix of nostalgia and claustrophobia.

We follow a young woman who seems to have it all…husband…home and the picture-perfect suburban life 🏡 but beneath the surface there’s a tension that grows with every chapter. The way Meagan built the atmosphere had me hooked…I couldn’t wait to get back to it every evening. Around the 85% mark…though the story takes a sharp turn. Without spoiling anything…what comes to light felt rushed for me…something that I personally wished had more pages, explanation, and attention 📖If that piece had been more fleshed out… I think this easily could have been a five star read. Still, the first half was so strong…haunting… deeply compelling. The way Meagan explores what it meant to be a “mad wife” in a society that silenced women left me unsettled in the best way.

Thank you Sourcebooks Landmark for the gifted ecopy!

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I requested to read this book as it gave the impression that it would be pure chaos. In a way the writing did this in the lead up, but ultimately went a totally other direction than what I was thinking it would be. I still think this is an important story to tell, however I was thinking it would lead more towards a horror/thriller ending. The ending was more simple than what I was anticipating in the way it was written all the way up until the end, and for this reason it fell a little flat for me. I still think this is worth a read - just not as thrilling as I was expecting from the cover/title/description.

I am a huge historical fiction fan, and while I usually gravitate towards WWII era novels, the premise of this one captivated me right away. Between the characters and the plot, I was immediately hooked. It is such an important part of the history of women's rights that I'm surprised I hadn't heard about it before. I learned quite a bit while reading this and even found myself researching more once I was finished. I will absolutely be recommending this to others as well as checking out other books written by this author.

I received a complimentary copy of this book "The Mad Wife" and all opinions expressed are my own. Definitely started slow but picked up. It is amazing what was happening back in the 50s. My heart really did break for Lulu, she went through a lot.

This novel feels like a mosh mash of several books, tv shows, and movies that have been out lately giving a feminist slant on traditional gender roles. A very slow start here, but the pace picks up.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

I tried so hard with this book. I adored the authors 2 previous books but this one was like dragging nails on a chalkboard for me. I gave it until about 70% but just cant justify my time to finish it and I honestly don't care to know how it finishes.

Lulu is the perfect 1950's housewife, and it has been her goal to do so for the past six years or so. If you're unfamiliar with such a time period, they expect their molded Jello meats on the table at a specific time or ELSE. This is such a riveting time period to me because it was 50 years before I was even thought of, and I realize things are pretty bad now. I can't possibly imagine it being more difficult than it is now, yet I know it absolutely was and would have been. The time of electroconvulsive therapy, lobotomy, and not even needing to agree to any of those things as a woman is truly insane. This book is pure rage bait wrapped inside a tale of love, forgiveness, grief, and femininity. I won't ruin it for anyone but Church truly knocked this one out of the park with the ultimate tale of women overcoming and building a strong legacy they can be proud of. Thanks so much to the author and SOURCEBOOKS Landmark for the chance to early read and review this eARC!


#themadwife #meaganchurch #sourcebookslandmark #sourcebooks #themadwifesourcebooks

I thought this book was very good. I enjoyed the nostalgic references. My mother used to collect green stamps, and I had to lick them. You won't want to put this book down. I recommend it.

This book really hits you hard. Leaning heavily into the idea that women's health (mental or physical) is often downplayed or not taken seriously, Church creates a character whom you can't help but feel for while she is drowning in her every day life.