This is one of those books that will forever stay with me. The Mad Wife is so brilliantly written, from the perspective of a 50s postpartum housewife, living in the suburbs, trying to keep up with her neighbours and trying her best to survive motherhood alongside keeping her house, hosting dinner parties and being the perfect wife. This perfectly captures the inner thoughts and worries of a mother postpartum, having recently had a baby myself I really understood how Lulu felt, and yet her struggles with her own health were exacerbated by the time in which she was living. Where “housewife syndrome”, and “hysteria” are treated with tranquillisers, where women belong to their husbands, with their minds and bodies at the mercy of the men they’re meant to trust. This is not just a gripping psychological novel in the vein of The Bell Jar (in which there are little Easter eggs hidden as a nod to Sylvia Plath’s work) but in a wider sense it is about the silencing of women’s voices, especially in regard to their own bodies. The danger of medical misdiagnoses and not being listened to.
This book had me loudly gasping out loud, Lulu casually mentioning the pain she experienced from “the husband stitch” and in particular around the 70% mark because wow. You’ll know when you read it.
The authors note was particularly poignant and resonated with me. I personally have dealt with medical misdiagnoses, not being properly listened to and told that the pain was all in my head. When twelve years later I was actually diagnosed with endometriosis and PCOS I was so relieved but so let down to have suffered for so long without being believed.

My rating ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I received this as an eARC and I have immediately preordered it because I need it in physical form to underline and annotate and love on it. Thank you so much Sourcebooks and NetGalley. Due to be published 30th September 2025.

The Mad Wife – Review
By: Meagan Church
 
Published by: Sourcebooks Landmark
 
Out: 30th September 2025
 
Thank you to Netgalley for this book in exchange for an honest review.
 
Book Blurb:
 
“They called it hysteria. She called it survival.”
 
Lulu has spent so long trying to mold herself into the perfect 1950’s housewife. She must keep her husband happy, her household in tip top condition and her gelatine salads need to be the best in the neighbourhood. But after the birth of her second child, Lulu’s life seems to unravel.
When some new neighbours move in across the street Lulu finds herself fixated on the woman, Bitsy, and what secrets she’s hiding. Lulu can’t help but want to know more and more about Bitsy and when life seems to start going out of control, Lulu questions her sanity.
 
My Thoughts:
 
Do not delay in reading this book. This was such an incredible read. I absolutely devoured it and …  ‘Word from the bird is’ … you will too.
 
The front cover drew me to this book and then as soon as I read the blurb and saw it was set in 1950’s suburbia, I was well and truly sold.
 
I cannot put into words how much I loved this novel. In fact, I don’t really want to say much at all because I’m scared I’ll give too much away. The most important thing you need to know is this book is fantastic.
 
Church completely and utterly transports you to the 1950’s and into the mindset of Lulu. Lulu’s loneliness was palpable. Her struggle to fit into the role of perfect wife and mother was heart breaking. I really felt Lulu’s frustrations and her feelings of ‘is this it?’
 
“You know how women get.”
“Hysterical”
“The Housewife syndrome”
 
^^^
Just some of the terms thrown around about women, by men. Ohhh, this made me angry, and I cannot explain how much I felt for Lulu and the other women in the story. How women are ignored, and side lined. Even by health professionals.
Parts of this story shocked me. Especially after reading the authors note … Do not skip the authors note.
 
Church knows how to write a damn good story that’s for sure. This one starting at a steady pace, building the tone, and it then suddenly slammed into high gear. I genuinely put the book down and my mouth was agape.
 
If you love historical fiction, with a very powerful punch this one is for you. There is so much to process with the book, but Church delivers this all beautifully and emotionally.
This book will stay with me for a long time.
I don’t want to give anything away about this story. You need to go in blind. But some heavy topics are discussed so please check trigger warmings.

A story of a 1950’s family … But so much more.

A haunting, slow-burning look at 1950s suburbia, madness—or maybe just inconvenient truth.

The Mad Wife is an eerie, atmospheric story set against the pastel backdrop of 1950s domestic bliss, where everything looks perfect—until you scratch the surface. Lulu Mayfield is a housewife trying to hold it all together after the birth of her second child, but cracks start to form in her carefully constructed world. The arrival of her mysterious new neighbor, Bitsy, sets off a chain of unsettling realizations that make Lulu question everything: her marriage, her sanity, and even reality itself.

This novel does an excellent job of highlighting how the era weaponized "hysteria" to keep women in line. Lulu’s spiral is frustrating at times, but deliberately so—it reflects the suffocating pressure she’s under and the isolation that comes with being gaslit and dismissed.

The pacing is quite slow in parts, especially in the first half, and while the psychological tension simmers nicely, it takes a long time to boil. There’s almost too much ambiguity by the end—some threads could have been tied up more clearly. But the atmosphere is undeniably gripping, and the feminist undertones are powerful without being preachy.

Not quite a thriller, not fully horror, The Mad Wife is more of a psychological descent wrapped in vintage wallpaper. If you liked The Push or The Yellow Wallpaper, this might hit the right nerve.

Suburbia’s Unravelling: A Review of The Mad Wife by Meagan Church

Meagan Church’s The Mad Wife pulls you straight into the uneasy quiet of 1950s suburbia, where the hedges are neat, the smiles are fixed, and the secrets are heavy enough to choke on. Church paints Lulu Mayfield, dutiful housewife, haunted soul, with such sharp, aching clarity that you can almost hear the clock ticking through her sleepless nights. Lulu’s spent five years playing her part to perfection, but when a mysterious new neighbour arrives across the street, the cracks in her façade start to widen, letting old griefs and buried guilt bubble to the surface.

What makes Lulu so compelling isn’t just her fragility, but the stubborn spark beneath it, her desperate longing for something beyond the suffocating routine. Church doesn’t just sketch Lulu; she lets you feel the walls closing in. The supporting cast, especially the enigmatic new neighbour, serves as both a mirror and a catalyst, stirring up questions about motherhood, sanity, and the price women pay to maintain appearances.

There’s a simmering feminist edge here, but Church never preaches. Instead, she trusts you to read between the lines as Lulu wrestles with the myth of the perfect wife, torn between her sanity and the iron grip of respectability. The writing itself is quietly gorgeous, lyrical without showboating, intimate without tipping into melodrama. The pace is measured, building a tension that’s more psychological than plot-driven, and the atmosphere is pure postwar Americana: familiar, yet tinged with unease.

Some might find the early chapters slow, but stick with it and you’re rewarded with a raw, layered portrait of trauma and survival. Church’s greatest strength lies in how real Lulu feels, never a caricature, always heartbreakingly human.

The Mad Wife is part psychological thriller, part tender character study, and completely immersive. It digs beneath the glossy surface of suburban life to expose the darkness and humanity lurking underneath. If you’re after a novel that gnaws at you long after the last page, Meagan Church delivers.

3.5 stars
wow this story was quite chilling. I'm not sure what the genre is ( historical fiction?), but I felt like I read a psychological horror/thriller. so many aspects had me terrified. motherhood, mental health, strange new neighbours, and then there was a plot twist and if you read the author note ( read it after the book is finished otherwise there will be spoilers) but I can't believe that this story may very well have been someone's life at some point in history. The thing that made this story so scary is the reality behind all the things LuLu went through .

I think this would be a great book for a bookclub , there are many things that can be discussed. for example the challenges LuLu faced as a wife and if we share the same challenges and it opens up discussions for how we can go about getting the proper help and support we may need instead of just smiling and trying to be a good wife.

It would have been a 4 star but I felt there were very slow parts that I didn't find interesting. But that's just my personal rating , there are many people who love slow burn books.

I would like to thank NetGalley and sourcebooks landmark for the opportunity to read and review the ARC of the Mad Wife .

The Mad Wife is one of those novels that grips you emotionally from the first pages and doesn’t let go. Set in the 1950s, it follows Lulu Mayfield, a young wife and mother living in the seemingly idyllic Twyckenham Court. On the surface, Lulu’s life looks picture-perfect, but as we slip inside her mind, we see a woman slowly unraveling under the crushing weight of societal expectations, insomnia, and grief.

Church portrays the realities of postpartum depression with heartbreaking accuracy. Lulu’s struggles with the loss of a child, her fear of being labeled “hysterical,” and her desperate attempts to conform to what her husband, neighbors, and doctors expect of her, felt raw and painfully real. I found myself both frustrated and deeply sympathetic, particularly as the story revealed how women’s suffering was so often dismissed or pathologized during this era. It’s infuriating to witness how Lulu is treated—not as a woman in need of care, but as a problem to be managed or silenced.

The novel is heavy and at times difficult to read, especially for me personally, as someone who has experienced pregnancy loss. Certain moments struck very close to home and were emotionally challenging. For that reason, I’d strongly encourage readers to heed the content warnings. That said, Church handles the subject matter with sensitivity, and Lulu’s story is one that deserves to be told.

The writing itself is immersive, with flashes to Lulu’s childhood that deepen her character and highlight just how complex and human she is. There are moments of haunting beauty here, alongside devastating truths. While a few threads toward the end remain unresolved, I believe this was intentional, after all life does not always give us neat answers.

This is not a light read, but it is an important one. The Mad Wife is a chilling, powerful reminder of how women’s pain has too often been overlooked or dismissed and how dangerous that dismissal can be. It left me angry, unsettled, and ultimately in awe of Meagan Church’s ability to bring such a story to life.


Thank you to NetGalley, Sourcebooks Landmark, and Meagan Church for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

If you've ever been a mother - this book will resonate with you.

The all too familiar tale of Lulu and the life of a 1950's housewife is one that captured my attention within the first few chapters. Church approaches motherhood and the throws of postpartum depression very well and with great accuracy. This book is a stark reminder that societal pressures on women to be mothers, and to enjoy being mothers, is all too great.

Lulu handles the social pressure well until a new family shows up in the neighborhood. She soon becomes entranced at the notion that this new woman has had some sort of mental adjustment. The story focuses on that storyline until Lulu has "lost her mind" and then the mood shifts. We learn that Lulu is actually a victim of postpartum depression after the loss of a child. It all makes sense after that, but the doctors treat her as a hysteria case and only offer treatments that won't help her mental state. It's enough to make the reader angry for Lulu and made the last part of the book particularly good.

I'd strongly recommend this book to anyone - man or woman, but if you've suffered the loss of a pregnancy or a child, sit this one out.

The Mad Wife by Meagan Church is one that is hard to put down.

The story is set in the 1950s and takes place in a quiet cul-de-sac called Twyckenham Court where Lulu Mayfield lives with her husband Henry and son Wesley, and soon a new baby. We are inside the mind of Lulu as she slowly seemingly starts to unravel and struggle to fit in as a typical housewife. A story that begins quite typically turns into a suspenseful edge of your sit book, with some twists that I couldn’t predict.

The story mostly takes place in the present, with flashes to Lulu’s childhood growing up on a farm, and we find that Lulu is a complex woman and fears she will be labeled hysterical as she starts smelling and tasting colors.

She keeps her thoughts to herself as her insomnia progresses, but her ability to hide her growing discontent becomes difficult.

This book comes with some warnings at the beginning, and I hope you take them seriously. It is a heavy book, with a rather likable lead character who is smart, and keeps the story moving forward. My only complaint would be that there are definitely some threads at the end that are left unresolved, but probably on purpose. The story you are going to read is not a unique one but a very well told one. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

Thank you to NetGalley, Sourcebooks Landmark, and Meagan Church for a copy of this eARC

This story is a hard hitter. Set in the 1950s, it shows how women’s struggles were too often dismissed as “hysteria.” Lulu Mayfield’s fight to survive under impossible expectations felt all too real, raw, haunting, and unforgettable. A chilling reminder that women’s pain deserves to be seen and heard.

This is one of the most powerful books I've ever read. It is an incredible treatise on female emotional issues which are often born out of physical problems undiagnosed or misdiagnosed by the medical profession. In the late 20th century, it was just so much easier to push pills or surgery on women instead of delving into the causes of their problems. Even today, a quarter into the 21st century, mental illness and mental and emotional well-being are viewed skeptically. This is a frightening book and makes the reader wonder how many women had life-altering surgeries performed, fostered and insisted on by husbands who just didn't want to deal with them. Even more frightening, is that the law allowed this.

Mad Wife
By Meagan Church
Release Date: 9.30.25

Thank you, Swamp Fox Books, for a physical ARC and Sourcebooks Landmark for an e-ARC of Mad Wife by Meagan Church.

Domestic drama meets psychological suspense. Lucy "Lulu" is striving to be the best housewife in the 1950s but a tragic occurrence and the need to perfect has exhausted her to the point where her body is breaking down. There is a constant desire to compare oneself to the other house wives in the neighborhood. When a new family enters the picture, Lulu feels replaced yet gets the sense that something darker is happening with them.

This story shows how women's opinions were dismissed. They were misdiagnosed as all being mad or hysterical. Instead of getting the treatment they truly needed, they were locked in facilities.

I enjoyed the twist and reading about the women that came before us. I appreciated the author's Note Before Beginning.

Having read a few other books around these topics, I did find myself wanting a bit more. Specifically around the conditions the women faced within the facility.

4 ⭐️ Thank you to Sourcebooks Landmark Paperback and NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I love that this author did not hesitate to write about what is most important and is truly ignored even to this current day. Women’s health. This historical fiction book puts you right back circa 1950s making you truly feel and see the struggles of what it’s like to be the perfect housewife. It truly made me feel like I was going mad myself.

I look forward to what this author has in store for the future!

This took me way longer to finish than expected, I was not gripped and didn't enjoy. There wasn't sufficiently interesting, profound or captivating to make me strongly recommend.

Pub date: 30 Sept 2025

Thanks to Sourcebooks Landmark and Netgalley for an ARC of this book.

I adored this novel. I am not usually drawn to historical fiction, but the cover immediately caught my attention. The 1950s suburban setting creates an atmosphere of unease that lingers throughout. I have seen it described as horror or mystery/thriller, though I am not sure either label fully fits. It carries elements of both, yet what stands out most is the sense of dread that underpins everyday life. To me, it reads as both a character study and an exploration of women’s lives in that era, with resonances that extend far beyond it.

I really enjoyed the perspective of the main character, and I appreciated how the story came full circle by the end. There were also some clever details that at first seemed incidental but later revealed themselves as important pieces of the plot.

I do recommend this book, though with the note that readers should take a look at the content warnings beforehand.

3.75 stars

Meagan Church is back with another terrifying (because of its basis in reality) look into women's past. And let's be real. At this rate, maybe it's our future, too? [Melts and tears through more books looking for the dystopian novel that is scarier than current reality - still looking].

Lulu is the quintessential '50s model housewife. She's a mom, a homemaker, a dom of the horrific and gravity defying gelatin mold, and so much more. But like all humans, Lulu can only keep up the charade for so long. At some point, surrounded by perfect seeming neighbors on creepy chore schedules, she has to wonder about the suspicious activities and men in her midst.

There are some twists, and readers' own experiences will lead them into either total surprise or absolute confirmation. Because of connections to my own family members, I found elements of this especially intriguing and upsetting, and those details also helped me become more empathetic toward those circumstances. I got not only an intriguing read (though there are some too slow burn elements at times) but also the added bonus of better understanding my own surroundings.

Readers who are sensitive to any of the issues one may suspect appear in a '50s housewife's life (challenges relating to pregnancy and childbirth, spousal relations, misogyny, women's physical and mental health, and more) should delve deeper into some spoilery CW territory than I'll go here. Those issues are - as an informed reader likely expects - at the center of this novel.

This is my second book by this author, and while I'd not call it an uplifter, it's also not a total downer AND I learned something and enjoyed myself (as much as possible with these motifs in mind) along the way.

Wow! This was my first book to read by this author but definitely not my last! This book will leave you wanting for more and the characters and storyline stick with you long after you finish it. Do yourself a favor and pick up this page-turner!

The Mad Wife follows a housewife in the 1950s as she goes through what appears to be postpartum depression. I went into the book expecting exactly that, but what I got was so much more.
I don’t want to spoil the twist, but it truly surprised me. Lulu Mayfield was a character that stuck with me and gave me lots to think about. Top notch historical fiction.
This one is for the Sylvia Plath sad girlies- in the best way.

Thank you NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS Landmark for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

Being a housewife is not the easy job everyone assumes. There’s the cleaning, the shopping, the dinner cooking, and the child rearing. Plus you’re expected to be the epitome of arm candy at all your husband’s professional events. Lulu has always struggled to keep the tight schedule the other wives on her street have followed, especially now that she’s just had her second child. She struggled with depression after her first, and the doctor thinks she is now, too. The medication makes her feel off, but when the new neighbor across the street offers a different and more permanent solution, Lulu isn’t sure how to convince her husband she’s not The Mad Wife.

Meagan Church is back with her third novel – a historical fiction exploring the challenges of mental health and motherhood in the 1950’s. Church, a best-selling author, is known for her stories that tug at your heartstrings and have you looking at the world with a bit of a different view. The Mad Wife is a novel that will connect with readers across all demographics and have you begging for more time with these characters. Female friendship, health challenges, and suspense that will keep you on the edge of your seat will leave you in awe of the story!

I give The Mad Wife 4 out of 5 stars. Granted – it’s a very high 4-star rating. I had trouble getting into this book at first, but the second half of the book was outstanding! Spoiler Alert: if you would like to skip ahead and avoid the spoilers, click here.
As soon as I finished this book, I posted a Thread about how I felt seen and understood because of how amazing this book is. I felt a particular connection to this story after the final chapters because of my own experience during my first pregnancy. 20 years ago, I suffered with mental and physical health challenges the doctors couldn’t explain during my pregnancy except to say I was having a mental breakdown. Two years later, I would be diagnosed with Lupus and a lifetime of challenges would suddenly feel understood. Exhaustion which led to depression along with other sensory and organ challenges would be easily explained under this new blanket diagnosis. But in the meantime, a stay in a modern mental health facility and multiple medications to help make me “less hysterical” made me feel as though I had to pretend and comply or suffer additional punishments. Seeing Lulu go through these exact struggles was hard for me to read and made me very uncomfortable. But I hope that is exactly how readers feel – uncomfortable and ready to challenge our current state of mental healthcare.

I was excited to get a copy of this novel through NetGalley. I loved the cover and title, but the description sold me on this. If you enjoyed Party of Liars by Kelsey Cox or The Book Club for Troublesome Women by Marie Bostwick, you will love this book!

The Mad Wife will release September 30th. You can pre-order your copy today on our Bookshop.org page!

Wow. The Mad Wife blew me away. It was a tense read for the first half and I wasn't sure where this was going. I did NOT see the twist coming.
Lulu is a suburban housewife, mother, and friend. She and the other neighborhood wives follow their housewife schedule of which day they grocery shop, clean, do laundry, etc.
When a new neighbor moves in, Lulu thinks something is off about Bitsy and Lulu is determined to find out what is going on in that house.
Then Lulu's story shifts and I felt so much emotion in the later part of the book.
A top read, for sure. Do yourself a favor and set aside time to be able to read as much as possible in one-sitting.
Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for access to this eARC.

Lulu mayfield is the perfect 1950s housewife. At least that’s what she’s spent the last 5 years trying to be. She does her best to keep her husband happy, her house running, her child safe and keep the title of queen of gelatin salads. After giving birth to her second child, Lulus world is rocked. When a new neighbor arrives across the street, lulu becomes fixed on the wife and uncovering the “secret” she believes her neighbor is hiding. The more she uncovers, the more everyone around her starts second guessing her own sanity.

This book was so good!! It hits heavy on postpartum depression which of course wasn’t a thing in the 50s. Women were crazy then. As someone who has personally experienced ppd, this book hit me hard. I could not read it fast enough! I kept wanting to know what was coming next. The twist was not what I expected at all! But it tied everything together perfectly! Highly recommend this book!!

Thank you NetGalley for this arc!