Oh my goodness how I loved The Mad Wife by Meagan Church!! I stayed up way too late to find out what happened to LuLu and the ending did not disappoint. Meagan Church is an auto buy/preorder author for me and The Mad Wife is my favorite so far. Her books just get better and better. With The Mad Wife, Meagan Church delves into the life of a typical suburban mom/housewife in the 1950's. The story is so vividly written. The reader is right alongside LuLu in her kitchen in the middle of the night as well as in the precious farmyard of Lulu's memories. There are twists that you don't see coming but that make perfect sense. This book would be a fantastic pick for book clubs and anyone who enjoys great writing and historical fiction. Thank you to NetGalley, Sourcebooks Landmark, and Meagan Church for the advanced copy.

First of all, loving the warning page at the beginning. It got me excited for what was to come. I will say, the beginning was sort of a slow start but picked up around half way. I loved the motherhood struggle, it’s something all us mothers can relate to in one time or another.

The Mad Woman is set in a respectable place called Twyckenham Court, Greenwood, where the Haywood family, Henry, Lucy, Wesley and Esther reside and neighbours are friendly and helpful, a tightknit community. Opposite the Haywards is a house that never seems to keep people there for long, Lucy (Lulu) imagines this house as her own virtual dollhouse, until one day a new family arrives. Convinced there is something strange about the Betseys, Lucy begins to obsessed over Bitsy Betsey until it consumes her life.

This was an exciting read about a woman on the verge of madness, with obsessive behaviour and with no-one believing her, she resorts to drastic measures. I enjoyed reading this, the style of writing was excellent and it kept me captivated until the end. I would have to say that the house that no-one stays in is a bit of a plot hole, I want to know why. It also shows the misogyny of the time, men thinking they know best - medically and of house appliances - much of which still exists today.

A captivating read for all and I loved the name Bitsy Betsey.

The gasp I gusped when I hit the 70% mark of this book. I had to immediately keep going. That twist I did not see coming at all. This author is such a great historical storyteller and I loved this book.

Have you ever started a new book and just known you were going to love it? That's how I felt from the first page of "The Mad Wife." I'd never read this author's work and wasn't sure what to expect, but I was pleasantly surprised! The writing is engaging, smart, and funny. And the characters feel like you can reach out and touch them!

The story follows Lulu, a 1950s housewife who is struggling to maintain her perfect life while keeping up with her husband, neighbors, and famous gelatin salads. But when motherhood doesn't match the textbooks, Lulu's journey takes unexpected turns.

I knew from the synopsis that this book would hit home for me as someone who battled severe postpartum depression, and it definitely did. So while I recommend keeping that in mind if you also find yourself juggling mental health, I believe this story is a wonderful way to feel seen and heard. It's comforting to know we aren't alone, and I've never felt more validated by a character than I did with Lulu.

An honest look at motherhood and the expectations placed upon women of all decades, this book is real and raw. I appreciate the author's desire to shed light on experiences that often go untold and I'm excited to read more of her work!

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest feedback.

Set in the 1950s, The Mad Wife follows suburban housewife Lulu Mayfield, whose carefully curated life begins to unravel after the birth of her second baby.

To her friends and neighbors, Lulu is the Queen of the Jell-O Mold, serving up gelatin-encased meals during house parties. She’s interested in photography and dutifully collects stamps, trading booklets for household appliances and other items. She has a sweet four-year-old son named Wesley, and eventually gives birth to a baby girl, Esther.

But Lulu is haunted by a past tragedy and crumbling under the societal pressures of motherhood. Her husband Henry, a junior architect, is aiming for a big promotion at work and doesn’t realize how hard Lulu is struggling to keep it all together. He’s as supportive as he knows how to be, but he’s not exactly sensitive.

When Gary and Bitsy Betser move into the neighborhood, Lulu’s curiosity is piqued. Something about Bitsy seems off in a way Lulu can’t put her finger on. Although Lulu is put off by Bitsy’s vacant stares and odd behavior, she’s determined to figure out her secret. But as Lulu’s obsession with Bitsy grows, she begins to spiral, putting her own mental health into question.

The Mad Wife tackles the subject of female hysteria through a familiar lens, that of the suffering housewife, but with an interesting twist that reframes the entire narrative. It is a haunting meditation on women’s health, both mental and physical. Though the ending felt slightly rushed, I was captivated by Lulu’s story.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the eARC.

The Mad Wife is a haunting peek behind the pristine curtains of 1950s suburbia. I was hooked watching Lulu’s perfect housewife facade slowly crumble as she starts to see through the cracks of her new neighbor Bitsy’s shiny smile. It’s unsettling, tense, and I couldn’t stop turning the pages trying to figure out if Lulu was truly losing it or finally waking up. Big thanks to NetGalley for letting me get my hands on this one early!

I love when what I thought was happening didn’t happen at all, a masterful case study in unreliable narration, this was EXCELLENT. Truly enjoyed the mad wife.

I was reeled into this book in the first few pages and read the entire thing in less than 2 days. It felt like an underlying tension was always there and that something mysterious was lurking, waiting to happen. I felt SO many different things from this story that it’s hard to put into words, but I really enjoyed it and highly recommend!

Lulu is a housewife and mom living in the quintessential 1950's. Her life revolves around stamp books, creating Jell-O masterpieces, and trying to figure out her new neighbor, Bitsy. But behind the scenes, things aren’t so picture-perfect. After the birth of her daughter, Lulu starts to feel off, and no one around her seems to notice or understand. The Mad Wife is a moving, emotional story full of nostalgia, unexpected turns, and honest reflection. Meagan Church shines a light on what many women went through behind closed doors, in a time when being a “good wife” often meant hiding your struggles.
Many thanks to NetGalley, Sourcebooks Landmarks, and Meagan Church for the opportunity to read The Mad Wife!

“The Mad Wife” is a historical fiction book by Meagan Church. It is rare - very rare - that I give books five stars … and this book is one of them. While this book began a bit slowly for my taste, once the story got going (and people established) it went along at a good clip. This book made me wonder for a while if I were reading a mystery - what is going on with the main character’s obsession about the new neighbors across the street? Then around the 70% mark, things became clearer … and then more clear when the final nugget as dropped around the 90% mark. Go into this book as blind as you can - it helps. What I found frustrating (and from the Author’s note - which you shouldn’t read until you’ve finished reading this book - that was part of the point) was how back in the 1950s women feeling anxious or frustrated were met with “here’s a pill.” While in many ways that approach hasn’t changed, there are other options to going around in a haze (and don’t get me wrong, sometimes a pill can take the edge off can help clear thinking and begin the healing process). If “The Bell Jar” and “The Yellow Wallpaper” come to you while reading this book, that’s intentional. I can see why some people don’t like this book, but for me, while this book wasn’t a fun happy go-lucky thrill of a ride, it was deep enough for me to think about and wonder what was going on. Well done but deals with heavy topics.

“Of course, sometimes we forget that dreams and nightmares are two sides of the same coin.”

I’m always interested in a book about 1950’s housewives. There is just something so intriguing about their lives. This book was a wild ride that took unexpected turns I wasn’t prepared for. The first part was excellent. The second part took a shocking turn. The ending felt a bit rushed but this is psychological suspense so I suppose there wasn’t much more to do. It is well written, leaving the reader feeling all kinds of emotions. Thank you to Netgalley & the publisher for the early copy.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review of The Mad Wife. Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher, Sourcebooks Landmark, for this opportunity.

Meagan Church’s The Mad Wife is a haunting psychological exploration set in 1950s suburbia, a world bound by postwar conformity and silent suffering. With echoes of The Yellow Wallpaper, The Bell Jar, and The Hours, Church crafts a taut narrative that interrogates how women's bodies and minds have been pathologized and controlled. The Mad Wife is a powerful, unflinching portrayal of a woman reclaiming herself in a world determined to define her as mad. It is both a sobering historical reflection and a heartfelt declaration: there is strength in acknowledging pain, and even greater strength in refusing to let others define it. Church has achieved something rare: a novel that is intellectually rigorous, emotionally resonant, and structurally thrilling. Her portrayal of medical paternalism on women’s bodies is informed, eloquent, and deeply unsettling. For anyone interested in historical gender dynamics and the legacy of medical control, The Mad Wife is both overdue and unmissable.

I loved this book! Definitely a lot to be said about the agency of women both in the home and in the Healthcare setting but it stands on its own as a twisty what's going to happen next unreliable narrator book.

“The Mad Wife” by Meagan Church is a captivating, atmospheric plunge into 1950s suburban life—seen through the eyes of Lulu, a seemingly perfect housewife whose world begins to quietly unravel. Church’s writing is immersive: you'll feel the weight of Lulu’s routine, the sterile perfection of Jell-O molds, and the strain of societal expectations. Just beneath the polite façade simmers a potent psychological suspense, as Lulu’s growing fixation on her new neighbor and own unraveling self take center stage .

Oh my, this story is quite the emotional ride. An expertly woven story about the joys and tragedies of motherhood, and how trying to become someone you’re not can eat away at your happiness and identity.

An exploration of grief, delusion, and societal pressures. There are some real triggers with this book, but if you’re in a place to read through them, this story will give you the space to sit with all the messy, heavy, mixed up emotions you might be feeling while also feeling like you’re being surrounded by a supportive community.

This one really worked for me - highly recommend.

I loved this book! The gasp I gasped!! There are lots of twists and turns and I love the historical setting. I consider this a dark domestic drama and I was hooked! Highly recommend!

I was quite wowed by this book simply because it was so relatable. I think any mother, stay at home or not could probably relate to this story in some way.

Thank you NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the ARC of this book. I’ve read both of Meagan Church’s previous two books, The Girls We Sent Away and The Last Carolina Girl, and I thoroughly enjoy her ability to write an engaging story.
And that wasn’t any different in her newest story, The Mad Wife.

Following the story of Lulu, a proud mother and caring wife in the 1950s, Meagan really captured the internal struggles and outward challenges that impacted many women during this time. Without divulging too much, I really think she shared the challenges of postpartum depression and anxiety during this era in a unique and thoughtful way.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and it had some great twists that I didn’t anticipate that really elevated the story. However, while I enjoy Meagan’s writing, I do feel like she spends too much time describing mundane activities or details that don’t bring anything to the story.

Overall, I think this is my favorite book of hers to date and shares a unique perspective on the 1950s housewife.

'They called it hysteria, she called it survival'

I couldn't put this book down,
I never thought I'd read a book with long chapters but these didn't feel long
The story was captivating the whole way through

There's so much more I want to say but don't want to ruin the book and Give to much away