THE WIFE’S SILENCE is a gripping story from start to finish. I liked the multiple POV’S and dual timelines. It’s well blended with secrets and emotional suspense. This story was especially easy to follow on audiobook. I very much enjoyed that I didn’t have to think too much about it. Overall, it was just a very entertaining story!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Dreamscape Select for my gifted copy.

This review will be shared to my Instagram account (@coffee.break.book.reviews) in the near future.

The Wife’s Silence by Amanda McKinney is a gripping, atmospheric psychological thriller that kept me turning pages late into the night. With echoes of The Wife Upstairs by Freida McFadden and Verity by Colleen Hoover, this story pulls you into a chilling world of secrets, manipulation, and deceit.

The writing is sharp and immersive, and the pacing builds a steady sense of unease that kept me engaged from start to finish. The twists are well-placed, and the unreliable characters add to the tension, creating that delicious sense of not knowing who—or what—to trust.

While I thoroughly enjoyed the book, I’m giving it 4 stars only because it felt quite similar to other titles in the genre. That said, fans of domestic suspense will find plenty to love here, especially if you enjoy morally gray characters and jaw-dropping revelations.

Thank you to NetGalley, Amanda McKinney, and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I wanted to love this and I thought I would - the title, the cover, the jacket copy, it's all *so* up my alley. Le sigh... It's a solid thriller, it just turned out to be not at all for me.

Premise - Lucy Greer's life is a mess. When she gets a job as a caregiver for the sick (and silent) wife of a successful entrepreneur, Thomas Caine, it seems like a golden opportunity to turn things around. But right from the start, there's something unnerving about the wife, Emilia.

Lucy soon realizes that Emilia is harboring a dark secret. She learns that the Caines' son disappeared years ago and that was only the beginning of something very wrong that's happening in the beautiful home. Throw in a too-loyal (albeit gossipy) housekeeper and things soon come to a head. Not everyone will survive the truth.

Okay, so right after Lucy is introduced we learn she has a gift for reading auras… I groaned. Nothing against the woo-woo astrology and psychics stuff, it’s just really not for me. Instant ick. Still, I was determined to not let a little woo-woo nonsense ruin a good popcorn thriller for me (I'm addicted) so I forged on.

Thomas Caine and his ex-wife Meredith are caricature villains, as 2D as the paper they're printed on. I kept waiting for the twist in their characterization, the little bit of ~color~ that'd expand my empathy and make me a little peeved at myself for being so judgmental... alas, it was nowhere to be found. They started out 2D and they stayed 2D. They just really didn't read as fully actualized humans to me, especially not Thomas. At least Meredith had substance abuse, and the possible brain damage resulting from that, to blame for her inexplicable badness, but Thomas seemed to be the rare villain who's wicked just to be wicked, and who has no convincing self-talk to persuade himself he isn't so.

While these two were the worst (a thriller is only as interesting as its most compelling villain/antihero), I didn't care much for Lucy, Amelia, or the housekeeper, either. None of the characters charmed me. [spoiler] The twist with James made me groan out loud (not in a good way), though I'll thank small mercies that we weren't subjected to a side romance that looked almost inevitable at the time of the reveal.

The pacing was solid and twists were delivered (as much as I disliked the James twist, I didn't see it comes) but all in all this just wasn't for me. Three stars for competence, and the awareness that other readers will feel differently.

I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Elise Roth. She has a very calm, gentle sounding voice - soothing, in a word. Despite the content (and she does a great job of matching the mood of the text and varying her read) it’s cozy enough to fit the bill as a bedtime/wind-down audiobook, or a vacation beachside siesta audiobook.

Thanks, NetGalley and Dreamscape Select, for the audio ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book hit me hard—in the best way possible. It stirred up a kind of anxious energy that kept me hooked, not stressed. The tension felt so real, I was on edge the whole time, rooting for the impossible to turn around.

And when it did? Wow, the payoff was everything I wanted and more. The twist wasn’t just a random shock; it was smart, deeply satisfying, and honestly made the whole read unforgettable.

My buddy and I both devoured it, and we’re still buzzing about how well it wrapped up those intense moments. Definitely a standout that keeps you feeling all the feels without the usual clichés.

Ａｕｄｉｏｂｏｏｋ Ｒｅｖｉｅｗ
🌟🌟🌟🌟
"The Wife's Silence" by Amanda McKinney is a dark, psychological, gripping thriller about deception. We meet Lucy Greer, a young woman who is at the end of her rope, living in her car, and pretty much down on her luck. Until she takes a live-in nanny job from the successful entrepreneur Thomas Caine, while caring for his ailing wife, Emilia, but something is terribly wrong.

This story had me hooked from beginning to end; it only took me about three hours to finish it. I loved the short chapters. It's somewhat predictable, but I'm okay with that.

The audiobook is narrated by Elise Roth, and she did a good job telling the story. She was easy to listen to and understand. I listened at 2x speed.

Thank you, NetGalley, and Dreamscape Select for the audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

Lucy takes on a job to be an aide to a bedridden woman, Amelia, who has suffered a stroke and is not really aware of her surroundings. Her husband, Thomas, is a renowned designer and etcher of artistic swords and knives and they live in a large house in the middle of nowhere. Lucy can read auras but claims that the ability comes and goes, but that's how she formerly made a living. Also in the household is Consuelo, a housekeeper, who works an irregular schedule.

The story is told from several points of view and at different times. The household has been through multiple rounds of trauma over the years. Thomas has mostly withdrawn to his studio and works anytime, around the clock.

The reader is left to determine what is going on in this strange household. There are multiple twists in the story that make this psychological drama quite interesting. It's well written I thought the reader is drawn further into the story, but it isn't scary.

I have both the e-book and the audio book. The narrator does a great job with accents and voices. I recommend this book.

Thank you Netgalley, Amanda McKinney and Dreamscape Media for the audio Arc of The Wife's Silence.
Narrated by Elise Roth

Having read a few of Amanda's books, I have come to like both her writing style and the structure of her psychological thrillers. The Wife's Silence is a great medium paced domestic thriller from multi POVs. We have Lucy, a hired home help to look after Thomas' Wife who has suffered a stoke. Thomas' character comes cross very quickly so you will get a strong sense of who he is. Lucy and Thomas' Wife Emilia gets built along the way with a due timeline. This makes for a page turner as the narrative unfolds and a few direction choices come to mind. I loved her subtle foreshadowing and the twists within the story.

Elise Roth narrates this book and her voice is wonderful to listen to.

4.25 stars for Storygraph, 4 Stars for other review sites

3.50 stars.

I really enjoyed the audio compared to the ebook.

I liked the premise of the book although it was similar to alot of popular books out there. The twist was good but sorta fell a little flat / weird towards the end. I did enjoy it and would check out another book by the author.