I loved everything about this book. Once I started it, I couldn’t stop - I read the entire book in one day! There are twists and turns in each chapter and the format is great. I really enjoy the included recipes and the narration was absolutely perfect for the story. It really brought the story to life and made it that much more enjoyable to listen to.

Thea Woods is about to be fired from her job when her boss tells her infamous chef, restaurateur and tv personality Maria Capello will only work with her on her memoir. Thea goes to the Capello farm upstate but is cut off from everything. Something is going on. Told from both Thea and Maria's PVOs with some recipes thrown in you will be on a wild ride. This was tense and suspenseful the whole way through. I knew something was going to happen or be revealed but no clue what. It got a bit messy at the end with so much happening but still so much twists! The writing and characters were sharp. I enjoyed the narration too. If you are looking for a book that is not predictable with great characters pick this up!

Thank you dreamscape audio for my gifted ALC! I was so excited for this book when I saw the cover! I have loved all of Danielle’s books and was excited for another adult novel! This book was somewhat of a departure from her previous adult novel, but I loved it! It brings family drama and thriller with a dash of horror! I loved the book within a book, having that added so much to this story! I really enjoyed the narrator and thought she did an incredible job with this book! I especially loved the ending of each chapter with the recipes! I need a print copy of this one, obviously for my shelf, but also for the recipes! My mouth was watering! I had no idea where this book was going and I loved that! There are so many twists and at first when I was nearing the end and thought it was wrapped up, I found myself thinking there are still some loose ends, but of course Danielle whips in more drama and everything is tied up neatly in a bow!! I recommend this for all my thriller lovers, especially domestic thrillers! I think this will be a hot one this summer!

Now THIS is a thriller!

I highly recommend this audiobook! The pacing was absolutely perfect, it had isolation and creepy undertones, it had absolutely surprising twists and had dual POVs that came in current time and a manuscript. The premise was unique and the narrator was excellent! I listened at 2x. I enjoyed Maria’s character almost Martha Stewart like as well as Thea’s character. I like how she was an overworked mom with everything to lose! Also, that ending twist? Uh YEAH. Creepy.

I am going to be raving about this one for a while!

10/10 no notes. Read this!

This book was slightly more serious than I expected, but I devoured it (pun absolutely intended). The pacing was excellent, with twists that landed at just the right moments to keep the tension simmering. I loved the dark, dramatic undertone mixed with celebrity culture. The way the story peeled back layers of Maria’s past was gripping.

I found myself completely hooked by the dynamic between Maria and Thea and the secrets slowly being revealed. The ending was satisfying and well wrapped, with just enough bite to leave a lasting impression. Highly recommend to thriller lovers!

Thank you NetGalley and RB Media for the ALC in exchange for my honest review.

Maria Capello is finally ready to tell her story, with the help of Thea editing it at her secluded abode far from the prying eyes of family, publishing company, and anyone else. What really happened to her husband? What's her special ingredient that makes her food taste amazing? Thea is determined for this memoir to knock all others out of the water so she can keep her job, but things turn out to be more than she originally anticipated.

With a title like "The Dead Husband Cookbook" i was looking for more, everything. I felt like the premise was strong, and I was really intrigued with the ideas. However, it felt odd to, as an author, make an editor ignore all other life responsibilities to cater to every whim. Additionally, the recipes, which may be intriguing to read, do not translate so well to audiobooks. Personally, I felt each recipe took me out of the story, and then I struggled to get back in. Even skipping around the recipes, I felt so disjointed. I know it was to reflect the way Maria is formatting her memoir in the novel, but it didn't flow so well in this type of story.

Overall, I had a decent time reading it. I enjoy Danielle Valentine's other thrillers, but this one wasn't as big of a hit for me.

Really outstanding story about a woman editing the memoir of a famous celebrity chef and host. Thea’s career was sidelined when her last subject was exposed for problematic behaviors; she was almost fired from the publishing company, but she was saved because Maria specifically requested her to edit her memoirs. Maria is finally going to talk about the night her husband died.

A celebrity writing their memoirs and demanding a specific ghost writer or editor is becoming SUCH a popular storyline - Great Big Beautiful Life, Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, The Ghost Writer— honestly this is becoming a trope.

And just like the “one bed” trope in romance, it’s a convenient plot element that doesn’t really happen in real life. Unfortunately it makes some of the reveals a little easier to see coming.

That said, I really did enjoy the multiple POV, the pacing, and the characters. There are many secrets and reveals throughout and it is definitely suspense building. Audiobook was well acted, different voice acting for different characters is essential. One thing- not a criticism whatsoever- but typically I listen between 1.7-2.0 speed and this one I was able to listen easily at 2.5 so the dialogue and exposition are slower and more likely to speed up.

I was fortunate to receive an ALC through NetGalley, thank you to NetGalley and Dreams scape media. Book to be published 8/4/25.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐(4.5 starts rounded up)

The Dead Husband Cookbook is an absolute rollercoaster of chaos, suspense, and dark humor and I devoured every page, as well as listening to the audiobook!
From the opening line, the tone is sharp,clever and addictive. Danielle Valentine does an incredible job blending fast paced suspense with biting wit. The plot is wild in the best way each chapter escalates the stakes, twisting into unexpected territory without ever losing momentum.
The writing is tight and engaging,the pacing never lags,and the humor was exactly my brand dark, sassy and just a little unhinged. If you're looking for something that reads like a mix of satire and true crime with a feminist bite , this one's it

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the advance audio and ebook this was a blast from start to finish.

I honestly read this book because of the cover and title. I’ve not read this author’s previous work, but I will be seeking it out after finishing this incredible story!
I loved how this story was set up. Thea is an editor who is working with famous celebrity chef, Maria Capello to edit her memoir. It’s told in chapters from Thea and Maria, but also book pages from Maria’s memoir and there are some recipes tied in, which I thought was so creative.
I thought the story was really fast paced, one of those books that you just can’t put down. I was really invested in the characters, as well as trying to piece everything together. The twists were unexpected and worked so well. Nothing, in my opinion, was predictable.
I really enjoyed the narrator for the audiobook. She did an excellent job!

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

3.5 stars

_Delicate Condition_ really creeped me out and stuck with me, so I was pumped to read this new one from Valentine and was mostly pleased with the experience, though the insinuations are better than the pay off and the journey as a whole.

The biggest challenge I had with this is that I determined correctly what was going on WAY too early. As a lifelong lover of horror, mystery, and thrillers, I'm not one of those folks who really tries hard to figure out what's happening. I like to be surprised, and I'll do my part to make sure that doesn't go away too fast. So to some degree, with no effort at all, I just...knew too soon. That really did impact my overall enjoyment, and while it's understandable, it's also a little frustrating. Readers who NEED to be surprised or have a lot of misdirection may find themselves equally (or even more) challenged by this circumstance.

Now, if you can get beyond this issue, you'll find some intriguing content here. This is unquestionably a great title and cover combo. Also, Maria is a pretty captivating individual, though she does complain a lot (and I'm not saying it's not warranted). The combo of Thea's secrets and very public errors makes her fun to watch as a lead, though for me, she falls into the intelligent woman undercover (i.e., you are smart but somehow miss truly glaring, major clues all around you) situation, which is not my fav.

So this was a bit of a mixed bag for me, but I enjoyed it overall and would recommend it to folks who are interested in a light to moderate level of mystery with some fascinating considerations along the way.

I loved the premise but unfortunately I couldn't get into the actual narrative. This was largely due to the fact that I did not enjoy the audiobook narrator. I would be open to trying this as a physical book but I just could not become engrossed in the story as I found the perspective to be quite irritating.

I requested this one because it might be an upcoming title I would like to review on my Youtube Channel. However, after reading the first several chapters I have determined that this book does not suit my tastes. So I decided to DNF this one.

I could not put this down.

Thea is probably going to lose her job as an editor at the publishing company until one of the most famous chef Maria Capello says she will only work with Thea on her new memoir that everyone hopes will finally tell the world what really happened decades before when her famous husband went missing.

I loved the way the twisty narrative comes out in now time and editing the memoir. I was so invested from the beginning and loved the turns it took.

A perfect summer thriller.

I really liked the narrators

Thanks to netgalley and Dreamscape media for an alc

This was such a fun listen. I binged this in less than 24 hours because it had me so invested. I was able to guess one of the main twists, but still throughly enjoyed this story.