My Husband

A Novel

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Pub Date 11 Jul 2023 | Archive Date 25 Jul 2023

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Description

In this suspenseful and darkly funny debut novel, a sophisticated French woman spends her life obsessing over her perfect husband—but can their marriage survive her passionate love?

“One of the most daring, provocative, unnervingly intimate thrillers I’ve read in years. Few writers besides Ruth Rendell and Patricia Highsmith can evoke domestic unease with such sangfroid; fewer still can make it such delirious fun.” —A. J. Finn, #1 NYT bestselling author of The Woman in the Window

At forty years old, she has an enviable life: a successful career, stunning looks, a beautiful house in the suburbs, two healthy children, and most importantly, an ideal husband. After fifteen years together, she is still besotted with him. But she’s never quite sure that her passion is reciprocated.

Determined to keep their relationship perfect, she meticulously prepares for every encounter they have, always taking care to make her actions seem effortless. She watches him attentively, charting every mistake and punishing him accordingly to help him improve. And she tests him—setting traps to make sure that he still loves her just as much as he did when they first met.

Until one day she realizes she may have gone too far . . .

The winner of France’s First Novel Prize in 2021, My Husband builds on the premise of hits like Gone Girl and Fates and Furies—how well can you really know your spouse?—and adds the tension and creepy obsession of You. The result is an irresistible read—compelling, tense, and engaging, infused with sly subversive humor, and told in an utterly original voice that makes it unforgettable.

Translated from the French by Emma Ramadan

In this suspenseful and darkly funny debut novel, a sophisticated French woman spends her life obsessing over her perfect husband—but can their marriage survive her passionate love?

“One of the most...


Advance Praise

starred Publishers Weekly review:

"Ramadan’s exacting translation holds the reader in her grip, and what makes this so thrilling is not just the narrator’s surprising ruthlessness but how Ventura causes the reader to repeatedly change their mind about who’s to blame for the messed up marriage all the way to the explosive ending. It’s a bold and memorable first outing."

“The winner of France’s First Novel Prize, this riveting emotional thriller requires serious willpower to not devour in a single sitting.” Oprah Daily

https://www.oprahdaily.com/entertainment/books/a43351200/best-books-for-spring/

https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/columns-and-blogs/openbook/article/91837-love-hurts-in-maud-ventura-s-debut-novel.html

“Ventura's cleverly constructed, one-sided portrait of a marriage delivers a breathtaking conclusion that is as unexpected as it is deviously brilliant.”  - Shelf Awareness

."Fans of Caroline Kepnes' You (2014) or Gillian Flynn will find My Husband to be a new, satisfying, and unnerving take on the relationship-suspense genre." Starred Booklist


starred Publishers Weekly review:

"Ramadan’s exacting translation holds the reader in her grip, and what makes this so thrilling is not just the narrator’s surprising ruthlessness but how Ventura...


Available Editions

EDITION Hardcover
ISBN 9780063274822
PRICE $28.99 (USD)
PAGES 272

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Average rating from 43 members


Featured Reviews

What a fun little book! So much packed in, the days of the week as colors, her note books and petty revenges. The strange games she plays with herself (or does she?) and the first genuinely surprising twist I’ve seen in years.

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Mon Mari is a French book that has been translated into English as My Husband.

She is an unnamed woman—the wife. He is an unnamed man—her husband. She is passionately in love with him but is constantly questioning whether he loves her back with the same intensity.

Living inside this woman’s head was both exhausting and fascinating. Her obsession with her husband, which swings from passion and love to deep revulsion and resentment depending on the day of the week and the color of the day, put me through all the moods. She is utterly fixated and codependent on him and lives to please (and punish) him. Her inner monologue and thought processes about whether her husband loves her, is cheating on her, wants to divorce her, or has discovered her secrets, were almost tipped over the edge into paranoia. For example, she agonizes over his love for their children and friends because spreading his love dilutes his love towards her; she is horrified by his romantic belief of falling more in love daily because it means he doesn’t love her fully at her present.

I worried that her over-analyzation would’ve become old after a certain point, but each day of the week brought up something new and different, which kept me intrigued up until the very end. It’s a short read. The mounting anticipation was wonderful. The twist was as sour and sweet as a clementine.

Once this book publishes in English, I will definitely be buying it!

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A creepy, quick and dark read about a woman who loves her husband... possibly too much? Very enjoyable, highly recommend!

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Part psychological thriller, part domestic suspense, I absolutely loved My Husband. In this book, we spend a week inside the world of our unnamed MC who is a married mom of 2 trying desperately to manage and control every aspect of her life, particularly her marriage to her husband. It was hard to tell if she truly loves or hates her husband as she takes pains to be the perfect wife for him, overanalyzes each conversation and interaction they have, but also keeps a notebook of all the "punishments" she doles out for his missteps. She was so well-developed (and icky) that is was almost uncomfortable to read at times. I thought the translation was outstanding and the writing was crisp and kept the story moving along at a fast pace. The ending was perfect and I wanted more of this strange couple and their creepy life.

Thank you to the author, Net Galley and HarperVia for the opportunity to advance read this ebook in exchange for an honest review.

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I didn't know what to expect going into this book, other than I had heard a few people were very excited to read it. I think that's probably the best way to step into a book like this - not having any expectations. That's not to say it would disappoint, but it is truly the look inside a woman's head as she spirals on the daily.

This definitely falls more on the side of character study than it does "plot driven," and I think it's a perfect length book to run the full spectrum of emotions from sadness to laughter to absolute irritation. There were times I was laughing at the narrator, sometimes I was laughing with her, and times I related... maybe a little too much.

Overall I think this is a really fun, pretty quick read. I would recommend this book to people who really like to get into the heads of characters, because that's more or less what this is. I enjoyed my time reading it and will absolutely recommend it to friends.

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MY REVIEW: 5 Stars, No All The Stars!

Holy crap on a cracker! I’ve just found one of my favorite books of the year and I’m d@mn sure getting the hardback!

I requested this book because of the beautiful cover and it sounded good! I had no idea what I was in for in this book!

This book won’t be for some people I’m sure, but give it a try anyway! This lady is obsessed with her husband, I won’t go into specifics because you need to read it for yourself! I know some people think reading a book talking about someone’s life can be boring (not me) but this book is a nutter and I love it! AND, just when I thought it could’ve get any crazier, I read the epilogue! What the hell! I wanted to smack someone and at the same time thinking what just happened! Did I just read that, lol!

This book was so awesome!

***Thank you so much to Netgalley and HarperCollins for a digital copy of this book

Mel

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