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Release date: June 5, 2018

Publisher: Atria

Genre: Women’s Fiction

Blurb:

In this intricate and enthralling domestic drama the author of the “gossipy page-turner” (Glamour) The Perfect Neighbors goes deep into a marriage in crisis, peeling back layers of secrets to discover where the relationship veered off course—and whether it is worth saving.

Josie and Frank Moore are happy… at least Josie thinks they are. As parents of two young girls in the Chicago suburbs, their days can be both busy and monotonous, and sometimes Josie wonders how she became a harried fortysomething mother rather than the driven career woman she once was. But Frank is a phenomenal father, he’s handsome and charismatic, and he still looks at his wife like she’s the beautiful woman he married more than a decade ago. Josie isn’t just happy—she’s lucky.

Until one Saturday morning when Josie borrows her husband’s phone to make a quick call—and sees nine words that shatter her world.

Now Josie feels as if she is standing at the edge of a sharp precipice. As she looks back at pivotal moments in the relationship she believed would last forever, she is also plunging ahead, surprising everyone (especially herself) with how far she will go to uncover the extent of her husband’s devastating secret.

Review:

I was a huge fan of The Wife Between Us which Pekkanen co authored with Greer Hendricks but I had never read her solo stuff before. This is very different from TWBU, it’s more of a psychological drama than a thriller, so I just wanted to make sure that you guys were aware of that, because if you’re looking for something similar it’s really not. BUT this was good, just in a totally different way, think less tension, no twists, straight up women’s fiction with an emphasis on Josie’s emotional journey.

I liked the way this was structured, it may even have been my favorite aspect, it was set mostly in the present as Josie deals with the effects of her husband’s betrayal but there are a handful of chapters that go back to important times in Josie and Frank’s relationship. I loved the insight this gave the reader into their history, it added depth and dimension to their characters. Josie was a really relatable character, she’s one of those every woman type of people, you either feel like she could be you or you know someone like her. Her actions, choices and thoughts read as very genuine and raw, I think her behavior was an accurate portrayal of how someone in her situation would act.

My only slight complaint is that it was fairly predictable but not in annoying way, I just knew pretty much exactly what would happen well before it actually did, but as this isn’t a thriller, it wasn’t a huge issue. Recommended for those looking for a well written, insightful read that leans to the lighter side.

Overall rating: 3/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.