The Wives: A Domestic Thriller

by Tarryn Fisher

The Wives. You're not the only one...

'Compulsive, brilliant, enthralling... I was hooked to the very last page' Adele Parks, author of Sunday Times No.1 bestseller Lies Lies Lies

'Fans of B A Paris will love this addictive page-turner' Woman's Weekly

You've never met the other wives. None of you know each other, you see your husband only one day a week. Thursday. But you don't care, you love him that much. Or at least that's what you've told yourself...

And then, one day it all changes.

You thought you were fine with this, with only having a fraction of a husband. But you can't help yourself, you start to dig. You begin tracking them down, the other days... Who is Monday and why does she have bruises on her arms? Is she being abused? By who? Her husband? Your husband?

What else is he keeping from you? And who is he, really?

Praise for The Wives:

'A compulsive, brilliant, enthralling thriller... a novel that totally captures absolute love and utter deception, total obsession and cruel betrayal. I was hooked to the very last page' Sunday Times No.1 bestselling author, Adele Parks

'Fans of B A Paris will love this addictive page-turner' Woman's Weekly

'This page-turning psychological thriller by Tarryn Fisher will leave you guessing right until the end' HELLO!

'A perfect page-turner...a must-read of 2020' Woman & Home

'What. The. Actual... My mind is BLOWN' Terri, Amazon reader, 5 Stars

'Nail-biting, heart-clenchingly good from the start, with characters that you both root and cringe for. I loved every word' New York Times bestselling author Alessandra Torre

'Will leave the most sure-footed reader uneasy until the last word is read' New York Times bestselling author Colleen Hoover

'A fantastic thriller that asks the question: how well do we know the people we love? Filled with twists and turns you won't see coming, The Wives is a winner' PopSugar

'Not just an original story but an equally original plot twist ... an emotional and psychological crescendo that will keep readers on their toes until its final page' USA Today

• ISBN10: 1525809784
• ISBN13: 9781525809781
• Publish Date: 30 December 2019
• Publish Status: Active
• Imprint: Graydon House
• Edition: Original ed.
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 336
• Language: English

Reviews

[Berls]

3.5 stars
So wow that was not at all what I expected, not that I really know WHAT I did expect. Just that wasn't it lol. It's definitely a psychological thriller with a bit of a mind fuck, but I found the ending lack luster. There was so much potential and I just feel like it could have delivered so many better possible ending scenarios.

This is a hard book to review because if you want to read it, you really want to go in knowing very little. So rather than telling you much about the book, I'll break down my responses to it.

25% - I was intrigued. I found the concept of a plural marriage an interesting setting for a thriller, especially because this one differed in several key ways from what I understood of typical plural marriage situations.

50% - Okay, WTF?! Wow okay, doubting everything. The thriller is in full swing, my mind is reeling with possibilities and wondering what is and what is not accurate.

75% - So wait, how is this going to go? Still very much in thriller mode, doubting and questioning everything - not sure what is true and what is false. Who is lying and is telling the truth?

100% - Well shit. What a disappointing ending. Of all the ways my mind was reeling, this is the most lackluster/copout conclusion that it could have come to.

So you see, this is why I give it 3.5 stars. I was fully gripped until the conclusion. And I know from reading other reviews, people are probably half and half on agreeing with me that the conclusion was a copout and disagreeing and thinking that it's brilliant. So you'll really have to read it yourself to decide lol.

I listened to this book, narrated by Lauren Fortgang. She's a narrator I've come to love from other series, and she definitely delivered a good performance with The Wives. I listened very comfortably at 2x speed (my normal preference).

[Kim Deister]

I finished The Wives last night, after an evening of being almost physically incapable of putting it down. And still, hours later, I have no idea what I just read. And I mean that in the best possible way. I’ve been on a bit of a thirller kick lately, and this one did NOT disappoint.

The story is told from the point of view of Thursday, Seth’s legal wife. As the blurb suggests, this is an important distinction as there are two other wives, one before and one after. It’s an arrangement she agreed to because she is in love with Seth. But as time goes on, the loneliness of having her husband a single night a week begins to weigh on her. But everything changes for her when she finds something that she never should have.

Details would spoil the surprises, so I will it at that. Suffice it to say that the story is incredibly engrossing! There are a lot of pieces in the story, and they come together in expected ways, shatter apart, come together, and shatter again. When it all finally comes together, it is masterfully bonkers.

For me, part of what made it such an experience to read was the fact that Thursday, despite being the “heroine” of the story, was generally pretty unlikable for much of the story. She was far from perfect. That may not sound terribly selling as a lead character, but stick with me… her characterization, unlikable parts and all, were what made her story so interesting.

The easy way she accepted this nontraditional marriage, something that had never been a part of her ideology, could be seen as unbelievable. After, all, everything she did became about Seth, her desperate to desire to be who he wanted most in the world. On the days he wasn’t by her side, she drank too much and pined for him, wondering obsessively what he was doing with his other wives. She completely gave all that she was over to him. But instead of being unbelievable, it was who she was, her dynamic within both their relationship and within the story. Did it drive me nuts, the subjugated role she made for herself? Absolutely. But without Thursday being exactly who she was, the rest of the story could not have existed.

And the ending? I. LOVED. IT.

My recommendation: If you love a great thriller with a lot of twists and turns, this is a great book! It’s a fast-paced read with no end of surprises!

[jesstheaudiobookworm]

The Wives was a highly anticipated release for me. As someone who thoroughly enjoyed the show Big Love and who claims the TLC reality show Sister Wives as a guilty pleasure, I was looking forward to Tarryn Fischer's take on polygamist drama. I actually discovered The Wives (pre-release) by actively searching for 'books like Big Love'.

From the start, The Wives gives it a different spin by keeping all of the wives separate- not just in separate homes, but in separate cities and states. Practically from the first page, Fischer lays out the marital situation, using wife #2 as narrator. Her name is "Thursday" and her husband [Seth] always visits her on Thursdays. He has two other wives, "Monday" and "Tuesday", whom "Thursday" has never met. She does not even know their real names. So far, so good.

I didn't notice it immediately, but Fischer jumps straight into the action and sort of info dumps all of this on us. I think we see Seth and Thursday together one time before the plot kicks in to full gear. There's really no time to settle in to the world and become accustomed to its characters before things start spinning out of control. When I did notice it, I told myself that the author was probably just trying to keep the reader engaged, and would likely flesh things out more later. That was not the case.

It soon became clear that this wasn't the action thriller I have been anticipating, but a psychological thriller. If you browse through my past reviews, you'll notice that the last psychological thriller I read was The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer. After finishing that series, I knew that psychological thrillers or, more accurately, unreliable narrators were not for me. I loathe the feeling of not being able to gain purchase within a story. I appreciate that some readers enjoy not having anything to cling to and not knowing what's real and what's not. I can even admit that a little of it can be thrilling, but not nine hours worth. I just don't enjoy feeling constantly lost and disoriented in a story, like being in a blizzard and not being able to see anything around you. That's not my type of thrill.

I much prefer being blindsided. In my mind, the best kind of plot twist is when you feel like you're standing on firm ground and then a rug is ripped out from underneath. But in order for that type of twist to be truly effective, you have to be sure you're standing on firm ground, before realizing you aren't. To me, that's the ultimate dupe. In The Wives, I was never sure who to trust. Therefore, when the plot twist was revealed, it was anti-climactic because I had already been partially expecting it from everyone involved.

I will say that the execution of the plot was engrossing. As I neared the end of the audiobook, I avoided going to bed just so I could hear some sort of resolution. I've never read anything from Tarryn Fischer before, but I do know that she is thought of as a very talented author. I, however, was disappointed with the way The Wives was set up. The plot itself was clever and the conclusion was satisfying, but they were wasted on me because I never really felt invested in the characters or immersed in their lives. I would be willing to give Fischer's writing another chance, just to see if this type of style is typical for her, or if this was a one-off.

Narration review: Lauren Fortgang did a wonderful job narrating The Wives. I always enjoy her performances, although this was the first time I've heard her narrate a thriller. She did an adequate job of providing character distinction, even though it wasn't quite what I'm used to hearing from her in Fantasy titles. The Wives was excellently narrated and produced, so if you are into psychological thrillers, I recommend checking this out on audiobook. ♣︎

[Nadz@Totally Addicted to Reading]

Let me start by saying for you to get the full effect of how twisted this book is, you need to go into it blindly. I found the title intriguing and was curious to find out about the story hidden between the covers. Having never read Tarryn Fisher’s work before, I had no clue what I was exposing myself to. Now after reading this book, I have to say Ms. Fisher messed with my brain and left me with many crazy thoughts. Even as I write this review, I keep asking myself what the hell did I just read. The Wives took me on the most twisted journey, not even a roller coaster ride could compare.

The story hooked me from start to finish. I had to know what was happening. The story pulled me into its dark recesses and for its duration I had an inkling of how Alice felt when she fell down the rabbit hole. Neither the title nor synopsis could prepare me for that dark journey down the rabbit hole.

Filled with a host of unreliable characters, I had a hard time determining who could be trusted. The deeper I got into the story, the more I doubted the characters. This book reminded me that appearances can sometimes be deceiving. Not because your mind perceives something doesn’t necessarily make it true.

Despite the unreliability of the characters, I sympathized with Thursday. I believe this was because the story was told from her POV. I kept wondering why she would put herself in such a position, but I guess she was a fool for love. Being in her head was nerve wracking.

I am not sure what to think of the ending. I was hoping after those revelations that the questions I had swirling in my head would be answered. Instead I was left to make my own assumptions.

Conclusion/Recommendation
Would I read more from this author? A resounding yes. Fisher delivered a mind boggling story that will have you questioning every word you have read while attempting to decipher the many mysteries hidden within the pages. This is a must read for fans of psychological thrillers. Be prepared to have your mind blown.

Recommended by Jennifer.
https://www.goodreads.com/user_status/show/251463464

[Molly J(Cover To Cover Cafe)]

Full review to come soon but y'all. This one needs to be pre-ordered NOW!!! It's AMAZEBALLS!!!