Review: The Perfect Marriage by Jeneva Rose

"His mistress is dead. His wife is his only hope." The tagline immediately made me want to read The Perfect Marriage by Jeneva Rose. I'm happy to say that it did not disappoint!

Sarah Morgan is a BOSS (are the kids still saying that nowadays?). She is partner at a prestigious law firm and one of the most successful defense attorneys in the Washington, D.C. area. Her life is dedicated to her job and while she loves her husband, it's obvious from the start that her marriage comes second. Adam, a struggling novelist, does not enjoy living in his wife's shadow and spending so much time alone while Sarah works late into the night. It's only a matter of time before he begins having an affair with a waitress. He comes to love both women for different reasons and can't decide which one he should leave the other for. Adam's choice is made for him when his mistress is found stabbed to death in his bed. Facing a murder charge that includes a death sentence, Adam is facing an uphill battle as all the evidence points directly to him. If he has any chance of proving his innocence, he needs his wife's help, but can he trust that she has his best interests in mind after all he's done to her? 

This was a solid thriller that will surely entertain fans of the genre. The novel moves along at a quick pace, alternating narration between Sarah and Adam. There are plenty of red herrings and a shocking twist at the end that readers won't see coming! I was actually really satisfied with the ending despite finding it disturbing. The biggest complaint I had with Rose's story is that Adam was a complete tool. I honestly couldn't stand his character and was hoping Sarah would just leave him to fend for himself after all his douchebag antics. While the twist at the end was great, I felt it was a little implausible, at least without answering a few more questions for me.

Overall, this one is definitely worth all of the hype it's being given! Give it a read and you won't regret it.

My Rating: ★★★★ out of 5 

*Thanks to the author, Dreamscape Media, and Netgalley for providing me with this audiobook in exchange for an honest review!  

Review: Big Girl, Small Town by Michelle Gallen

Why is it I have such a hard time writing a negative review for a book? I know I have nothing to feel bad about because my reading experience is my own and completely subjective. Maybe I just don't want to admit that I wasted precious reading time on something less than at least mildly entertaining. Anyone else have this problem? Unfortunately, my review for Big Girl, Small Town by Michelle Gallen is far from positive. I really like the show 'Derry Girls' and a lot of comparisons were being made between the show and this novel. Since one of the show's actresses narrated the audiobook, I decided to give this one a listen instead of reading.

I have no idea how this book has received so much buzz lately. I like character novels, but this one couldn’t have been more boring. The setting is interesting enough with Majella living on the northern border in a war-torn Ireland, but this is a book about nothing really. A lot has happened to Majella in her life, but for whatever reason the reader is given only seven mundane days of her life (the chapters are split into days-Monday to Sunday) with flashbacks of her childhood thrown in to help explain why Majella is the way she is. Other than learning who Majella is, the reader never gets to see her change, for better or for worse. She’s just kind of there...existing.

I might usually caution at this point that I’m about to give some spoilers, but that doesn’t seem possible since NOTHING HAPPENS throughout the entirety of this book. We tag along with Majella as she works her nightly shifts at a fish and chip shop where she occasionally shags her coworker in the storage room after they close for the night. Then we follow her as she goes home where she lives with an alcoholic, codependent mother who is insufferable. (Her father was a member of the IRA and disappeared years ago, presumably killed for his involvement in the civil conflict.) It’s more or less the same routine for 6 out of the 7 days, with a lot of graphic masturbation and menstrual period talk. It’s like the author realized there was nothing happening to really challenge Majella to grow or overcome or change in some way so she decided to throw a period into the mix. Not to mention there are a few scenes depicting animal abuse which I didn’t see the purpose of since it did nothing for the storyline. 

Ugh...I just honestly don’t get it and I wish I had the time I spent on this book back. 

As far as the audio goes, it took awhile to get used to the narrator’s accent for me. It wasn’t the accent so much, but she did mumble and speak far too fast at times for me to understand what I was listening to. Based on the narration alone, I’d have given the performance 3/5 stars.

My Rating: ★★ out of 5

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for giving me access to this audiobook in exchange for an honest review. I’m sorry I didn’t enjoy it more.

Review: Unfaithful by Natalie Barelli

My first encounter with Natalie Barelli was when I read The Housekeeper over the summer. I couldn't get enough of the diabolical narrator in that one, so I snatched this November release up as soon as I saw it was from the same author. Unfaithful is definitely as "unputdownable" as the cover claims.

Anna is an associate professor in mathematics at a decent university. She seemingly has a perfect life that includes a satisfying career, a husband she adores, and two adorable children. From the outside, Anna appears to have it all, but it doesn't take long for her world to start tearing at the seams. A grad student Anna worked with to crack a previously unsolvable math concept suddenly kills himself in front of her. While this is bad enough, his death could also take away her hard-earned chance at a prestigious professional prize. She makes the shady decision to claim his work as her own, which leads to a whole slew of stress and anxiety as she waits for someone to find out what she's done.

I thought this was going to be the major problem in this novel, but it turns out Anna's life is a veritable s**t-show. Her husband's cheating on her and his mistress rubs it in her face every chance she gets; Anna has zero friends and a toxic relationship with her mother; she's somehow become the target of a dangerous stalker; and to top it all off, she finds herself the prime suspect in a murder case. Oh yeah, she lies and drinks every chance she gets. I'll be honest, I don't really blame her for imbibing excessively because this book filled me with anxiety. I'm still not sure if this a good or a bad thing, though. 

I will say that this is definitely one of those books that you won't be able to put down for long. I was so engrossed with Anna's crazy life that I couldn't wait until I could begin reading again. It was suspenseful and the ending was both unpredictable and satisfying. At first, the number of major obstacles the narrator had to face seemed excessive, but I'm honestly impressed with how smoothly Barelli was able to pull it all off. Besides the stress this story added to my life, my only real complaint about Unfaithful was all the unlikable characters. I never did end up liking Anna, primarily because of how she handled her cheating husband, but she also lied and whined way too much. In the entire book, there was only one character I even kind of enjoyed, but she got annoying at times too. 

Overall, this is a fantastic, suspenseful thriller that will keep you reading way past bedtime. If you can get past the objectionable narrator, I think most mystery fans will enjoy the ride!

My Rating: ★★★★ out of 5 

*Thanks to the author, Dreamscape Media, and Netgalley for providing me with this audiobook in exchange for an honest review!