Tarryn Fisher | THE WIVES

Plot (via Goodreads):

You’ve never met the other wives. None of you know each other, and because of this unconventional arrangement, you can see your husband only one day a week. But you love him so much you don’t care. Or at least that’s what you’ve told yourself.

But one day, while you’re doing laundry, you find a scrap of paper in his pocket—an appointment reminder for a woman named Hannah, and you just know it’s another of the wives.

You thought you were fine with your arrangement, but you can’t help yourself: you track her down, and, under false pretenses, you strike up a friendship. Hannah has no idea who you really are. Then Hannah starts showing up to your coffee dates with telltale bruises, and you realize she’s being abused by her husband. Who, of course, is also your husband. But you’ve never known him to be violent, ever.

Who exactly is your husband, and how far would you go to find the truth? Would you risk your own life?

And who is his mysterious third wife?

Review:

I think Tarryn Fisher broke me. The Wives is a stunner of a psychological thriller and one that will stick with you the minute you start it, if that makes sense. The first half of this book does a fantastic job of not only setting the scene, but giving us a grand look into the lives of Thursday and Seth...including what Thursday goes through with her curiosity of Seth's other two wives. There's something about Fisher's writing that just blew me away - her characters are literally saying exactly what you're thinking and they do not hold back. There were many moments where I found myself thinking the same thing Thursday was thinking to only read my thoughts come back to me on the pages. The Wives is seriously the book that has it all; a great plot, devilish characters, and a unique spin on the thriller genre. The first half really moved quickly and had me finding myself in the position where I was legitimately annoyed to have to put it down. I couldn't stop reading and waiting the one day it took for me to work and oblige to social obligations felt like an eternity before I could pick it up and finish.

The second half of the book takes a dangerous turn that left my mind blown. How would I have 150 pages left after something so insane?! Well, Tarryn Fisher takes the story and not only kicks it up a notch, but hones in on the things that I loved about the first half and kept me invested and obsessed. Not one word is wasted and not one part of this felt slow or uninteresting to me. Fisher's characters are sensationally written, her dialogue is top-notch, and her prose is razor-sharp. I need more thrillers from this fantastic writer. I'll avoid all spoilers, but let's just say the ending isn't the one I wanted, but was the one that made the most sense and left my jaw on the floor for what felt like hours after the brutal final page. This one was one of my favorite thrillers of 2019 and I just can't stop thinking of it - I also think it gave me the worst book hangover, because the past four books I've read since then have just not done it for me and I've also started and decided to not pick back up three books. Tarryn Fisher broke me and it was a pleasure.

Special thanks to Graydon House for this copy in exchange for my honest review.

Rating: 4.5/5