The New Husband is a riveting thriller about the lies we tell ourselves from D. J. Palmer, the author of Saving Meghan. What makes Simon Fitch so perfect?-He knows all her favorite foods, music, and movies. -Her son adores him. He was there when she needed him most. -He anticipates her every need. -He would never betray her like her first husband.The perfect husband. He checks all the boxes.… like her first husband.
The perfect husband. He checks all the boxes.
The question is, why?
Nina Garrity learned the hard way that her missing husband, Glen, had been leading a double life with another woman. But with Glen gone—presumably drowned while fishing on his boat—she couldn’t confront him about the affair or find closure to the life he blew apart.
Now, a year and a half later, Nina has found love again and hopes she can put her shattered world back together. Simon, a widower still grieving the death of his first wife, thinks he has found his dream girl in Nina, and his charm and affections help break through to a heart hardened by betrayal. Nina’s teenage son, Connor, embraces Simon as the father he wishes his dad could have been, while her friends see a different side to him, and they aren’t afraid to use the word obsession.
Nina works hard to bridge the divide that’s come between her daughter and Simon. She wants so badly to believe her life is finally getting back on track, but she’ll soon discover that the greatest danger to herself and her children are the lies people tell themselves.
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Very good mystery! I couldn’t put it down! Lots of twists and turns and keeps the reader wondering what will happen next! Great character development.
4 stars
Thank you Netgalley for an ARC of this book.All opinions are my own.
Going in to this, I didn’t realize how addictive The New Husband would become. I will say, it started out a little slow, but once it picked up, I couldn’t put it down!
Nina, a single mother, has found love again after her husband mysteriously disappeared without a trace a year and a half ago. She began dating Simon Fitch, a teacher at her daughter’s middle school. Nina’s friends and Maggie have qualms about Simon, but she decides to embrace love and move in with him. But sometimes things are too good to be true.
I wasn’t sure if I was going to finish this. .The first half was slow, but I’m so glad that I pushed through, and the second half more than made up for the beginning!
The New Husband was definitely worth the read!
A suspenseful psychological page-turner about a wife with a missing husband, a potential new husband and a daughter having a difficult time accepting her mother’s new boyfriend. The story plugs along, with what seems like an annoying daughter, especially on the audio version. As the personalities unfold, the daughter becomes more suspicious while the mother allows herself to be further ensnared in the grips of this new man in her life. In the meantime, clues slowly surface about the missing husband. The psychological buildup up was good with the most excitement happening at the end. The book was entertaining but predictable, with its freshness being on the fate of the missing husband.
The New Husband was a shocking, twisted story that kept me enthralled. Nina’s life changes when her husband disappears. She doesn’t know if he faked his death or drowned while fishing. She’s destitute and emotionally destroyed. Suddenly a new man enters her life. Simon Finch is absolutely perfect. They have so much in common. The problem is that Nina’s daughter hates him and believes her real father will one day come back. Does Maggie see the real man? Life gets complicated for Nina as she learns more about Simon. Maybe he’s not so perfect after all! D.J. Palmer is a master of suspense. This story pulled me in from the first page. The tension kept building and the twists kept coming. I couldn’t believe what was happening. Nina’s vulnerability pulls her into what she believes is a loving relationship but was it really a trap driven by obsession and madness. The truth is shocking. All I could think was never trust your first impression. Will Nina and her children survive The New Husband? The characters have so much emotional baggage which was both disturbing and frightening. I couldn’t stop reading. I had to know what would happen. This novel blew me away. I was overwhelmed.
I received a copy of this book which I voluntarily read and reviewed. My comments are my honest opinion.
****** AUDIOBOOK REVIEW ******
Seriously the only thing that could have made me love this more than I did would have been getting some of Simon’s side. The story is so messed up and while I knew the outcome for the most part I still felt obsessed with it! I wasn’t able to go long without listening here or there as much as I could. I stayed up well into 2am last night just entranced in the world DJ Palmer created.
These narrators work amazingly well together. January LaVoy has always been a narrator I’ve loved listening too. Rebecca Soler was new to me, I believe anyway, and I really connected with her character portrayal. Maggie is this teen girl not only struggling with her mom’s new relationship but with a missing dad. I felt the depth of her pain. It was an exemplary performance. Same with Miss LaVoy. She always captures the feelings and the depth of the story.
This was definitely one of my favorites for 2020! Worth the credit IMO!
A taunt psychological thriller that shows us both sides of a marriage, and things are definitely not always what they seem.
D. J. Palmer’s “The New Husband” is one crazy, disturbing, roller coaster ride! Yet, from the moment I picked it up, I couldn’t stop or put it down!! Literally, this story pulled me, held me in its grip, and refused to let me go. It’s the epitome of a captivating psychological thriller and everything I had hoped it would be.
This book was absolutely amazing! I couldn’t stop reading. I loved the plot and the intensity as I wondered how things would turn. The writing keeps your attention until the end. I’m grateful to the author, publisher and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.
This book is possibly the BEST thriller of the year! It kept me interested from beginning to end. A real page-turner.
Nina’s husband has disappeared. It is not known if he drowned or just abandoned her and their two children, Maggie and Connor. Then Simon, a widower, enters her life. He seems perfect – prepares her favorite food, anticipates her every need, makes her feel special. Connor adores him, Maggie detests him. Maggie won’t give up hope that her father is alive and will one day return to them.
The book is very suspenseful and fast-paced, and since I loved the characters (except for Simon, of course) I was on the edge of my seat over their safety. Maggie stole my heart. She is grieving the loss of her father, being bullied at school, and sees a side of Simon that neither her mother nor her brother sees. She tries to warn them, but they will not believe her. Once you start it, this is book is very hard to put down. This book is the perfect blend of secrets, lies and manipulation.
I highly recommend this book if you love thrillers. I look forward to this author’s next release.
Thank you to Shelf Awareness and St. Martin’s Press for the advance copy.
This book is INSANE. The twists! The turns! The tortuous tension! The “how in the WORLD did that happen”!
DJ Palmer introduces you to Nina, dropping you into an empty boat with a lone dog and a lot of blood and jumps ahead seventeen months to the would-be widow of the guy who was supposed to be on that boat, moving into a new home with her new boyfriend and her two kids. Be prepared to hop back and forth on the timeline, dear reader, because Palmer does not tell a linear tale.
There is the mystery of what happened to Glen Garrity: did he die? Did he run away? There is the mistress: Glen had a sidepiece? There is the new man on the scene: is Simon a good guy, or is Nina’s daughter Maggie correct in her bad feelings about the guy?
And then there is the marriage. As Palmer shows, Nina and Glen’s union was not without friction, not without secrets and obfuscations. Should we trust her?
Prepare thyself for a plot twist or two. But this book is more than shocking plot developments. Palmer shows you a couple at-risk, people who made themselves vulnerable, which makes you read this book not just with your breath held, worrying for what happens next, but also through a slightly different prism of wondering if evil would have broached a stronger union.
Please hit up the comments and let me know what you think of this book. It’s one that needs lots of discussion.
I received an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review. I have since purchased a copy as well.
WOW! I read Saving Meghan and was blown away. I wasn’t sure what to expect with this book, but oh my goodness. There was so much mystery, suspense, guessing, manipulation and more. I didn’t expect the plot twist towards the middle of the book.
There was so much detail put into developing the Simon Fitch character. It felt like I was looking at Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. It really made me sit back and think about what I would have done if I had been in Nina’s position.
My heart broke for Nina and the kids. I found myself really applauding Maggie and cheering her on not to give up. Mr. Palmer did a really good job detailing the different dynamics of the family – before, during and after Glenn. And then, bringing Simon into the picture. You could feel the tension building and then things started to happen. I found myself going back, trying to make sure I didn’t miss something.
I can’t wait for Mr. Palmer’s next book!
Monsters come in all shapes and sizes. They perfect their mode of attack. No one sees them coming. The ones that do, can’t get anyone to believe them. Maggie Garrity was in seventh grade when her world turned upside down. She saw the evil and no one believed her, except her new friend Ben Odell. Once the blinders come off, there is a rush to prove the evil. Do not ever mess with the family dog.
Be careful who you trust. Always listen to that gut instinct. A daughter’s teacher turned into future stepdad. So many questions about where did the father go, is he alive, why did he base himself on so many lies?? He is protecting his family even though he can’t immediately step in, also in danger. Absolutely moving and heart racing of a novel. I stayed awake racing to the finish line. I received this as an advanced reader edition; very thankful from my friends at St. Martin’s Press. This review is 100% my own.
An amazing book that kept me up until the wee early morning hours. It was a little slow to begin with but once I got into the story I could not put it down. Told in numerous voices, I think Maggie was my favorite. i could feel her pain for what she knew and she could not share. Simon was wicked, too perfect to be true. If you like psychological thrillers, then this is a must read.
The New Husband has good tension, interesting characters, and a gritty storyline. The pacing is pretty steady overall with no serious lags along the way. Yet, it doesn’t quite cross over from okay to really good. It does have a psychological element, and there are some decent twists. The problem is those twists are entirely too predictable. Don’t get me wrong, the bad guy is sufficiently bad and creepy, and Nina is likable and easy to root for. That said, there isn’t a single thing in this story that I haven’t seen before. Whether it be in book form or in a movie or television show, this has been done and done again. That wouldn’t necessarily be a bad thing if there were something to set this one apart from the crowd, but there isn’t. The book showed promise, and I kept reading, hoping to find something that I didn’t see coming or that I hadn’t seen before, but it just didn’t happen. So, in the end, it’s not a bad story, but it isn’t a great one either.
I will start off by saying that if you like Criminal Minds or any show on Discovery ID then you will be all for this book. Simon appears to be the perfect boyfriend, maybe next husband but why does Nina feel like something is wrong. At first she tries to deny it but the more people she talks to the hard it is for her to brush somethings aside. You won’t believe the lengths Simon goes to, to show he’s the perfect partner.
*I received a copy of this book via NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review.*
Wow!! What a thrilling read that completely captivated me from the beginning and had me hanging onto every word. There are twists and turns and ups and downs that are so gripping, I just couldn’t put the book down until I read the last word. The story moved seamlessly from the points of view of the mother, Nina, and her thirteen-year-old daughter, Maggie. This is the first book I have read by DJ Palmer but I want to read more by this gifted author. If you enjoy domestic thrillers that will keep you on the razor’s edge, don’t miss “The New Husband”. I received an advance reader copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving my review.
FABULOUS read! I tore through this one after catching so many highly recommended reviews!
Nina’s husband disappeared with no explanation 2 years ago and she has since been trying to rebuild a life with her two children, Maggie and Connor. After a chance encounter (or so we think) a new man comes into her life. Simon is a teacher at Maggie’s school, a widow and seems to fit everything Nina is looking for in a man as well as oddly reminding her of her missing husband in so many strange little ways. As Nina puts her trust into this man and her new relationship things start to seem off… leaving her to question every little detail.
This was one of those books that sucked me right in and I could NOT put it down! This is my second book by this author and I’m hooked – I’ll surely be back for more!!
3.5 Stars
I was given an opportunity to read this story thanks to St. Martin’s Press. This is my first time reading DJ Palmer, the description caught my eye and I was in the mood for a thriller. Though this story was not a favorite thriller of mine I did enjoy it. There were moments of frustration and eye rolls but over all I enjoyed it. The story starts out a little slow but it does pick up. If you are a fan of thrillers definitely give this story a try and decide for yourself.
Author : D.J. Palmer
The New Husband:
Length: 379 pages
Publication date: April 14, 2020
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
4
~MY REVIEW~
The story starts out with a bang then gets a little slow and boring, but soon moves to a fast paced, nail biting, very intense thrill ride with lots of twist. I devoured this book in just one day because I had to figure out how this was all going to play out.
Nina learned the hard way that her missing husband, Glen, had been leading a double life with another woman. But now Glen is gone…… presumably drowned while fishing on his boat. But did he really drown ? Was he murdered ? Or did he simply just run away with another woman ? Now a year and a half later, Nina thinks she has found love again with the perfect man a widower named Simon. She hopes she can put their shattered world back together again. As far as the perfect husband goes he seems to check all the boxes. But is Simon really as perfect as he seems ? He seems to know her every need and was there for her when she needed him the most. He knows all of her favorite foods, music, and movies . But just how does he know all of this ? Her teenage son Connor, loves Simon who is stepping up to be the father he has always wished his dad could have been . Her teenage daughter hates him. She sees him as replacing her father and still holds out hope that he will one day walk through the door. Nina works hard to try and get her daughter to accept Simon and see him the way she sees him.
The New Husband is a psychological thriller told from the pov of Nina ( the mom) and Maggie( her thirteen-year-old daughter ).
The description to detail was so vivid. I felt like I was in the story and saw everything unfold as I read. Just who is telling the truth ? Who is lying ? What really happened to Glen? Is Maggie right to not trust Simon ? Or is she just being an overreacting teenager ?
All of the characters were very well developed, and done in such a way you really care about most of them. However I didn’t necessarily like all of the characters, but that’s okay. That didn’t make me not like the book as a whole. To me that makes each of the characters more believable and a thriller so great. After all in real life we don’t always like everyone.
Being a mom at times I found the chapters of Maggie hard to read as she pours her heart out about the bullying going on at school , her heart breaking over her dad, and her fears of Simon. I just wanted to reach through the book and give her a hug and shake some sense into her mom. The one thing I did find a little far-fetched was that for Nina being a social worker she did seem to be very naive at times. However with money being very tight one often sees what they want to see. But then there is always the fact if something is too good to be true it usually is.
If you are wanting a gripping, twisted, psychological read with plenty of twists this one is a great one and i highly recommended it. Be sure to add it to your want to read list . It goes on sale TODAY April 14 th.
As always if you like the book you read please take the time to leave a review for the author in places like goodreads & Amazon. It does not have to be long. Just a few sentences saying you liked the book will do. Authors really appreciate every review they get !
I was lucky enough to be able to read and honestly review an ARC, courtesy of the publisher, St. Martin’s Press. I voluntarily provided an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
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