The New York Times bestselling novel soon to be a major motion picture starring Nicole Kidman, for fans of The Woman in the Window and The Silent Patient.”I gobbled it down in one sitting.” – Anne Lamott, People
Jodi and Todd are at a bad place in their marriage. Much is at stake, including the affluent life they lead in their beautiful waterfront condo in Chicago, as she, the killer, and he, … waterfront condo in Chicago, as she, the killer, and he, the victim, rush haplessly toward the main event. He is a committed cheater. She lives and breathes denial. He exists in dual worlds. She likes to settle scores. He decides to play for keeps. She has nothing left to lose. Told in alternating voices, The Silent Wife is about a marriage in the throes of dissolution, a couple headed for catastrophe, concessions that can’t be made, and promises that won’t be kept. Expertly plotted and reminiscent of Gone Girl and These Things Hidden, The Silent Wife ensnares the reader from page one and does not let go.
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Jodi and Todd have been together for over 20 years. They have built a successful life together and have an ideal partnership. Jodi is a psychologist who works from their beautiful lake view Chicago condo. She is careful, meticulous, organized and always there for Todd. Todd is a dreamer, a doer, a self-made success in the real estate business. Their life is perfect. Or at least it seems to be.
A.S.A. Harrison has crafted a brilliant introspective novel about the slow and steady destruction of a marriage. Todd’s serial cheating, something Jodi has always overlooked, is finally catching up with him. What happens when the long-suffering wife is finally unable to ignore her husband’s indiscretions? What happens when the rock-steady partnership they’ve shared is threatened by another woman?
As Jodi and Todd spiral toward a terrible end, the reader is left turning pages late into the night, unable to look away from the inevitable train wreck. I loved this book– it’s on par with Gone Girl, though it pushes the envelope even further.
Very early in the book, Harrison tells us: “… given a few short months are all it will take to make a killer out of her.” Knowing that the protagonist, Jodi, is going to kill does not diminish the urgency of the story. Who will she kill? Why? How? All the questions remain to be answered. In less capable hands this saga of infidelity would falter, but Harrison keeps the reader on their toes. Told in alternating points of view we are given insights into the true character of Jodi and Todd, but it is Jodi whose strengths, weaknesses, and secrets will hold us spellbound to the end.
I liked the way the author created a quiet tension into the buildup to the ending. Ending had an unexpected twist. I tried it because a review compared it to Gone Girl which I really enjoyed. If you liked Gone Girl, try it.
A psychological thriller about a relationship of a middle aged well to do couple in Chicago, Jodi and Todd. Todd is a philandering and reckless, while Jodi is reserved and understanding of Todd’s extracurricular relationships. Until Todd decides to leave Jodi for a much younger woman. This book was picked by a member of my book club because of the downtown Chicago setting.
Wow! I found this on sale at a discount store and thought I was just getting some bottom-of-the-barrel thriller.
Never been so happy to spend $3! This book was a real page-turner, keeping me guessing right till the end.
The whole time I was reading this, I was picturing Nicole Kidman in the title role. As much as I might have disliked both the lead characters, the author imbued them with just enough sympathy to engage me. Very “Gone Girl” but with its own twists. Highly recommend it,.
I really enjoyed this book mainly because it took me to the edges of my feelings. Any book that takes me to the edge, good or bad, is a good book to me. The author did their job of sucking me in and then forced me to react emotionally.
The story is divided between HER story and HIS story. I didn’t really like the characters, who are all flawed, though I understood Jodi the best. Jodi is the HER, Todd is the HIS and Natasha is the younger woman between them. Jodi, though she is a psychotherapist, lives in a bad cocktail of denial and reliance on her man. Everything is in Todd’s name and he pays all the expenses. She knows he sometimes cheats on her but she looks the other way believing that what they have is flawed but stable. She knows that he won’t leave her. He never has. Todd has a lot of issues from his childhood. He cheats on Jodi believing she doesn’t know, (though I believe deep down he knows she, at the very least, suspects). He is depressed and these affairs help him feel young and wanted. He doesn’t mind paying the bills and finds some measure of comfort in the boredom and routine of his home life. He has a best friend, Dean, who was aware of everything and also cheated on his wife before her death. Dean raised a daughter, Natasha, on his own. When Todd is waiting for Dean at the bar he is surprised to see Natasha is no longer a little girl. Despite his friendship and with full knowledge of the disapproval his friend will express, Todd begins an affair with Natasha. I think he believed she would be like the others. However, Natasha isn’t like his other women. She wants him to be hers. So much so she is willing to call both her father and Jodi to tell them of the affair. She is a spoiled and controlling person in my opinion. All of this just kept me turning pages. As much as I didn’t like the characters, I could see how they were realistically created. I know many young girls today who behave in Natasha’s fashion. The same holds true for older people who, I know, are much like both Jodi and Todd. When things start unwinding, bad decisions turn into worse ones. I know a lot of people are going to say no way are they realistic. “Jodi is like a 1950 housewife. That doesn’t happen today!” Oh really? What about the women from the reality shows so many watch? The stay at home wives of the rich who look the other way is still happening and not only among the rich. I know plenty of woman from middle class, and even among the poor, who live this way. The man who is content to have the wife at home taking care of things while he pays for everything…and has a side chick. Nothing has changed there. I think what has changed is the younger woman. Many of today’s younger women expect more and are less likely to stay quietly in the shadows. What I can’t fathom is why they would marry a man who cheated on his wife. A man who cheated to be with you is a man who will cheat on you. I don’t care what you think you are going to have, the truth is a man who cheated will have no problem cheating again. No matter how much you say you trust him, the truth is, in your heart you know you will always be worried and suspicious. There is rarely a happy ending. I haven’t seen one yet.
I have some more thoughts but to go into them will be getting too much into the story and I’ll end up spoiling it for you. So get the book and read it. If you have doubts about your enjoyment, use the library or the sample. I’m eager for the next book.
Also, please stop saying every book is the new Gone Girl. It sets a book up unrealistically. Readers, please stop expecting books to be Gone Girl. Book reviews are the opinions of the person writing the review. Book comparisons are the same. When you read a book that interests you, you will be reading it your own way. The experience, and book comparisons, will be uniquely yours. Read the books that draw your attention based on the description and reviews you trust. Don’t read a book because reviewers or publishers call it Gone Girl or any other book. You will most likely be disappointed in a book you may have otherwise liked. Read your books with an expectation based on the book itself. You may still be occasionally disappointed but you will also find more books that you enjoy reading.
Characters area bit one dimensional, in the end (spoiler alert) you find out what happened in her childhood. They could have made more of that, and her relationship with her brothers, would have been more interesting.
Also could have used less psychoanalysis in her recollections with her shrink…..
Ending was horrible
The characters are a little hard to believe, but the story line is good.
Whoa!!! Great Read!!
Would recommend it, looking for others by this author
Very creative in its plot; good characters & suspense.
Yes, she’s annoying optimistic and yes, he’s incredibly egotistical and they both are really not nice people but…I still found this book an entertaining read! Go figure! It must be me…
Here to Stay
Giving a 5 star rating is very unusual for me.
I really enjoyed this book, the writing style was fluid and the story plot was one that kept your interest.
I usually can predict the ending but not this time!
This booik had a surprise ending I did not expect. Loved it!
I enjoyed this book but the ending was a bit of a let down
Interesting plot twist. Good read.
A+