About the book…
When I first met Jack, he broke down in tears as he told me about the tragic death of his wife, Natalia, on a family holiday. As our relationship blossomed and we started planning a future together, I would lie awake worrying about filling Natalia’s perfect shoes. But everything changes when her mother turns up at my door…
‘Your boyfriend killed my daughter,’ she says.
Jack swears she’s lying, and I want to believe him but something isn’t right. Why doesn’t he have a single picture of her? And why do I feel afraid when I confront him about the night Natalia died? What if it wasn’t grief after all, but guilt?
As I stroke my baby bump, I wonder if I can really trust the man I love. If he killed Natalia, could I be next?
Buy Links:
Amazon: https://geni.us/B0G3WL466Msocial
About the author…
Sheryl Browne writes psychological thriller and edgy contemporary fiction. A member of the Crime Writers’ Association, Romantic Novelists’ Association and awarded a Red Ribbon by The Wishing Shelf Book Awards, Sheryl has several books published and two short stories in Birmingham City University anthologies, where she completed her MA in Creative Writing.
Contact Links:
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Website: https://sherylbrowne.com/
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Twitter: https://twitter.com/sherylbrowne
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My thoughts…
Sheryl Browne is a go to author for me, she never fails to deliver a read that is complex, multi faceted and gripping. She certainly knows how to make you have internal narratives with yourself as your heart rate rises in time with the number of pages turned.
The Wife Before was a book that had me thinking at first that this was not going to be the usual dark, twisted tale that has me desperately biting my fingers praying and second guessing what was at play. Kara was widowed and with that, her life all but ended, that was until she met Jack also widowed. Jack and his daughter Evie end up moving in to Kara’s home as they decide to navigate a new life together. I should have known better! Everything should have been perfect but Jack’s and Kara’s new life together was put under the microscope. Kara tried to be a friend to Evie but this was a girl, hurt by the loss of her mother and battling the usual teenage angst - she definitely does not want a ‘new mother figure’.
I couldn’t decide if Kara had a genuine heart of gold or she was incredibly gullible. Enter Lina, Jack’s ex mother in law stage left and the whole story ramped up several notches when Kara invites her to stay in her Annex - much to the dismay of Jack but delight of Evie. I was torn, I couldn’t decide who was telling the truth and who and what was genuine or fake. The dynamics of each of the relationships were pulled taught - Lina and Evie definitely tested ~Kara and pushed her to her limits, and Jack seemed to have no useful input as Kara’s world is upended.
I was hooked! Intrigued and felt sick reading at times - swinging backwards and forwards with ideas of who I trusted and who I didn’t - The Wife Before was gripping and at times difficult to read. I followed breadcrumbs in every direction but the right one. The truth and lies were so intrinsically entwined it was impossible to know who to trust or what to belief.
Thank you so much Sheryl for writing another totally absorbing read that fully engaged my vivid imagination and sense of judgement - a story that once again shook my values to the core.
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