by Liv Constantine
Publication Date: May 19 2020
Publisher: HarperCollins
Pages: 320
ISBN: 9780062967282
Genre: Adult Fiction | Thriller | Mystery
Source: Library
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Synopsis: Joanna seems to have everything she could ever want. A loving and handsome husband (Leo), two beautiful children (Evie and Stelli), and a middle-class lifestyle that allows her to spend all her time as the perfect housewife and mother. But Leo is suffering from severe depression and struggling at work with his law firm. Then Leo gets the opportunity of a lifetime, a high profile case. To help him win the case, Leo begins gathering information on his client. He decides to visit his client's therapist to get more information that could help him with his case. That's when Leo meets Piper.
Gorgeous, beautiful, charming Piper. Piper has just recently moved to Connecticut, looking for a fresh start after the death of her husband and stepdaughter. To help her move on, Piper changes her name (from Pamela) and takes over the local wellness center as the new owner and therapist. Piper seemingly has it all, and when she meets Leo she knows that she will stop at nothing to make him hers, even if he is already wearing a wedding ring.
Joanna soon realizes that Leo's happiness is not because of her but because of Piper. Trying to stop Leo from leaving, Joanna begins to look into Piper's past but what she discovers makes her worry about the safety of her kids, especially when Leo doesn't believe her and brushes her thoughts aside. Now Joanna is living with her mother and no longer able to see her children as Piper begins to step into the role of adoring wife and dotting stepmother.
Review: I spent 95% of this book totally upset and mad. I ended up reading this over the course of two days because I couldn't put it down and I wound up hate reading the entire thing. That's not to say that I didn't like it, quite the opposite in fact! I was sucked in and needed to know what was going to happen. Would Joanna be able to save her marriage and the lives of her children? Or would she lose everything to Piper? This story was full of twists and turns and kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time.
“You know, it's what everyone needs, really -- a place where they can spill their insides and let it all out. It's like a cleansing of the soul. All of us have wounds we bury deep inside, and they affect us without our even realizing it.”
― Liv Constantine, The Wife Stalker
It's thrilling. The characters are all untrustworthy and being super shady. You want to root for the main character but it's impossible because she's really not at all that likable. Both narrators are unreliable and also a little bit terrifying. I wanted to know who was going to "win" but there really was no winner at all. As a mother I wanted to relate to Joanna, I couldn't comprehend the pain she was feeling losing her children and at the same time, I was shocked at how manipulative and conniving Piper was. I just kept thinking, "this seriously can't be happening" and also "this lady is bat shit crazy!" I definitely recommend this but at the same time, I feel like this book could cause some triggers for those that have experienced affairs and divorce.
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