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The Serial Killer's Wife
How far would you go to save your child?Five years ago Elizabeth Piccioni’s husband was arrested for being a serial killer. Her life suddenly turned upside down, she did what she thought was best for her newborn she took her son and ran away to start a new life. Now, living in a quiet part of the Midwest with a new identity, Elizabeth is ready to start over. But one day she receives a phone call from a person calling himself Cain. Cain somehow knows about her past life. He has abducted her son, and if Elizabeth wants to save him she must retrieve her husband’s trophies — the fingers he cut off each of his victims. With a deadline of one hundred hours, Elizabeth has no choice but to return to the life she once fled, where she will soon realize that everything she thought she knew is a lie, and what’s more shocking than Cain’s identity is the truth about her husband.*Includes an exclusive sneak peek of Robert's upcoming thriller The Killing Room, the first book in a new series coming this August from Blackstone Publishing.
332 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 12, 2011
1121 people are currently reading
3301 people want to read
About the author
Robert Swartwood
62 books307 followersUSA Today bestselling and ITW Thriller Award–winning author of The Serial Killer's Wife, The Killing Room, Man of Wax, and several other novels. He created the term "hint fiction" and edited Hint Fiction: An Anthology of Stories in 25 Words or Fewer.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 282 reviews
January 10, 2015
An extremely frustrating book -- I was initially drawn in by the premise and the many 4-5 star ratings on Goodreads, but I found myself irritated by the clumsy handling of plot events and the paper-thin characters. It basically felt like a popcorn flick, all action and no substance. The big reveal where the villain explains their motives in painstaking detail was like a caricature of a Bond film, except done in earnest. Such a shame, I wanted to like this book -- in spite of a cringe-worthy foreword featuring the lines "Swartwood...has come out swinging with one hell of a thriller" and "miss this one at your own peril". (Yes, it was probably the publisher's decision to use the foreword and not the author's, nonetheless it caused me and this book to get off on the wrong foot!) Would not recommend.
October 5, 2017
Well, that didn't go how I expected.
It's true that you get what you pay for, and since this was free via Amazon, I guess you know how this review is gonna go.
What I Liked:
-The writing was good. The story the author told, however, was not the story I expected to read.
-But despite my expectations, it was well-written and did hold my attention. Plus, I did not guess the ending - as convoluted as it was. Hence the 3-star rating, even though it wasn't memorable.
What I Disliked:
-I was so hyped for this book, but it missed the mark on several levels for me. It was suspenseful, but not the scary suspense that I anticipated. The serial killings were only treated as a backdrop and really weren't central to the story at all.
-The "reveal" wasn't handled well. Instead of a steady, slow realization of the truth, we got the whole messy twist plopped down in front of us in the form of a 3-4 page criminal confession. I hate those with a passion.
What I Wanted More Of:
-Stories about serial killers and/or their wives should be eerie and creepy and scary. This was more like a race-the-clock-before-something-bad-happens kind of story.
-I wanted to care more about these characters - any of them; however, I didn't. We didn't meet the son before he was taken. We hardly even met the MC before everything all the action started. Which was OK, but the bits and pieces of backstory we got throughout the book weren't enough to make me feel like I could trust her or even feel sorry for her.
This book might have been better titled as "Failure of the Government to Keep Track of Key Witnesses During a High-Profile Trial".
3 stars, under protest.
It's true that you get what you pay for, and since this was free via Amazon, I guess you know how this review is gonna go.
What I Liked:
-The writing was good. The story the author told, however, was not the story I expected to read.
-But despite my expectations, it was well-written and did hold my attention. Plus, I did not guess the ending - as convoluted as it was. Hence the 3-star rating, even though it wasn't memorable.
What I Disliked:
-I was so hyped for this book, but it missed the mark on several levels for me. It was suspenseful, but not the scary suspense that I anticipated. The serial killings were only treated as a backdrop and really weren't central to the story at all.
-The "reveal" wasn't handled well. Instead of a steady, slow realization of the truth, we got the whole messy twist plopped down in front of us in the form of a 3-4 page criminal confession. I hate those with a passion.
What I Wanted More Of:
-Stories about serial killers and/or their wives should be eerie and creepy and scary. This was more like a race-the-clock-before-something-bad-happens kind of story.
-I wanted to care more about these characters - any of them; however, I didn't. We didn't meet the son before he was taken. We hardly even met the MC before everything all the action started. Which was OK, but the bits and pieces of backstory we got throughout the book weren't enough to make me feel like I could trust her or even feel sorry for her.
This book might have been better titled as "Failure of the Government to Keep Track of Key Witnesses During a High-Profile Trial".
3 stars, under protest.
December 1, 2014
I love a good thriller.
1. It holds my attention right from the start
2. Its fast paced and doesn't falter
3. The story weaves and opens up surprises and shocks you never expected
Yep, its got all this and more!
Here we have a woman who has a child, a little boy. Obviously going by the title, you know she was married to a Serial Killer. He is now in prison. She changed her identity.
Her son is taken.
What would you do to get your son back?
Here you see a woman that would do anything, absolutely anything to get her son back, she only has hours.
I can't give away the story too much, but I can say this. TALK ABOUT A SHOCK at the end. I was what? what! WHAT!!!! I know [just like me] you read peoples reviews and you think....Ok OK already, I hear "pager turner" "what a twist at the end"
But I don't know what else to say that isn't a review cliche because..........its not just the end that has you gasping, its the pages along the way.
I have a vivid imagination, and oh yes! its in technicolor in my mind.....believe me! and I saw this book unraveling like a film at a cinema.
The author has done a fantastic job on this thriller. I am so glad he allowed me to read this.
I saw the blurb and thought, hm, sounds right up my street. AND it was. Loved, loved, loved it.
This is the only book I have read by Robert Swartwood and now I have a couple of others I purchased which I want to get around to reading. He really is good and knows his 'stuff'
Thank you Robert Swartwood for allowing me to read one of your books and open yourself to my honest review "grins"
1. It holds my attention right from the start
2. Its fast paced and doesn't falter
3. The story weaves and opens up surprises and shocks you never expected
Yep, its got all this and more!
Here we have a woman who has a child, a little boy. Obviously going by the title, you know she was married to a Serial Killer. He is now in prison. She changed her identity.
Her son is taken.
What would you do to get your son back?
Here you see a woman that would do anything, absolutely anything to get her son back, she only has hours.
I can't give away the story too much, but I can say this. TALK ABOUT A SHOCK at the end. I was what? what! WHAT!!!! I know [just like me] you read peoples reviews and you think....Ok OK already, I hear "pager turner" "what a twist at the end"
But I don't know what else to say that isn't a review cliche because..........its not just the end that has you gasping, its the pages along the way.
I have a vivid imagination, and oh yes! its in technicolor in my mind.....believe me! and I saw this book unraveling like a film at a cinema.
The author has done a fantastic job on this thriller. I am so glad he allowed me to read this.
I saw the blurb and thought, hm, sounds right up my street. AND it was. Loved, loved, loved it.
This is the only book I have read by Robert Swartwood and now I have a couple of others I purchased which I want to get around to reading. He really is good and knows his 'stuff'
Thank you Robert Swartwood for allowing me to read one of your books and open yourself to my honest review "grins"
March 26, 2021
I just finished reading Pretty Little Things and decided to take a break from serial killers, and began reading Fiona Davis' The Address, as it's been recommended to me by several people. After the first fifty or so pages it hadn't grabbed me yet, so I decided to switch over and pick up a serial killer stand-by...there's never anything like a blood-thirsty whackjob to get my reading interest piqued!
This turned out to be a real page turner! I will admit, there were some jumps (leaps?) over reason and logic - and the heroine/victim/protagonist does a couple really stupid things. However, these books aren't written for the doctoral thesis crowd, and I can deal with them. If you can't get past the "they did what?!" syndrome, skip this one. But, if the occasional lack of judgement on the part of the characters doesn't bother you, go for it!
I really felt that I was almost watching a thriller film. The tension and suspense is palpable in the reading - and I would find myself straightening up and reading fast and furiously during certain moments of danger. Looking back, it's kind of funny. But, who cares? It's supposed to be a thriller/psychological action mystery and it is.
Of course, children in danger is always a good hook - and maniac's families are always rather forgotten characters in the real life world of serial killers, and they probably do have a remarkably difficult time dealing with their history and their own sense of guilt and naivete.
The author has written a taut, terse book which has a maximum of violence potential and deeds with a minimum of gore descriptions. I don't remember the language being particularly vulgar or offensive, if that sort of thing bothers you.
I recommend this to anybody who wants a fast, suspenseful, tense read with a good twist ending and a few surprise corners to turns along the way. Don't expect The Alienist - it's not. But, not every book has to be. Especially during the dog days of summer!
This turned out to be a real page turner! I will admit, there were some jumps (leaps?) over reason and logic - and the heroine/victim/protagonist does a couple really stupid things. However, these books aren't written for the doctoral thesis crowd, and I can deal with them. If you can't get past the "they did what?!" syndrome, skip this one. But, if the occasional lack of judgement on the part of the characters doesn't bother you, go for it!
I really felt that I was almost watching a thriller film. The tension and suspense is palpable in the reading - and I would find myself straightening up and reading fast and furiously during certain moments of danger. Looking back, it's kind of funny. But, who cares? It's supposed to be a thriller/psychological action mystery and it is.
Of course, children in danger is always a good hook - and maniac's families are always rather forgotten characters in the real life world of serial killers, and they probably do have a remarkably difficult time dealing with their history and their own sense of guilt and naivete.
The author has written a taut, terse book which has a maximum of violence potential and deeds with a minimum of gore descriptions. I don't remember the language being particularly vulgar or offensive, if that sort of thing bothers you.
I recommend this to anybody who wants a fast, suspenseful, tense read with a good twist ending and a few surprise corners to turns along the way. Don't expect The Alienist - it's not. But, not every book has to be. Especially during the dog days of summer!
October 25, 2016
This story was really good. Great narration by Tanya Eby (audible review)
I enjoyed the mystery that kept me guessing the whole way through, all the way to the end. I liked Elizabeth for the most part, she did do a couple stupid things but the rest of the story made up for it.
I don't want to say too much to give a way the mystery. But this was a good one. So just know if you want read\listen to something to keep you guessing this is one. Things were constantly happening and there was lots of dialogue throughout the entire book. There is no sex in the story.
As for the narration, it was great. I am a Tanya Eby fan. The men sound like men and everyone gets their own distinct voice.
I enjoyed the mystery that kept me guessing the whole way through, all the way to the end. I liked Elizabeth for the most part, she did do a couple stupid things but the rest of the story made up for it.
I don't want to say too much to give a way the mystery. But this was a good one. So just know if you want read\listen to something to keep you guessing this is one. Things were constantly happening and there was lots of dialogue throughout the entire book. There is no sex in the story.
As for the narration, it was great. I am a Tanya Eby fan. The men sound like men and everyone gets their own distinct voice.
December 8, 2013
Okay. I admit it. I was one of those high school teenagers who liked to read true crime fiction and was obsessed with stories about serial killers. I think I even owned a mass market Encyclopedia of Serial Killers at one time. But not anymore!
But when I came across Robert Swartwood's The Serial Killer's Wife over at GoodReads and read the blurb, discovering it was a fictional story told from the perspective of a serial killer's wife, I was intrigued. So, I emailed Mr. Swartwood and asked if he'd be interested in sending me a copy for review, which he gladly provided.
Elizabeth Piccioni's husband is a convicted serial killer. Five years ago during his trial, she decided to run away with her newborn son, change their names, and start a new life. Within just pages of being introduced, Elizabeth receives a call that her son is being held hostage. Her horrible past, which she thought she had escaped, suddenly comes back to haunt her.
Elizabeth must take an unwanted trip down memory lane to seek out what the kidnapper wants - her husband's trophies from the murders he committed - if she wants her son back. And the first stop where the kidnapper sends her is the home of a child molester who recently took up residence right in her own neighborhood.
From there, Swartwood creates a grapevine of secondary characters that both help and hinder Elizabeth during her search, which must be completed in one hundred hours or her son will die. We meet Todd, the man she's dating now, her brother Jim, her husband's old lawyer, a bar owner that helped Elizabeth with a job a long time ago, the bar owner's bodyguards, the FBI agent that arrested her husband, the agent's partner/love interest, an old friend now living in Elizabeth's old house, an old girlfriend of Elizabeth's and her new spouse, the fame-crazed widower of one of the women who her husband killed, and Elizabeth's husband himself! And one of them is the kidnapper that is stringing Elizabeth along!
For me, the story got off to a great start. I was along for the ride as Elizabeth and Todd jump in the car and head back to her old hometown. Unfortunately, the book tends to lose steam at times when a secondary character is introduced and their backstory is revealed as the reader learns how Elizabeth knows them and why she is seeking them out.
Swartwood drives the story with tight dialogue and enough "clue revealing" to keep you guessing and to keep you wanting to know more. I was racing through the story to discover who the bad guy was and how the story would end, which by the way was a conclusion I never saw coming. I wasn't fooled by the more obvious direction he was leading you in, but I was completely caught off guard when the bad guy was finally revealed!
Overall, I thought this was a fun, fast, and refreshing read. The book's cover leads you to believe it could be a hardboiled graphic mystery, but it is more of a suspenseful race against time with a classic "who-dun-it" feel. Well done! I look forward to reading more from Mr. Swartwood and already have his book, The Calling, lined up.
But when I came across Robert Swartwood's The Serial Killer's Wife over at GoodReads and read the blurb, discovering it was a fictional story told from the perspective of a serial killer's wife, I was intrigued. So, I emailed Mr. Swartwood and asked if he'd be interested in sending me a copy for review, which he gladly provided.
Elizabeth Piccioni's husband is a convicted serial killer. Five years ago during his trial, she decided to run away with her newborn son, change their names, and start a new life. Within just pages of being introduced, Elizabeth receives a call that her son is being held hostage. Her horrible past, which she thought she had escaped, suddenly comes back to haunt her.
Elizabeth must take an unwanted trip down memory lane to seek out what the kidnapper wants - her husband's trophies from the murders he committed - if she wants her son back. And the first stop where the kidnapper sends her is the home of a child molester who recently took up residence right in her own neighborhood.
From there, Swartwood creates a grapevine of secondary characters that both help and hinder Elizabeth during her search, which must be completed in one hundred hours or her son will die. We meet Todd, the man she's dating now, her brother Jim, her husband's old lawyer, a bar owner that helped Elizabeth with a job a long time ago, the bar owner's bodyguards, the FBI agent that arrested her husband, the agent's partner/love interest, an old friend now living in Elizabeth's old house, an old girlfriend of Elizabeth's and her new spouse, the fame-crazed widower of one of the women who her husband killed, and Elizabeth's husband himself! And one of them is the kidnapper that is stringing Elizabeth along!
For me, the story got off to a great start. I was along for the ride as Elizabeth and Todd jump in the car and head back to her old hometown. Unfortunately, the book tends to lose steam at times when a secondary character is introduced and their backstory is revealed as the reader learns how Elizabeth knows them and why she is seeking them out.
Swartwood drives the story with tight dialogue and enough "clue revealing" to keep you guessing and to keep you wanting to know more. I was racing through the story to discover who the bad guy was and how the story would end, which by the way was a conclusion I never saw coming. I wasn't fooled by the more obvious direction he was leading you in, but I was completely caught off guard when the bad guy was finally revealed!
Overall, I thought this was a fun, fast, and refreshing read. The book's cover leads you to believe it could be a hardboiled graphic mystery, but it is more of a suspenseful race against time with a classic "who-dun-it" feel. Well done! I look forward to reading more from Mr. Swartwood and already have his book, The Calling, lined up.
December 11, 2023
Review to come.
October 23, 2016
Nearly perfect read!
This book catches your attention from the very beginning, with teachers sitting around talking about a child molester who just moved into their neighborhood, and one teacher trying to figure out a way to murder him. And then, with a phone call to Elizabeth/Sarah the story really gets going. The bad guy, Cain, sends her to the child molesters house, where the first awful thing happens, (you’ll have to read the book to find out what happened.) Then she goes to the bar she used to work at to see a friend of hers, (the second awful thing happens there.) All the while Cain keeps calling and leaving her texts about her kidnapped son. Her boyfriend, Todd, is with her during all her traveling, to do Cain’s bidding, but I wasn’t too impressed since he told her he was “scared” when she told him what was going on.
Elizabeth and Todd head to Philadelphia and there’s a trail of dead bodies left along the way, while trying to reach her imprisoned husband to find out where his trophies are. It was a sad and exciting trip.
My biggest problem with this book, and I really didn’t see any point to it, was that Elizabeth thought about killing her infant son because her serial killer husband’s blood ran in the child’s veins. Really? And when she couldn’t do that she started cutting herself, leaving 100+ scars on her stomach and chest, as punishment. I really didn’t get that part of the book at all. And later, when she bit down on her tongue until she made it bleed. Seriously? Geez author. Bite down on your own tongue and see how quickly you stop before it bleeds. That’s always the stupidest things I can ever read, and authors write that crap all the time.
And then at the end of the story? OMG, I DID NOT SEE THAT COMING. That was the best crazy twist I’d ever read. It made the couple of silly things about the book quickly forgettable. I stayed up until 3:10 in the morning reading the book then laid awake thinking about the end for another hour. I just couldn’t get over that unbelievable ending.
There was no romance or sex in this book but the F-bomb was dropped 44 times.
As to the narrator: Tanya Eby did a great job. As long as she make the men sound like men I’m very happy. There’s nothing worse than a female narrator who has a man sounding girly because she doesn’t even try to sound manly.
This book catches your attention from the very beginning, with teachers sitting around talking about a child molester who just moved into their neighborhood, and one teacher trying to figure out a way to murder him. And then, with a phone call to Elizabeth/Sarah the story really gets going. The bad guy, Cain, sends her to the child molesters house, where the first awful thing happens, (you’ll have to read the book to find out what happened.) Then she goes to the bar she used to work at to see a friend of hers, (the second awful thing happens there.) All the while Cain keeps calling and leaving her texts about her kidnapped son. Her boyfriend, Todd, is with her during all her traveling, to do Cain’s bidding, but I wasn’t too impressed since he told her he was “scared” when she told him what was going on.
Elizabeth and Todd head to Philadelphia and there’s a trail of dead bodies left along the way, while trying to reach her imprisoned husband to find out where his trophies are. It was a sad and exciting trip.
My biggest problem with this book, and I really didn’t see any point to it, was that Elizabeth thought about killing her infant son because her serial killer husband’s blood ran in the child’s veins. Really? And when she couldn’t do that she started cutting herself, leaving 100+ scars on her stomach and chest, as punishment. I really didn’t get that part of the book at all. And later, when she bit down on her tongue until she made it bleed. Seriously? Geez author. Bite down on your own tongue and see how quickly you stop before it bleeds. That’s always the stupidest things I can ever read, and authors write that crap all the time.
And then at the end of the story? OMG, I DID NOT SEE THAT COMING. That was the best crazy twist I’d ever read. It made the couple of silly things about the book quickly forgettable. I stayed up until 3:10 in the morning reading the book then laid awake thinking about the end for another hour. I just couldn’t get over that unbelievable ending.
There was no romance or sex in this book but the F-bomb was dropped 44 times.
As to the narrator: Tanya Eby did a great job. As long as she make the men sound like men I’m very happy. There’s nothing worse than a female narrator who has a man sounding girly because she doesn’t even try to sound manly.
November 16, 2014
The Serial Killers' Wife
Reading this book is like riding in the passenger's seat of a race car in one of those road races through the countryside. The countryside goes by in a blur, every moment is a bang- bang moment as once the action begins, and it hardly ever stops as you race along to the finish.
The wife in question has relocated along with her young son to a new town and a new job as a teacher's aide. One day she gets a phone message that her son has been abducted. The kidnapper sends a text and photo of the boy with a C-4 plastic bomb attached and a timer marking off the time remaining until detonation. Her job is to deliver to the abductor the" trophies" her serial killer husband from his victims.
The plot is exciting enough so you don't care much about logic, just the action. As the wife searches for the trophies, the abductor becomes a killer as he murders everyone the wife contacts for help. If the reader begins to suspect an accomplice, well maybe, but who? Across the country she goes with bloody corpses in her wake.
Everything hangs together until near the end, when some police authorities simply do not act logically. As always , killers cannot resist blabbing while they have the drop on good guys, talking until help arrives. The heroine, who has taken some self- defense classes, turns out to fight like a black belt and shoot, under great stress, like a Navy Seal. There is also a bit about her removing bullets from her revolver for some un fathomable ( to me) reason before she faces the bad guy.
So the road racing car runs out of gas with a disappointing ending. But up to then it is fun. So a so-so two stars for this one .
Reading this book is like riding in the passenger's seat of a race car in one of those road races through the countryside. The countryside goes by in a blur, every moment is a bang- bang moment as once the action begins, and it hardly ever stops as you race along to the finish.
The wife in question has relocated along with her young son to a new town and a new job as a teacher's aide. One day she gets a phone message that her son has been abducted. The kidnapper sends a text and photo of the boy with a C-4 plastic bomb attached and a timer marking off the time remaining until detonation. Her job is to deliver to the abductor the" trophies" her serial killer husband from his victims.
The plot is exciting enough so you don't care much about logic, just the action. As the wife searches for the trophies, the abductor becomes a killer as he murders everyone the wife contacts for help. If the reader begins to suspect an accomplice, well maybe, but who? Across the country she goes with bloody corpses in her wake.
Everything hangs together until near the end, when some police authorities simply do not act logically. As always , killers cannot resist blabbing while they have the drop on good guys, talking until help arrives. The heroine, who has taken some self- defense classes, turns out to fight like a black belt and shoot, under great stress, like a Navy Seal. There is also a bit about her removing bullets from her revolver for some un fathomable ( to me) reason before she faces the bad guy.
So the road racing car runs out of gas with a disappointing ending. But up to then it is fun. So a so-so two stars for this one .
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 28, 2013
Fast paced thriller with a great twist.
This is the type of book you can't put down. In fact I didn't! Finished in two sessions over two days!
Without giving away the plot too much the story revolves around Elizabeth and her son Matthew who is kidnapped. The story follows Elisabeth in her attempt to find her son and be reunited.
I highly recommend this book.
This is the type of book you can't put down. In fact I didn't! Finished in two sessions over two days!
Without giving away the plot too much the story revolves around Elizabeth and her son Matthew who is kidnapped. The story follows Elisabeth in her attempt to find her son and be reunited.
I highly recommend this book.
September 22, 2023
Didnt finish this book got 50 percent into it just wasn’t feeling it, life’s too short short finishes books your not enjoying
March 16, 2024
I’ve had this book for awhile & wasn’t sure what to expect so I kept putting it off until I was ready to potentially ready a book of death. Not at all what I expected. From the start this book jumps right into a constant game of who done it. Just when I thought I had it figured out something would happen to have me thinking something else. Awesome read & not gory at all - wished I picked it up sooner!
September 1, 2023
Kept me reading and kept me guessing.
March 15, 2024
So gripping 🫣🫣
April 25, 2024
I loved this! First book by this author and I am sooo glad I stumbled upon it. A great fast paced thriller that had me on the edge of my seat. I recommend!!
November 20, 2021
My friend Libby let me borrow this book. Lot is twists and turns to keep you interested and intrigued. Takes place in Kansas, Pennsylvania and New York.
March 22, 2022
This book has a neat concept--the wife of a convicted serial killer disappears after her husband is arrested for killing a series of women. 5yrs later a voice tells her he's got her son and she's got 100hrs to get him her husband's "trophies." The book starts off brightly enough but kind of goes sideways once the wife is on her mission. The story suffers from logic issues. Warning: partial spoilers below...
The wife's 1st challenge is to get a convicted pedophile to confess which turns out to have nothing to do with story. The wife is very meek but a quarter of the way through it turns out she's been taught judo and is a crack shot. Her issues with cutting was out of place. The gangster being a serial killer fan was weird too. The people behind the killings and the convoluted situation was just silly by the end. Why the serial killer kept the secrets he did didn't make sense and he could've saved himself and his wife quite easily. And the happy ending wouldn't have happened, even with the justifiable circumstances.
The weirdest part of the book was it felt mean-spirited. Most of the characters were just flat-out nasty without real reason. The school teachers, the lawyer, the FBI, the best friend, etc. overly hostile without much justification.
2 stars is a little harsh for the book. It's more like 2.5 stars because it's a neat idea and there are some genuinely unexpected twists and turns, but it's just clumsily handled on several levels.
The wife's 1st challenge is to get a convicted pedophile to confess which turns out to have nothing to do with story. The wife is very meek but a quarter of the way through it turns out she's been taught judo and is a crack shot. Her issues with cutting was out of place. The gangster being a serial killer fan was weird too. The people behind the killings and the convoluted situation was just silly by the end. Why the serial killer kept the secrets he did didn't make sense and he could've saved himself and his wife quite easily. And the happy ending wouldn't have happened, even with the justifiable circumstances.
The weirdest part of the book was it felt mean-spirited. Most of the characters were just flat-out nasty without real reason. The school teachers, the lawyer, the FBI, the best friend, etc. overly hostile without much justification.
2 stars is a little harsh for the book. It's more like 2.5 stars because it's a neat idea and there are some genuinely unexpected twists and turns, but it's just clumsily handled on several levels.
October 18, 2023
Overall not a bad read, I just picked it way too early
February 26, 2016
This was an interesting twist to the thriller genre. The serial killer in question is already in custody and in prison having been found guilty for what are being called “The Widower Murders”. The designation comes about because the ring finger and wedding rings from each of the female victims has been removed.
The wife in question, rather than go through the sadness and humiliation of the trial, ran away with their infant son and has been in hiding for the last five or six years. As the story opens, she is working as a teachers assistant at a school. She receives a mysterious phone call threatening the life of her son.
As the story unfolds, the wife has 100 hours to bring the ring fingers and the rings to the voice on the phone or her son will be killed. Each hour she receives a photo of her son laying on a bed, his mouth taped with a C-4 laden collar tied around his neck.
She has to basically backtrack her movements returning to places she hid out in order to receive help from people she has trusted in the past. Many of those who help are at risk and additionally, there are enough shady characters she has had to rely on that the reader is never 100% certain that those she trusts are really there to help or hinder. This adds a level of intrigue to the story that keeps the reader off balance.
It's a chase and a race against the clock. Others are pulled into the story including an FBI agent who was disgraced after the wife ran away and did not testify. His son is abducted by the same mysterious stranger and also has a C-4 collar on his neck with the threat of death imposed in order to solicit the FBI's help in retrieving the fingers. Why do they want the fingers and rings?
Ha! That, you will have to read the book to find out. Suffice to say, the reason is surprising as is the outcome of the book. I love a story that you can't get the ending until its the end and this is one of those. This is truly, a very good thriller. While I can't say I felt any one way or another for any of the characters, I did enjoy the thrill of the chase. Well worth a read.
The wife in question, rather than go through the sadness and humiliation of the trial, ran away with their infant son and has been in hiding for the last five or six years. As the story opens, she is working as a teachers assistant at a school. She receives a mysterious phone call threatening the life of her son.
As the story unfolds, the wife has 100 hours to bring the ring fingers and the rings to the voice on the phone or her son will be killed. Each hour she receives a photo of her son laying on a bed, his mouth taped with a C-4 laden collar tied around his neck.
She has to basically backtrack her movements returning to places she hid out in order to receive help from people she has trusted in the past. Many of those who help are at risk and additionally, there are enough shady characters she has had to rely on that the reader is never 100% certain that those she trusts are really there to help or hinder. This adds a level of intrigue to the story that keeps the reader off balance.
It's a chase and a race against the clock. Others are pulled into the story including an FBI agent who was disgraced after the wife ran away and did not testify. His son is abducted by the same mysterious stranger and also has a C-4 collar on his neck with the threat of death imposed in order to solicit the FBI's help in retrieving the fingers. Why do they want the fingers and rings?
Ha! That, you will have to read the book to find out. Suffice to say, the reason is surprising as is the outcome of the book. I love a story that you can't get the ending until its the end and this is one of those. This is truly, a very good thriller. While I can't say I felt any one way or another for any of the characters, I did enjoy the thrill of the chase. Well worth a read.
April 16, 2019
A good read
An engrossing story that will keep you guessing. Fast paced, I enjoyed it and didn’t figure out the twists. Usually I do!
An engrossing story that will keep you guessing. Fast paced, I enjoyed it and didn’t figure out the twists. Usually I do!
June 18, 2011
What would you do to save your child? Clearly Elizabeth will do anything necessary. She turns out to be a character that is strong enough to do what it takes, while still retaining her humanity and compassion. She manages to fight through loosing everything and rebuilding a life for herself and her son only to be attacked just when she thinks she is safe. Even with that, she doesn’t break down and give up, but continues on through more losses than anyone should be expected to deal with and betrayal to succeed in doing the right thing. Leaves me hoping 2 things, that if needed I could be that strong, and that I never need to be that strong.
An excellent story from a writer that is still getting even better in his craft (I will love to see where he is in 2 years) and a twist that caught me off guard. Good job!
An excellent story from a writer that is still getting even better in his craft (I will love to see where he is in 2 years) and a twist that caught me off guard. Good job!
April 29, 2013
I read this book in 24 hours between kids, work, and practices if that tells you anything. This book was my first read by Robert Swartwood and I am very glad I read it. It was exciting, thrilling, kept me guessing until the end. I am definitely a new fan and I am looking forward to reading more of his books. I have been looking for a new fresh author that holds my attention and I have found it. Just read the book, you won't be disappointed.
January 15, 2016
There were parts I liked. There were twists I enjoyed and didn't see coming. But some if it was so obvious, and some if it was just so trite, this woman is almost a superhero, escaping the FBI, knocking out grown men, disarming grown men, it was nearly insulting to a reader's intelligence. It was still a fun, easy and fast read.
August 20, 2023
Was this the best book I ever read? No, but I did enjoy reading it and really wanted to see how it all ended. There were a few inconsistencies and some of the scenes were a bit over the top, but the story was good and I am always happy to overlook the bad parts as long as I am liking the progression of the story…
December 28, 2012
Another page turner. I simply loved the action in this book and all the twists and turns kept you wondering what would happen next. I think Robert Swartwood has the ability to be the next Michael Connelly or James Patterson based on this book. Definitely a unique and fun story.
August 3, 2014
I thought this book great!Good writing,good characters,a lot of suspense and a lots of twists and turns leading to a ending that leaves you feeling like a great read should.I highly recommend giving this book a try.
August 1, 2014
Wow!
The story was expertly woven together each piece joined exactly right.Well worth your time.Characters were well done and likeable for the most part. Surprising twists and turns.
The story was expertly woven together each piece joined exactly right.Well worth your time.Characters were well done and likeable for the most part. Surprising twists and turns.
May 15, 2012
The Serial Killer's Wife by Robert Smartwood was a new twist on murder and mayhem. Gripping from beginning to end. When your child is kidnapped, how far will you go to save him?
July 21, 2014
Great read
I was surprised by the ending! this almost never happens in mystery novels!! great rhythm in the storytelling! highly recommend
I was surprised by the ending! this almost never happens in mystery novels!! great rhythm in the storytelling! highly recommend
November 24, 2014
This was a relentless, lightning fast, well-written thriller with clever twists and turns until the end. Swartwood is definitely one thriller author you will want on your radar.
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