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The Silent Wife
Goodreads Choice Award
Nominee for Readers' Favorite Mystery & Thriller (2013)A chilling psychological thriller portraying the disintegration of a relationship down to the deadliest point when murdering your husband suddenly makes perfect sense.
Todd Gilbert and Jodie Brett are in a bad place in their relationship. They've been together for twenty-eight years, and with no children to worry about there has been little to disrupt their affluent Chicago lifestyle. But there has also been little to hold it together, and beneath the surface lie ever-widening cracks. 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. When it becomes clear that their precarious world could disintegrate at any moment, Jodie knows she stands to lose everything. It's only now she will discover just how much she's truly capable of...
Todd Gilbert and Jodie Brett are in a bad place in their relationship. They've been together for twenty-eight years, and with no children to worry about there has been little to disrupt their affluent Chicago lifestyle. But there has also been little to hold it together, and beneath the surface lie ever-widening cracks. 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. When it becomes clear that their precarious world could disintegrate at any moment, Jodie knows she stands to lose everything. It's only now she will discover just how much she's truly capable of...
326 pages, Paperback
First published June 25, 2013
4900 people are currently reading
79423 people want to read
About the author
A.S.A. Harrison
5 books473 followersA. S. A (Susan) Harrison’s previous books include Orgasms (Coach House Press, 1974), Revelations, with Margaret Dragu (Nightwood Editions, 1987), and Zodicat Speaks (Viking Penguin, 1996). The Silent Wife is her debut novel and she was at work on a new psychological thriller when she died in 2013, aged 65. Harrison was married to the visual artist John Massey and lived in Toronto.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 11,082 reviews
July 23, 2016
4.5
Newest pet peeve: When the marketing department in a publishing house decides it would be a great idea to promote just about any new psychological thriller as "The NEW Gone Girl" to sell the hell out of it. This seems unfair to me. If a person loved Gone Girl-they could be disappointed, and if they hated Gone Girl-they might not give it a chance.
I loved Gone Girl! I loved THE SILENT WIFE! THE SILENT WIFE is NOT Gone Girl. Yes, there are a few similarities. A toxic marriage, husband and wife narrators, and unlikable (for most readers) main characters, but to me this is where the similarities end.
Setting:
Chicago in Autumn.
The Players:
"Him" Todd (the husband) -A despicable man in his mid-40s, a perpetual cheater who has zero self-awareness, and uses his childhood traumas as an excuse to do whatever he pleases no matter who it hurts. (the typical 40 year old man really).....kidding.
"Her" Jodi (the wife) -A non-confrontational part-time psychologist, part-time Martha Stewart-esque housewife-who because of childhood trauma, has learned to bury anything unpleasant so deep that it is like it never happened.
The Plot:
After 20 years in a "common law marriage" Todd knocks up his best friends daughter and decides to leave Jodi completely penniless. Jodi decides Todd should die.
As usual I read quite a few reviews before writing mine, and as usual I am going to disagree with a lot of them. Cause that's how I roooollllll......or maybe it is because I have no idea what I am talking about. I just don't get why some reviewers have to like the people they are reading about, to like a book. Did you like Betty Jane Hudson or Blanche in Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? How about Reality T.V's Richard Hatch on Survivor, some of you I am sure watched..and loved to hate. So what is so different about fiction novels? I adore books with flawed characters! I loved to hate Todd in THE SILENT WIFE. I loved every shake of my head when I read his thoughts, and every time I caught myself rolling my eyes at his stupidity. He was real. I hated that he was real, but sadly enough I have met more men like him than I care to mention, and I loved Jodi! I sympathized with Jodi. It was completely believable to me that she would turn out to be exactly as she is because of her past and regardless of her profession (I am the daughter of a psychiatrist-and believe me speaking from experience, they don't say psychiatrists have the craziest families for no reason.)
This is a wonderful debut fiction novel from Susan Harrison, and I was very sad to read- in an article about her death in April/2013- that it will also be her last.
Newest pet peeve: When the marketing department in a publishing house decides it would be a great idea to promote just about any new psychological thriller as "The NEW Gone Girl" to sell the hell out of it. This seems unfair to me. If a person loved Gone Girl-they could be disappointed, and if they hated Gone Girl-they might not give it a chance.
I loved Gone Girl! I loved THE SILENT WIFE! THE SILENT WIFE is NOT Gone Girl. Yes, there are a few similarities. A toxic marriage, husband and wife narrators, and unlikable (for most readers) main characters, but to me this is where the similarities end.
Setting:
Chicago in Autumn.
The Players:
"Him" Todd (the husband) -A despicable man in his mid-40s, a perpetual cheater who has zero self-awareness, and uses his childhood traumas as an excuse to do whatever he pleases no matter who it hurts. (the typical 40 year old man really).....kidding.
"Her" Jodi (the wife) -A non-confrontational part-time psychologist, part-time Martha Stewart-esque housewife-who because of childhood trauma, has learned to bury anything unpleasant so deep that it is like it never happened.
The Plot:
After 20 years in a "common law marriage" Todd knocks up his best friends daughter and decides to leave Jodi completely penniless. Jodi decides Todd should die.
As usual I read quite a few reviews before writing mine, and as usual I am going to disagree with a lot of them. Cause that's how I roooollllll......or maybe it is because I have no idea what I am talking about. I just don't get why some reviewers have to like the people they are reading about, to like a book. Did you like Betty Jane Hudson or Blanche in Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? How about Reality T.V's Richard Hatch on Survivor, some of you I am sure watched..and loved to hate. So what is so different about fiction novels? I adore books with flawed characters! I loved to hate Todd in THE SILENT WIFE. I loved every shake of my head when I read his thoughts, and every time I caught myself rolling my eyes at his stupidity. He was real. I hated that he was real, but sadly enough I have met more men like him than I care to mention, and I loved Jodi! I sympathized with Jodi. It was completely believable to me that she would turn out to be exactly as she is because of her past and regardless of her profession (I am the daughter of a psychiatrist-and believe me speaking from experience, they don't say psychiatrists have the craziest families for no reason.)
This is a wonderful debut fiction novel from Susan Harrison, and I was very sad to read- in an article about her death in April/2013- that it will also be her last.
June 22, 2013
Sorry, but this is not a chilling psychological thriller. It's a literary exploration of what happens when people get comfortable and let life just happen to them. Parts of it were actually quite good. But sticking the phrase "a few short months are all it will take to make a killer out of her" on the first page doesn't make a book a thriller, not when there's nothing else sustaining the suspense through the majority of the book. It's not bad, but it's definitely been mis-marketed. Plenty of psychology. Little to no thrill.
(review copy received via NetGalley)
(review copy received via NetGalley)
June 24, 2018
this book has been compared to gone girl, but that is a somewhat flawed n' lazy comparison. however, if your response to that book was any of the following:
Had a difficult time getting through this book-didn't really care for the characters
I hate the general misanthropy that infests most of modern fiction.
I prefer a book with at least one sympathetic character... and I couldn't stand any of these people.
unlikable people doing unlikable things
There wasn't a character you could even try to like!!
you probably won't like this book. the above responses are the kinds of responses that frustrate me when i read them. no one is asking for you to become friends with these characters - they aren't there for you to like. me and catherine earnshaw would probably not get along over drinks, but the strength of that character as written is undeniable. characters exist as participants in a story. you are free to judge them, like or dislike them, but to dismiss the antihero in literature is to deprive yourself of about half of the world's published texts.
the comparisons between these books pretty much begin and end with the observation that this is a novel told in alternating narratives of a couple who have been together a long time, who together have a perfectly psychologically symbiotic but ultimately toxic relationship, but individually are…not the best people.
but nothing else is really sticking, comparison-wise. the writing in this one is far more detached. there is a dreamlike quality to it, and while the amy of g.g. is relentless and driven, here we have a woman in stubborn denial, and a man who is more acted-upon than acting. (okay, that last part might be similar)
this is a story about the complicity of complacency, as pat and faux-etic as that sounds. we have a childless couple who met, fittingly, when they were involved in a car crash together, and have been in a common-law marriage for twenty years. he is a serial philanderer, she is a practiced conflict-avoider and turn a blind eye-er. and they have co-existed this way for twenty years: he gets to sleep around and still come home to a spotless house and a gourmet meal, she gets to lead a life with all the fine things she covets and gets to feel useful in taking care of a man who needs to be taken care of.
which is frustrating no matter who the woman is, but in this case, we have a woman with multiple degrees who is a practicing therapist. heal thyself ?? no?
she does spend a lot of time in her head - they both do, and although they seem to have a certain degree of self-awareness, they also both have a lot of self-delusion and tunnel vision.
This is not her fault. None of this is her fault. She did her best to make it work with Todd. She was tolerant, understanding, and forgiving. She was not grasping or possessive. Unlike the women you see on the Dr. Phil show, who fall to pieces when the randy fellow happens to stray. Boo hoo. Women the world over have been putting up with far worse for centuries. Soul mates is a nice idea but rarely borne out in practice. Marriage coaches like Dr. Phil raise the bar too high, teach women to expect too much, and end up breeding discontent. We live alone in our cluttered psyches, possessed by our entrenched beliefs, our fatuous desires, our endless contradictions - and like it or not we have to put up with this in one another. Do you want your man to be a man or do you want to turn him into a pussy? Don't think you can have it both ways. She did not make that mistake with Todd. She gave him plenty of space. He had nothing to complain about. This is not her fault.
"this" is the price she is paying for her twenty-year indulgence of todd's behavior. because with the twenty-year inch he has been given, he has taken a county: his new girlfriend (half his age and the daughter of his oldest friend) has become pregnant and is demanding marriage. and todd is letting himself get talked into it, in his panting sex-blindedness and his desire not for a child, but for an heir; a desire stubbornly refused by jodi all these years.
but this new relationship is unfulfilling. natasha is much younger, much more demanding, messy, judgmental, dismissive, critical, bossy - everything that jodi is not. and todd's fatal mistake is not in impregnating another woman, or even leaving jodi, both of which she has accepted, overcome, and developed "solutions" for, and not for his attempts to have it all - to continue his sexual relationship with jodi despite his pregnant fiancée at home. his mistake is in rocking the boat - threatening the comfort of the domestic charade jodi has so carefully constructed when he tries to have her evicted from their condo. you do not mess with a domestic goddess' place of business.
their unspoken marital arrangement has always hinged on the rule that "you do not bring that life into this life," and the first time he does, there are repercussions and she unsheathes her claws, but this bigger transgression is going to leave deeper scratches.
because illinois has no common-law recognition, jodi has no rights, despite her years of service, and her religiously-maintained two-patients-a-day practice is not nearly enough to support the lifestyle to which she has become accustomed, and jodi is absolutely devoted to routine.
At forty-five, Jodi still sees herself as a young woman. She does not have her eye on the future but lives very much in the moment, keeping her focus on the everyday. She assumes, without having thought about it, that things will go on indefinitely in their imperfect yet entirely acceptable way.
and our girl is gonna protect that routine with all she's got.
todd is a bizarre study. he is pure self-indulgence:
The indwelling presence was strong in him in his younger years - in his childhood as he learned to distinguish himself from his parents, when he broke free and discovered the world at large, the exhilaration of it, and then as he found his feet in business and felt his power and his blamelessness, and when he first encountered Jodi, and through her the substance of communion. He's a lover in love with the world, and when he's in form the world gives back. It's how he wants to live every minute of every day. He wants it all unwrapped. He wants to look the barefaced mystery in the eye, be a participant, immersed - not an observer, a packager, a regretter.
This is not the way some people see it. Jodi, for one. But you can't live your life by other people's rules.
he does not understand why jodi is caught off-balance by his canceling of her credit cards, or by his attempts to evict her, and while he is very self-involved, his self-awareness has its limits.
Seated on his stool after such a long absence he succumbs to a tender devotion, a reverence for this welcoming sanctuary with its quaint accoutrements and rituals, its shakers and strainers, goblets, flutes, and snifters, pickled onions and lemon twists, distinctive paper coasters, a different one for every drink, its buzzing congregation, and the secular priest behind the bar performing the time-honored rites. It makes him think of the church he used to attend with his mother, who raised him Roman Catholic, or tried to. He never could get his head around the old man in the sky, but he was smitten from the start with the glamour and mystique of it; the solemn processions, colorful robes, smoking censer, chanting and singing….He connected with the mystery and the rapture, and now he inhibits the bar at the Drake in much the same way.
he has enough awareness to make the connection between the tokens of spirituality to the ritual of the bar, but he doesn't take it that one step further: the things he appreciates and needs in his relationships are the very same domestic rituals, and natasha cannot provide them for him. he needs the drink waiting for him at home, the folded newspaper, the elaborate meal. he needs the walking of the dog and the view from his castle. and without that, he falters. his faltering comes in the shape of stasis, of being bullied by natasha into things he doesn't really want to do, into falling into old habits when he feels cornered, into letting his life live him and not taking a stand and waiting until the day he moves out to tell jodi he is leaving, and being baffled by her reaction. he becomes hesitant and malleable.
and the prey that hesitates is the prey that gets eaten.
the gg-comparison is a little misleading, the synopsis is a little misleading, but all in all i found this book fascinating and frustrating and thought-provoking. which is all a book should ever be expected to do.
come to my blog!
Had a difficult time getting through this book-didn't really care for the characters
I hate the general misanthropy that infests most of modern fiction.
I prefer a book with at least one sympathetic character... and I couldn't stand any of these people.
unlikable people doing unlikable things
There wasn't a character you could even try to like!!
you probably won't like this book. the above responses are the kinds of responses that frustrate me when i read them. no one is asking for you to become friends with these characters - they aren't there for you to like. me and catherine earnshaw would probably not get along over drinks, but the strength of that character as written is undeniable. characters exist as participants in a story. you are free to judge them, like or dislike them, but to dismiss the antihero in literature is to deprive yourself of about half of the world's published texts.
the comparisons between these books pretty much begin and end with the observation that this is a novel told in alternating narratives of a couple who have been together a long time, who together have a perfectly psychologically symbiotic but ultimately toxic relationship, but individually are…not the best people.
but nothing else is really sticking, comparison-wise. the writing in this one is far more detached. there is a dreamlike quality to it, and while the amy of g.g. is relentless and driven, here we have a woman in stubborn denial, and a man who is more acted-upon than acting. (okay, that last part might be similar)
this is a story about the complicity of complacency, as pat and faux-etic as that sounds. we have a childless couple who met, fittingly, when they were involved in a car crash together, and have been in a common-law marriage for twenty years. he is a serial philanderer, she is a practiced conflict-avoider and turn a blind eye-er. and they have co-existed this way for twenty years: he gets to sleep around and still come home to a spotless house and a gourmet meal, she gets to lead a life with all the fine things she covets and gets to feel useful in taking care of a man who needs to be taken care of.
which is frustrating no matter who the woman is, but in this case, we have a woman with multiple degrees who is a practicing therapist. heal thyself ?? no?
she does spend a lot of time in her head - they both do, and although they seem to have a certain degree of self-awareness, they also both have a lot of self-delusion and tunnel vision.
This is not her fault. None of this is her fault. She did her best to make it work with Todd. She was tolerant, understanding, and forgiving. She was not grasping or possessive. Unlike the women you see on the Dr. Phil show, who fall to pieces when the randy fellow happens to stray. Boo hoo. Women the world over have been putting up with far worse for centuries. Soul mates is a nice idea but rarely borne out in practice. Marriage coaches like Dr. Phil raise the bar too high, teach women to expect too much, and end up breeding discontent. We live alone in our cluttered psyches, possessed by our entrenched beliefs, our fatuous desires, our endless contradictions - and like it or not we have to put up with this in one another. Do you want your man to be a man or do you want to turn him into a pussy? Don't think you can have it both ways. She did not make that mistake with Todd. She gave him plenty of space. He had nothing to complain about. This is not her fault.
"this" is the price she is paying for her twenty-year indulgence of todd's behavior. because with the twenty-year inch he has been given, he has taken a county: his new girlfriend (half his age and the daughter of his oldest friend) has become pregnant and is demanding marriage. and todd is letting himself get talked into it, in his panting sex-blindedness and his desire not for a child, but for an heir; a desire stubbornly refused by jodi all these years.
but this new relationship is unfulfilling. natasha is much younger, much more demanding, messy, judgmental, dismissive, critical, bossy - everything that jodi is not. and todd's fatal mistake is not in impregnating another woman, or even leaving jodi, both of which she has accepted, overcome, and developed "solutions" for, and not for his attempts to have it all - to continue his sexual relationship with jodi despite his pregnant fiancée at home. his mistake is in rocking the boat - threatening the comfort of the domestic charade jodi has so carefully constructed when he tries to have her evicted from their condo. you do not mess with a domestic goddess' place of business.
their unspoken marital arrangement has always hinged on the rule that "you do not bring that life into this life," and the first time he does, there are repercussions and she unsheathes her claws, but this bigger transgression is going to leave deeper scratches.
because illinois has no common-law recognition, jodi has no rights, despite her years of service, and her religiously-maintained two-patients-a-day practice is not nearly enough to support the lifestyle to which she has become accustomed, and jodi is absolutely devoted to routine.
At forty-five, Jodi still sees herself as a young woman. She does not have her eye on the future but lives very much in the moment, keeping her focus on the everyday. She assumes, without having thought about it, that things will go on indefinitely in their imperfect yet entirely acceptable way.
and our girl is gonna protect that routine with all she's got.
todd is a bizarre study. he is pure self-indulgence:
The indwelling presence was strong in him in his younger years - in his childhood as he learned to distinguish himself from his parents, when he broke free and discovered the world at large, the exhilaration of it, and then as he found his feet in business and felt his power and his blamelessness, and when he first encountered Jodi, and through her the substance of communion. He's a lover in love with the world, and when he's in form the world gives back. It's how he wants to live every minute of every day. He wants it all unwrapped. He wants to look the barefaced mystery in the eye, be a participant, immersed - not an observer, a packager, a regretter.
This is not the way some people see it. Jodi, for one. But you can't live your life by other people's rules.
he does not understand why jodi is caught off-balance by his canceling of her credit cards, or by his attempts to evict her, and while he is very self-involved, his self-awareness has its limits.
Seated on his stool after such a long absence he succumbs to a tender devotion, a reverence for this welcoming sanctuary with its quaint accoutrements and rituals, its shakers and strainers, goblets, flutes, and snifters, pickled onions and lemon twists, distinctive paper coasters, a different one for every drink, its buzzing congregation, and the secular priest behind the bar performing the time-honored rites. It makes him think of the church he used to attend with his mother, who raised him Roman Catholic, or tried to. He never could get his head around the old man in the sky, but he was smitten from the start with the glamour and mystique of it; the solemn processions, colorful robes, smoking censer, chanting and singing….He connected with the mystery and the rapture, and now he inhibits the bar at the Drake in much the same way.
he has enough awareness to make the connection between the tokens of spirituality to the ritual of the bar, but he doesn't take it that one step further: the things he appreciates and needs in his relationships are the very same domestic rituals, and natasha cannot provide them for him. he needs the drink waiting for him at home, the folded newspaper, the elaborate meal. he needs the walking of the dog and the view from his castle. and without that, he falters. his faltering comes in the shape of stasis, of being bullied by natasha into things he doesn't really want to do, into falling into old habits when he feels cornered, into letting his life live him and not taking a stand and waiting until the day he moves out to tell jodi he is leaving, and being baffled by her reaction. he becomes hesitant and malleable.
and the prey that hesitates is the prey that gets eaten.
the gg-comparison is a little misleading, the synopsis is a little misleading, but all in all i found this book fascinating and frustrating and thought-provoking. which is all a book should ever be expected to do.
come to my blog!
December 4, 2013
Jodi and Todd take turns telling the story of the final months of their crumbling marriage.
Reasons for the low rating: (1) It was NOT a psychological thriller. A thriller would mean something “thrilling” happens during the book, right? (2) Stop comparing books to Gone Girl. As always, apples and orangutans.
The book wasn’t completely horrible – I was able to get through it pretty quickly. However, it had some real lulls in the action with page upon page spent describing the most mundane activities and the big “twists and turns” at the end were very “meh”. I found I didn’t care enough about these characters to give a s*^t whether they lived or died. Those are the key ingredients for a 2 star rating.
Reasons for the low rating: (1) It was NOT a psychological thriller. A thriller would mean something “thrilling” happens during the book, right? (2) Stop comparing books to Gone Girl. As always, apples and orangutans.
The book wasn’t completely horrible – I was able to get through it pretty quickly. However, it had some real lulls in the action with page upon page spent describing the most mundane activities and the big “twists and turns” at the end were very “meh”. I found I didn’t care enough about these characters to give a s*^t whether they lived or died. Those are the key ingredients for a 2 star rating.
August 4, 2017
Update: This is a $1.99 Kindle special today --a great psychological mystery thriller --right to the very end of the book. If you have missed this one -- its GOOD!!!
I read this book yesterday ---
I thought it was a 'wonderful-creepy' -(even had me laughing) -mystery!
I tried to imagine my husband coming home night after night for 20 years --
KNOWING the guy was 'having-his-fun' from time to time on the side --
and never talking about it --
living with it --
Cooking him fabulous dinners...
He walks in the door:
"Honey I'm home"...
"Shall I pour the wine"?
FUN BOOK!
I read this book yesterday ---
I thought it was a 'wonderful-creepy' -(even had me laughing) -mystery!
I tried to imagine my husband coming home night after night for 20 years --
KNOWING the guy was 'having-his-fun' from time to time on the side --
and never talking about it --
living with it --
Cooking him fabulous dinners...
He walks in the door:
"Honey I'm home"...
"Shall I pour the wine"?
FUN BOOK!
September 3, 2013
***2 stars***
Out of respect for the author, who's no longer with us, I'll try to refrain myself from ranting like I usually do when I don't enjoy the book, and give only my honest opinion.
I saw this book mentioned in the article, when I was looking for a thriller to read. I was in the mood for something dark and twisted and stumbled upon couple of articles where this book was described as the "next big thing" and "this summers Gone Girl". But the thing that got me was this:
“With a spare, elegant, and deft hand, she paints two dueling psychological portraits of longtime live-in lovers who become putative killer and hapless victim in a tale that no one is likely to forget any time soon.
Sounds good, doesn't it?
Some of the reviews said it was just as good as Gone Girl, others said it was even better. So I dove in.
I personaly found this book extremely boring. It's a story about a relationship gone wrong. That's the only similarity to Gone girl.
There was very little dialogue. In some chapter there was no dialogue at all, apart from few lines of it when she was remembering something from her past. Imagine reading a whole chapter (16 to 27 pages) without a line of a dialogue. I found wife's character robotic and uninteresting. In the chapters told from wife's pov she goes on and on describing how she made dinner, washed the dishes, walked the dog, drove the car and endless descriptions of surrounding. Almost in every chapter her husband comes home and she says "Dinner is almost ready. Can you make drinks?".
Then we have her husband. He is pretty much the same. He comes home, eats and goes to bed, wakes up and goes to work. They never talk about anything interesting. They talk about her and his day at work, which I also found boring. He says he cares about her, but I never felt it. I felt no love or chemistry between them. Not even in the parts from their past, were they just started dating. You see that their relationship is falling apart, but I didn't feel the hate either. The story was lacking emotions from both characters. Give me something, hate, love, fear, heartache, sadness, something. There was nothing trilling or suspenseful about their relationship and this whole story. He is a cheating scumbag, and absolutely clueless to what's going on around him.
I thought the writing was monotonic. Even the parts where something happened, where I should have gone "WTH?", were describes in the same tone as her washing dishes or walking a dog.
I didn't like that the ending was given away on the first page, suspense and mystery went with it. A lot of her conversations with her shrink could have done with out. Except from one part, the rest was completely irrelevant and added nothing to the story. Same as her telling her husband about her clients or remembering her brother. I didn't understand how that was relevant.
I see that majority of readers enjoyed this book. I did not. I've read quite a few psychological thrillers and I don't see this book as being one. Yes, someone did die in the book, but it was written in a way that it didn't feel important or angsty. A psychological triller should take a reader on an emotional roller coaster ride, should leave you guessing all throughout the book. How can you do that if the ending is given away on the first page?
After I read the book, I felt tricked and cheated. For the life of me I can't understand why this book is being compared to Gone girl. It's simply a story about marriage gone wrong, that's all. The book description implies that it's a dark and twisted read, and it's not. I also don't get why the book is called The Silent Wife,
But I know my RB Alex loved it. I'm sure she have plenty of good things to say about it :). Here you can read her review, if she ever decides to post one :-).
BR with Alex, aka Space Lover.
If you ask me for space one more time...
Out of respect for the author, who's no longer with us, I'll try to refrain myself from ranting like I usually do when I don't enjoy the book, and give only my honest opinion.
I saw this book mentioned in the article, when I was looking for a thriller to read. I was in the mood for something dark and twisted and stumbled upon couple of articles where this book was described as the "next big thing" and "this summers Gone Girl". But the thing that got me was this:
“With a spare, elegant, and deft hand, she paints two dueling psychological portraits of longtime live-in lovers who become putative killer and hapless victim in a tale that no one is likely to forget any time soon.
Sounds good, doesn't it?
Some of the reviews said it was just as good as Gone Girl, others said it was even better. So I dove in.
I personaly found this book extremely boring. It's a story about a relationship gone wrong. That's the only similarity to Gone girl.
There was very little dialogue. In some chapter there was no dialogue at all, apart from few lines of it when she was remembering something from her past. Imagine reading a whole chapter (16 to 27 pages) without a line of a dialogue. I found wife's character robotic and uninteresting. In the chapters told from wife's pov she goes on and on describing how she made dinner, washed the dishes, walked the dog, drove the car and endless descriptions of surrounding. Almost in every chapter her husband comes home and she says "Dinner is almost ready. Can you make drinks?".
Then we have her husband. He is pretty much the same. He comes home, eats and goes to bed, wakes up and goes to work. They never talk about anything interesting. They talk about her and his day at work, which I also found boring. He says he cares about her, but I never felt it. I felt no love or chemistry between them. Not even in the parts from their past, were they just started dating. You see that their relationship is falling apart, but I didn't feel the hate either. The story was lacking emotions from both characters. Give me something, hate, love, fear, heartache, sadness, something. There was nothing trilling or suspenseful about their relationship and this whole story. He is a cheating scumbag, and absolutely clueless to what's going on around him.
I thought the writing was monotonic. Even the parts where something happened, where I should have gone "WTH?", were describes in the same tone as her washing dishes or walking a dog.
I didn't like that the ending was given away on the first page, suspense and mystery went with it. A lot of her conversations with her shrink could have done with out. Except from one part, the rest was completely irrelevant and added nothing to the story. Same as her telling her husband about her clients or remembering her brother. I didn't understand how that was relevant.
I see that majority of readers enjoyed this book. I did not. I've read quite a few psychological thrillers and I don't see this book as being one. Yes, someone did die in the book, but it was written in a way that it didn't feel important or angsty. A psychological triller should take a reader on an emotional roller coaster ride, should leave you guessing all throughout the book. How can you do that if the ending is given away on the first page?
After I read the book, I felt tricked and cheated. For the life of me I can't understand why this book is being compared to Gone girl. It's simply a story about marriage gone wrong, that's all. The book description implies that it's a dark and twisted read, and it's not. I also don't get why the book is called The Silent Wife,
But I know my RB Alex loved it. I'm sure she have plenty of good things to say about it :). Here you can read her review, if she ever decides to post one :-).
BR with Alex, aka Space Lover.
If you ask me for space one more time...
January 18, 2015
4.5
Wow. This book -- flipping fantastic. But your enjoyment of it is probably going to hinge on the expectations you're carrying going in. Despite some superficial similarities -- The Silent Wife IS NOT Gone Girl. So if you loved Gone Girl and come seeking the same kind of tawdry, illicit, messed up thrills and shocking plot twists here you're probably going to be disappointed.
The Silent Wife is silent, as in very subtle. It's a train wreck that happens at 15 miles per hour as opposed to 120. But Jesus, if you're like me, and crave that slow inexorable build to a very bad destination that you can see waiting on the horizon -- absolutely unavoidable -- then this book is for you.
Also, I was pleased to discover that The Silent Wife is a modern noir piece with its roots firmly planted in the old black and white film noirs of the 1940's. The pleasure derived from classic noir movies is the opportunity to be the voyeur and watch the nasty transgressions unfold before you. It's the thrill of observing morally compromised characters carry out immoral acts -- greed, lust, and murder oh my!
From the get-go, you know the strait-laced, buttoned up Jodi is going to murder her common-law husband Todd (what a cheating, lying bastard asshole he is). But it's HOW we get there that's the addictive, sexy part. And there is a rewarding twist which I loved that gets slid in there at the very end.
This is a remarkable book, so well executed. Tragically, it will be the last from this author, who died last year from cancer.
Wow. This book -- flipping fantastic. But your enjoyment of it is probably going to hinge on the expectations you're carrying going in. Despite some superficial similarities -- The Silent Wife IS NOT Gone Girl. So if you loved Gone Girl and come seeking the same kind of tawdry, illicit, messed up thrills and shocking plot twists here you're probably going to be disappointed.
The Silent Wife is silent, as in very subtle. It's a train wreck that happens at 15 miles per hour as opposed to 120. But Jesus, if you're like me, and crave that slow inexorable build to a very bad destination that you can see waiting on the horizon -- absolutely unavoidable -- then this book is for you.
Also, I was pleased to discover that The Silent Wife is a modern noir piece with its roots firmly planted in the old black and white film noirs of the 1940's. The pleasure derived from classic noir movies is the opportunity to be the voyeur and watch the nasty transgressions unfold before you. It's the thrill of observing morally compromised characters carry out immoral acts -- greed, lust, and murder oh my!
From the get-go, you know the strait-laced, buttoned up Jodi is going to murder her common-law husband Todd (what a cheating, lying bastard asshole he is). But it's HOW we get there that's the addictive, sexy part. And there is a rewarding twist which I loved that gets slid in there at the very end.
This is a remarkable book, so well executed. Tragically, it will be the last from this author, who died last year from cancer.
March 29, 2016
This book contains one of the biggest dirtbags I've ever encountered in fiction. His name is Todd.
Here are some examples of what dirtbag activities he enjoys:
He does a lot of other dirtbag stuff, but those are the biggest offenses.
I was spending the majority of the book hoping Todd would die.
Todd's wife Jodi is another kettle of fish. This woman is a psychologist, but probably not the kind you and I usually think of. She hand-picks her clients – she only wants ones who aren't too damaged. She never goes to conferences. She does no research. She practices in her home.
A lot of people claim that Jodi is a doormat because she chooses to stay with Todd, even though she knows he is a cheater, and cheats on her a lot with a lot of different women. However, in my opinion, she is NOT a doormat at all. She knows what she needs and wants from the relationship – and she gets it. This is not doormat behavior. She puts up with his crap because he gives her all the things she needs and wants – and I'm not talking about just material stuff here. She loves to cook dinner for him when he gets home – this is something she truly enjoys. She loves to have someone to snuggle, someone in bed next to her at night, someone to go to parties with etc. I did not think that Jodi was a doormat for accepting Todd's cheating behavior.
I DO think Jodi had a problem with being passive-aggressive. But I think that this was something she learned in her childhood, from her family. It definitely isn't the best way to deal with things, but I could understand why she was doing it.
A lot of people were angry upon reading the book because they were upset that Jodi But this didn't bother me, as I completely understood her motivations and reasoning. I didn't think she was the smartest, most assertive person – she ALWAYS buries her head in the sand instead of researching, planning, or acting – but I could understand WHY she was this way.
The characters – although not exactly likable – are well-crafted. The story is well-crafted, although slow-moving (this isn't as fast-paced or exciting as GONE GIRL). Harrison's writing is gorgeous and sometimes she offers insight into human thinking or daily life that is stunning.
This is a good book, an interesting book, and a rather dark, intelligent, psychological thriller.
Here are some examples of what dirtbag activities he enjoys:
He does a lot of other dirtbag stuff, but those are the biggest offenses.
I was spending the majority of the book hoping Todd would die.
Todd's wife Jodi is another kettle of fish. This woman is a psychologist, but probably not the kind you and I usually think of. She hand-picks her clients – she only wants ones who aren't too damaged. She never goes to conferences. She does no research. She practices in her home.
A lot of people claim that Jodi is a doormat because she chooses to stay with Todd, even though she knows he is a cheater, and cheats on her a lot with a lot of different women. However, in my opinion, she is NOT a doormat at all. She knows what she needs and wants from the relationship – and she gets it. This is not doormat behavior. She puts up with his crap because he gives her all the things she needs and wants – and I'm not talking about just material stuff here. She loves to cook dinner for him when he gets home – this is something she truly enjoys. She loves to have someone to snuggle, someone in bed next to her at night, someone to go to parties with etc. I did not think that Jodi was a doormat for accepting Todd's cheating behavior.
I DO think Jodi had a problem with being passive-aggressive. But I think that this was something she learned in her childhood, from her family. It definitely isn't the best way to deal with things, but I could understand why she was doing it.
A lot of people were angry upon reading the book because they were upset that Jodi But this didn't bother me, as I completely understood her motivations and reasoning. I didn't think she was the smartest, most assertive person – she ALWAYS buries her head in the sand instead of researching, planning, or acting – but I could understand WHY she was this way.
The characters – although not exactly likable – are well-crafted. The story is well-crafted, although slow-moving (this isn't as fast-paced or exciting as GONE GIRL). Harrison's writing is gorgeous and sometimes she offers insight into human thinking or daily life that is stunning.
This is a good book, an interesting book, and a rather dark, intelligent, psychological thriller.
October 19, 2015
This was a good psychological thriller but it might not be for everyone.
"The Silent Wife" has already been reviewed to death so I will just say ONLY read this book if you can tolerate unlikeable characters! Todd and Jodi are horrible. It is mainly told in third person. For me this was a good thing. If it was first person I don't think I would have liked this book at all.
If you can tolerate horrible characters definitely read it. It's a descent story that twists and turns and has an ending that is hard to predict.
"The Silent Wife" has already been reviewed to death so I will just say ONLY read this book if you can tolerate unlikeable characters! Todd and Jodi are horrible. It is mainly told in third person. For me this was a good thing. If it was first person I don't think I would have liked this book at all.
If you can tolerate horrible characters definitely read it. It's a descent story that twists and turns and has an ending that is hard to predict.
September 25, 2016
BR with Her Majesty La-Lionne, aka Space Giver
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Merriam-Webster dictionary defines thriller as
-a work of fiction or drama designed to hold the interest by the use of a high degree of intrigue, adventure, or suspense (synonyms: cliff-hanger, hair-raiser, suspenser, nail–biter)
I don't know about other people, but IMO, this book has all the components of a psychological thriller. It is interesting, suspenseful and had me on the edge of my seat, especially the second half.
Yes, Your Majesty, it is the story of a relationship gone horribly wrong, because
Yes, the narrative might be considered difficult and monotonous at times, but I actually found it soothing.
Yes, the characters felt robotic, but I prefer to think they settled into a comfortable routine in which he comes home from a hard day at work and his partner greets him with drinks, a hot meal and very little conversation.
The characters are complicated and come with a lot of baggage.
Todd is the embodiment of the Oedipus complex
and Jodi is his best shot at being reunited with his mommy.
She is the perfect home-maker, as pure in bed as his mother was to him when he was growing up.
But as any man going through a mid-life crisis, he needs a younger, dirtier girl/woman to keep him interested in life. So he goes ahead and impregnates his best friend's daughter.
Natasha (that's the home-wrecker's name) is everything Jodi is not: young, chatty and willing to get married and have kids. But you know what, Natasha?
Jodi grew up in a messed-up family. Whenever her parents used to fight, they would just stop communicating. Her mother would stop talking to her father and at one time they didn't speak for a year.
Could the title refer to Jodi's mom giving her husband the silent treatment? Jodi uses silence as a passive-aggressive weapon. But she's a psychologist!! You'd think she'd practice what she preaches.
I don't know. Maybe it's the pent-up frustration and lack of real communication between them, maybe Jodi just snaps, but when Todd unintentionally humiliates her and demands that she move out of their condo, she gets scared and is manipulated into following a friend's suggestion of
There are as many interpretations to all the events in this book (Jodi's older brother abusing her younger brother, Todd's violent father and his loss of innocence as he was forced to hit him in order to defend his beloved mother etc.) as there are opinions on it so I won't exhaust them. I'll just say that this psychological thriller (that's right, I said it!) DID live up to my expectations! Do not compare it to Gone Girl! The only resemblance between them is that they are both very well-written and the characters are complex and unique!
5 stars!
RIP A.S.A. Harrison
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 26, 2013
This is a disturbing book. Some might take pure delight in this.
The Silent Wife is a disturbing book. There is also something if not quite delightful, alluring in its unpleasantness. Disturbing as you can’t quite like anyone except, the dog, Freud, aptly named; or anything that transpires in this dark tale of a marriage or a non-marriage really. And yet I certainly found The Silent Wife compelling, reading on, wanting to see where this train wreck of a story would go. The Silent Wife is thought provoking, leaving me exploring my own secrets. Things I’ve done or not done live on just as the main character, Jodi reveals and that she also must consider hers.
The story is told in chapters of “HER” and “HIM” which allow us to see each player’s point of view. Whether or not they are reliable narrators you’ll have to decide. Jodi and Todd meet with a bang, literally, as Jodi hits Todd’s car and he throws one huge hissy fit. Somehow this leads to their first date and before you know it they’re living together for 20 years. Little by little you get glimpses of their relationship and what makes each tick. Todd is a cheater and Jodi knows this. ”Cheaters proper, many of them do. And even if they don’t they are not going to change, because as a rule, people don’t change--not without strong motivation and sustained effort.” Todd’s latest, Natasha, is a sweet young thing, daughter of his best friend. She’s seems to be calling the shots when it comes to Todd and his plans. When she becomes pregnant the deal is cinched and Todd must find a way to leave Jodi. Sounds like many a book you might have read. There’s more here, much more and Harrison plots and tells it well.
As many have noted Harrison's book has been compared to Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn which IMO does a disservice to The Silent Wife. It is unique and needs not be compared to anything but itself.
4 stars for stimulating my noggin alone.
The Silent Wife is a disturbing book. There is also something if not quite delightful, alluring in its unpleasantness. Disturbing as you can’t quite like anyone except, the dog, Freud, aptly named; or anything that transpires in this dark tale of a marriage or a non-marriage really. And yet I certainly found The Silent Wife compelling, reading on, wanting to see where this train wreck of a story would go. The Silent Wife is thought provoking, leaving me exploring my own secrets. Things I’ve done or not done live on just as the main character, Jodi reveals and that she also must consider hers.
The story is told in chapters of “HER” and “HIM” which allow us to see each player’s point of view. Whether or not they are reliable narrators you’ll have to decide. Jodi and Todd meet with a bang, literally, as Jodi hits Todd’s car and he throws one huge hissy fit. Somehow this leads to their first date and before you know it they’re living together for 20 years. Little by little you get glimpses of their relationship and what makes each tick. Todd is a cheater and Jodi knows this. ”Cheaters proper, many of them do. And even if they don’t they are not going to change, because as a rule, people don’t change--not without strong motivation and sustained effort.” Todd’s latest, Natasha, is a sweet young thing, daughter of his best friend. She’s seems to be calling the shots when it comes to Todd and his plans. When she becomes pregnant the deal is cinched and Todd must find a way to leave Jodi. Sounds like many a book you might have read. There’s more here, much more and Harrison plots and tells it well.
As many have noted Harrison's book has been compared to Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn which IMO does a disservice to The Silent Wife. It is unique and needs not be compared to anything but itself.
4 stars for stimulating my noggin alone.
October 15, 2015
I'm so sad with the outcome of this book. The ending wasn't a surprise as many I know have said, yes it was out of left field, but not completely. I really wanted to love this book, but I didn't. I hated Todd, the husband was selfish and a complete and utter idiot. Jodi, the wife was so affected by her surroundings and her daily routine that she didn't see what was happening before her with her marriage. The whole time I read this I kept thinking, "the grass is only greener on the other side because it's fertilized by bullshit". All the characters were dicks. I didn't care for any of them, and then the side shit with Jodi and her shrink was odd and then to find out at the end what her brother did... I have no clue what that had to do with the story. I really think I was generous with the 3 stars here because I don't think it was amazing and I built myself up to believe it was more than what it ended up being. I don't think I would recommend it and I don't think it was anything like Gone Girl, so I have no idea where that presumption even began.
August 21, 2016
I started out sorry I'd bought this book. I was looking for something that would be a break from the heavy stuff I'm otherwise reading and that would also be a cut above the usual escape fare (why is that so hard??).
The first couple of paragraphs were really tough. So recursive. There's a view of a vista, a delineation of a line, an arc that encircles, etc. I thought, well, the writer seems smart. Maybe this is deliberate and is meant to represent the character in some way, and indeed it does seem this is a reasonable interpretation of Jodi.
However, this type of writing, except in a couple of places, does not really keep up. I can't decide if this is a good decision. If it had kept up, it probably would have become annoying. But because it doesn't keep up, you can't tell if the moments when the style appears are just sloppiness/overwriting.
Anyhow, it was pretty hard to like either character, as other reviewers have commented. That's okay. Raskolnikov is not a likable character either. But Raskolnikov is an INTERESTING character. He's vibrant. He's smart. He's torn. He's deluded. He's intellectual and driven by demons.
Jodi doesn't THINK much. She too is deluded, but her delusions aren't interesting--she's driven by delusions of normalcy. One thing that's very odd--she thinks she's protected herself from her mother's life by refusing to marry and have children. Of course, this leaves her vulnerable. It's odd that she doesn't see, in our times, and as nearly every other woman would, that financial independence would generally be the path to leaving your options open. This doesn't cross her mind even after Todd does what Todd does.
As the book went on, Jodi's character opened up a bit, but there were still a lot of loose threads, and she wound up not really having to face up to anything. Nor did Todd. The end.
So. Meh.
Oh, and one other thing. V. minor, but persistently annoying and an editor should have caught it. This is a book set in Chicago, with American characters. Americans don't go "to university." They are not "at university." This is a Britishism and I guess maybe a Canadianism. If you are setting something in an American world, you say, When she was IN COLLEGE, even if it was technically a university. Or, When she was attending the university (less commonly). You could also say, We went to school together, or, We were in school together.
The first couple of paragraphs were really tough. So recursive. There's a view of a vista, a delineation of a line, an arc that encircles, etc. I thought, well, the writer seems smart. Maybe this is deliberate and is meant to represent the character in some way, and indeed it does seem this is a reasonable interpretation of Jodi.
However, this type of writing, except in a couple of places, does not really keep up. I can't decide if this is a good decision. If it had kept up, it probably would have become annoying. But because it doesn't keep up, you can't tell if the moments when the style appears are just sloppiness/overwriting.
Anyhow, it was pretty hard to like either character, as other reviewers have commented. That's okay. Raskolnikov is not a likable character either. But Raskolnikov is an INTERESTING character. He's vibrant. He's smart. He's torn. He's deluded. He's intellectual and driven by demons.
Jodi doesn't THINK much. She too is deluded, but her delusions aren't interesting--she's driven by delusions of normalcy. One thing that's very odd--she thinks she's protected herself from her mother's life by refusing to marry and have children. Of course, this leaves her vulnerable. It's odd that she doesn't see, in our times, and as nearly every other woman would, that financial independence would generally be the path to leaving your options open. This doesn't cross her mind even after Todd does what Todd does.
As the book went on, Jodi's character opened up a bit, but there were still a lot of loose threads, and she wound up not really having to face up to anything. Nor did Todd. The end.
So. Meh.
Oh, and one other thing. V. minor, but persistently annoying and an editor should have caught it. This is a book set in Chicago, with American characters. Americans don't go "to university." They are not "at university." This is a Britishism and I guess maybe a Canadianism. If you are setting something in an American world, you say, When she was IN COLLEGE, even if it was technically a university. Or, When she was attending the university (less commonly). You could also say, We went to school together, or, We were in school together.
October 29, 2022
I have read The Silent Wife by A.S. A Harrison a paperback copy. I got this novel as a present from my sister-in-law, she read it during a Boeing flight. A couple Married for twenty years is having a breakdown. Neither of them wants to save that marriage, as they live their separate lives. He is a committed cheater and she decides to kill as the only option. Was a bit boring at the begging, but heading till the end is getting spicier.
August 30, 2014
OK, when I can't put a book down, I simply must give it 5 stars. It's not a long book, so it was a 2 day read for me. I found this book completely fascinating. I loved the alternating voices between him (Todd) and her (Jodi).
Yes, Todd is a despicable character (as many men and their behaviors are); he's a serial cheater; a slime ball; but even he realized--just a wee bit I believe--that it finally caught up with him. Jodi was a strong woman who for reasons that we learn much later in the book became the person she was and carved out the life she led for very justifiable reasons. It worked for her. The reasons they stayed together for 20 years in that sort of relationship is really none of my business--just like it's none of my business what Anthony Weiner and his wife do or Bill and Hillary Clinton do. Anyway . . . I digress.
I found myself rooting for Jodi, never for Todd. Although I did feel a bit sorry for him when he realized how immature Natasha really was and how chaotic their life together had become together. But then, he choose this path, he choose the consequences. He was the one to set the wheels in motion.
Todd was really no different than his father. His father's drug of choice was alcohol. Todd's drug of choice was sex and women, but Todd thought he was better than his father and could control it. In the end, he learned that he couldn't.
If nothing else, this book should be required reading for all young men who think like Todd, that they are cool, slick, and can get away with cheating--that there is always something better, more exciting just around the corner, the grass is always greener.
I LOVED THIS BOOK! I was just very, very sorry to learn that the author, A.S.A. Harrison died of cancer as this book was being published. I was so very looking forward to reading more of her work.
Yes, Todd is a despicable character (as many men and their behaviors are); he's a serial cheater; a slime ball; but even he realized--just a wee bit I believe--that it finally caught up with him. Jodi was a strong woman who for reasons that we learn much later in the book became the person she was and carved out the life she led for very justifiable reasons. It worked for her. The reasons they stayed together for 20 years in that sort of relationship is really none of my business--just like it's none of my business what Anthony Weiner and his wife do or Bill and Hillary Clinton do. Anyway . . . I digress.
I found myself rooting for Jodi, never for Todd. Although I did feel a bit sorry for him when he realized how immature Natasha really was and how chaotic their life together had become together. But then, he choose this path, he choose the consequences. He was the one to set the wheels in motion.
Todd was really no different than his father. His father's drug of choice was alcohol. Todd's drug of choice was sex and women, but Todd thought he was better than his father and could control it. In the end, he learned that he couldn't.
If nothing else, this book should be required reading for all young men who think like Todd, that they are cool, slick, and can get away with cheating--that there is always something better, more exciting just around the corner, the grass is always greener.
I LOVED THIS BOOK! I was just very, very sorry to learn that the author, A.S.A. Harrison died of cancer as this book was being published. I was so very looking forward to reading more of her work.
July 1, 2013
This book has to be the most disappointing book I've read so far this year. Had I picked it up in a bookstore and flipped to the first page, it's highly unlikely I would have bought it. I was expecting a completely different story than the one I felt was described in the blurb.
From the very beginning we know Jodi will kill Todd. This, in and of itself, kills some of the suspense. I'm guessing what the author was counting on to keep the reader turning pages were the events leading up to his murder, but since I never got there, I can't say for certain.
What I can say is the comparison to Gone Girl is a terrible one. Gone Girl was sick, twisted, and kept you guessing, and I raced from page to page, wondering what Nick was going to discover next. The Silent Wife does not. Jodi was uninteresting and flat; the narrative would be to blame for this. At times it fell into a sort of omniscient point of view, telling us what was going on without letting us feel it along with the characters. This choice by the author made it difficult to connect with Jodi. I never succeeded.
Todd was only marginally better. His waffling between Jodi and his lover, Natasha, made him interesting for a few pages. But again, the narrative tells us things rather than shows them to us, and ultimately his inability to make a solid, decisive choice was grating.
And Natasha...Natasha was a stereotypical young, oversexed, demanding mistress. There wasn't anything original about her to make her sympathetic. I wanted to stab her every time she was on the page, and then stab Todd for choosing such a vapid lover. In that respect, I guess Harrison managed to get a reaction, because I could not stand Natasha.
I had hope, about a quarter of the way through, that things might get interesting. Jodi's discovery of the contents of Todd's khakis when she takes them to the cleaners is what kept me reading a while longer; when it didn't come to fruition, I kept reading because I hate giving up on a book. Ultimately, though, when I spend my time with a book glancing at how much I have left to read, it's time to give up.
Copy provided by the publisher.
From the very beginning we know Jodi will kill Todd. This, in and of itself, kills some of the suspense. I'm guessing what the author was counting on to keep the reader turning pages were the events leading up to his murder, but since I never got there, I can't say for certain.
What I can say is the comparison to Gone Girl is a terrible one. Gone Girl was sick, twisted, and kept you guessing, and I raced from page to page, wondering what Nick was going to discover next. The Silent Wife does not. Jodi was uninteresting and flat; the narrative would be to blame for this. At times it fell into a sort of omniscient point of view, telling us what was going on without letting us feel it along with the characters. This choice by the author made it difficult to connect with Jodi. I never succeeded.
Todd was only marginally better. His waffling between Jodi and his lover, Natasha, made him interesting for a few pages. But again, the narrative tells us things rather than shows them to us, and ultimately his inability to make a solid, decisive choice was grating.
And Natasha...Natasha was a stereotypical young, oversexed, demanding mistress. There wasn't anything original about her to make her sympathetic. I wanted to stab her every time she was on the page, and then stab Todd for choosing such a vapid lover. In that respect, I guess Harrison managed to get a reaction, because I could not stand Natasha.
I had hope, about a quarter of the way through, that things might get interesting. Jodi's discovery of the contents of Todd's khakis when she takes them to the cleaners is what kept me reading a while longer; when it didn't come to fruition, I kept reading because I hate giving up on a book. Ultimately, though, when I spend my time with a book glancing at how much I have left to read, it's time to give up.
Copy provided by the publisher.
October 4, 2013
Meh. This book was ok. It was intriguing enough to keep me reading and invested in the characters, but I felt like I spent the entire book waiting for something big, shocking, game changing to happen. The pace really didn't pick up until the last quarter.
The rest of this review is going to be full of spoilers - so don't read if you haven't read the book. Sorry. I'm not sure how to remove from my phone.
You have been warned.
Things I disliked about this book...
Maybe I missed something. But what the heck was the point of Todd with the itching and the lesion? His tests came back clear. I thought that story was going to lead somewhere else.
The fact that Jodi didn't think she'd be seen as questionable or a suspect until Todd had already been killed. Seriously? No one is that stupid.
The revelation at the end about her old brother. Although there was build up to it, it seemed to be randomly thrown in there. Like the author forgot to address it, but then remembered and wanted to throw it in there.
What I liked about the book.....
The ambiguity. We never really knew who was responsible in the end for Todd's death. I like how it's left open to your own interpretation.
The suspense of the last 25% or so of the book was more like what I expected the entire book to be. I was nervous for Jodi. I couldn't decide if I wanted her to get busted or not.
How Jodi's character changed from beginning to end. She clearly thought she was better than her clients and had this "holier than thou" attitude about them. After her falling apart and realizing that she is pretty fucked up too, she was able to serve them better, and I liked that aspect.
The rest of this review is going to be full of spoilers - so don't read if you haven't read the book. Sorry. I'm not sure how to remove from my phone.
You have been warned.
Things I disliked about this book...
Maybe I missed something. But what the heck was the point of Todd with the itching and the lesion? His tests came back clear. I thought that story was going to lead somewhere else.
The fact that Jodi didn't think she'd be seen as questionable or a suspect until Todd had already been killed. Seriously? No one is that stupid.
The revelation at the end about her old brother. Although there was build up to it, it seemed to be randomly thrown in there. Like the author forgot to address it, but then remembered and wanted to throw it in there.
What I liked about the book.....
The ambiguity. We never really knew who was responsible in the end for Todd's death. I like how it's left open to your own interpretation.
The suspense of the last 25% or so of the book was more like what I expected the entire book to be. I was nervous for Jodi. I couldn't decide if I wanted her to get busted or not.
How Jodi's character changed from beginning to end. She clearly thought she was better than her clients and had this "holier than thou" attitude about them. After her falling apart and realizing that she is pretty fucked up too, she was able to serve them better, and I liked that aspect.
October 10, 2018
3.5 stars !
This was a taut psychological thriller that was well-researched and with a slow unfolding of the dynamics of two very narcissistic individuals....the wife (a psychotherapist with obsessive tendencies) and the husband (immature businessman) and the slow death of their marriage that was fragile and empty to begin with.
Both characters were quite unlikable but they were infused with a complexity that compelled you to read forward and see what would happen next. I also liked the Adlerian aspects of this book and the delving into the character's psyches.
This book was MUCH BETTER than GONE GIRL but like Gone Girl there were some inconsistencies that at times verged on the ridiculous. However, in this book it was much more forgivable as the dark unfolding was fascinating, morbid and really quite shocking.
This was a taut psychological thriller that was well-researched and with a slow unfolding of the dynamics of two very narcissistic individuals....the wife (a psychotherapist with obsessive tendencies) and the husband (immature businessman) and the slow death of their marriage that was fragile and empty to begin with.
Both characters were quite unlikable but they were infused with a complexity that compelled you to read forward and see what would happen next. I also liked the Adlerian aspects of this book and the delving into the character's psyches.
This book was MUCH BETTER than GONE GIRL but like Gone Girl there were some inconsistencies that at times verged on the ridiculous. However, in this book it was much more forgivable as the dark unfolding was fascinating, morbid and really quite shocking.
November 27, 2017
I don't mind a book that's a slow burn. The Girls by Emma Cline was one of my favorites because I found the characters fascinating. But The Silent Wife just wasn't interesting enough to keep ME interested. Jodi was so bland and naive! It was hard for me to feel sorry for her. Neither she nor Todd had any sort of personality or chemistry. I'm fine with the blurb giving away the ending, I just wanted to go along for the ride to see how it came to that ending. But the ride was slow and a major disappointment. There were alot of unanswered questions and a few side plots that led to nowhere. Comparing it to Gone Girl is a huge insult.
January 8, 2024
Umm... This book was weird.
The wife seems like a drugged waif with very little presence or personality. The man is a despicable horny man with no qualms for cheating... And then there is a bit of a slight psych thriller story to follow...
I mean, I didn't hate it, but it didn't really feel like anything special either... Part 2 was definitely a LOT weirder and not as good as the rest of the book. It felt like a lot of incomplete sections.
2.5-3 Stars
The wife seems like a drugged waif with very little presence or personality. The man is a despicable horny man with no qualms for cheating... And then there is a bit of a slight psych thriller story to follow...
I mean, I didn't hate it, but it didn't really feel like anything special either... Part 2 was definitely a LOT weirder and not as good as the rest of the book. It felt like a lot of incomplete sections.
2.5-3 Stars
June 2, 2022
I was really disappointed by this book. It dragged on and on. The details and side tracks felt like white noise that kept grating on my nerves. I skimmed lots of pages, knowing it wouldn’t make a difference anyway. There was no thrill, no suspense, just a very forgettable story where nothing really happened.
January 24, 2014
Silent but deadly
The Silent Wife by A.S.A. Harrison was her debut novel and unfortunately her last as she died in 2013 in which she has left an incredible psychological thriller. This is no ordinary thriller either where we see the perpetrator and the detectives for them. This is far darker, far deeper inside the mind and is so engrossing it is tempting to rush through the book. I do not know how Harrison has done it but she has reached inside the mind to those dark deep well hidden depths we all have and brings it all out for the reader.
This story is that Jodi Brett who has lived with Todd Gilbert for over twenty years, she is a psychologist and her common law husband is a property developer, knows all about his faults and has accepted them. She understands that he is a lothario as long as he does not bring it to her doorstep over the years he has had numerous affairs and always come home. She lives the denial as if in a parallel universe but always settle the score with him.
We see Todd fall in lust with a younger lover, a student whom he gets pregnant and she becomes more demanding wanting changes in his life. He leaves Jodi and starts eviction proceedings against her from the place she calls home and cuts off her money. Really he is a lover not a fighter and Natasha his young love has to push him all the way.
What makes this book so brilliant as a thriller is that we see it through the eyes of Jodi and Todd in alternating voices we see how they live and feel to them attempting to move on. We have the voice of killer and victim which brings quite a lot of sympathy for Jodi as the wronged woman. There are plenty of twists and turns and we are with Jodi are killer all the way through, and that is no spoiler as it tells you on the cover! How things actually work out is something well worth reading, very enjoyable and consuming at the same time dark and treacherous which ticks all the thriller boxes. I cannot recommend The Silent Wife highly enough.
The Silent Wife by A.S.A. Harrison was her debut novel and unfortunately her last as she died in 2013 in which she has left an incredible psychological thriller. This is no ordinary thriller either where we see the perpetrator and the detectives for them. This is far darker, far deeper inside the mind and is so engrossing it is tempting to rush through the book. I do not know how Harrison has done it but she has reached inside the mind to those dark deep well hidden depths we all have and brings it all out for the reader.
This story is that Jodi Brett who has lived with Todd Gilbert for over twenty years, she is a psychologist and her common law husband is a property developer, knows all about his faults and has accepted them. She understands that he is a lothario as long as he does not bring it to her doorstep over the years he has had numerous affairs and always come home. She lives the denial as if in a parallel universe but always settle the score with him.
We see Todd fall in lust with a younger lover, a student whom he gets pregnant and she becomes more demanding wanting changes in his life. He leaves Jodi and starts eviction proceedings against her from the place she calls home and cuts off her money. Really he is a lover not a fighter and Natasha his young love has to push him all the way.
What makes this book so brilliant as a thriller is that we see it through the eyes of Jodi and Todd in alternating voices we see how they live and feel to them attempting to move on. We have the voice of killer and victim which brings quite a lot of sympathy for Jodi as the wronged woman. There are plenty of twists and turns and we are with Jodi are killer all the way through, and that is no spoiler as it tells you on the cover! How things actually work out is something well worth reading, very enjoyable and consuming at the same time dark and treacherous which ticks all the thriller boxes. I cannot recommend The Silent Wife highly enough.
September 20, 2020
“In asserting that people don't change, what she means is that they don't change for the better. Whereas changing for the worse, that goes without saying.”
― A.S.A. Harrison, The Silent Wife
Of all the "compared to Gone Girl" books out there, I think this is the closest one to that although they really are two different books.
The Silent Wife is yet another book I reread recently. I am as impressed now as I was years ago when I read it. It's a great character study.
There is Jodie. And there is Todd. They have, perhaps one of the most dysfunctional relationships I've ever read about. But it works for them.
But it will not work for long. Jody, a soft spoken and reserved Therapist, lives with Todd. As the book opens we are given a glimpse of Jody. We are also told that this calm and placid woman has no idea that within a short time, she will be reduced to a woman capable of murder.
This is not a spoiler. It is at the beginning of the book. And wow..is that a powerful hook.
Silent Wife is such a great book. This is so much more then a mystery. Actually I am not sure I would even label it a mystery. It does become one but it is really a profile of a loveless couple's relationship.
Who should read this book?
Anyone who likes a slow burn or are fans of a short but deeply intense book that shows how a relationship can develop into a human tragedy. And yes mystery fans as well!
These two flawed people make so many mistakes and wrong decisions but that is not the power of the book. The power is, first off, in the pacing. As the book sweeps along, we as readers feel an all encompassing feeling of dread. The book does eventually become a mystery of sorts but also a tragic cautionary tale. It would not be good if I said anymore.
The other aspect of the book that is so powerful are the depth of characterizations. This book is bold. I loved that Jodie is a psychologist. She and Todd are two of the most self destructive s people I have ever read about. But more than that, they both have such so little self awareness. And THAT is what the writer does best. She puts us in the heads of these two people and though it is not a pleasant place to be, man is it interesting.
The story takes place in Chicago.. I loved the description of the Luxury Chicago High Rise the two live in. I do not even like High Rises but I liked this one.
And I found this book impossible to put down.
OK..Spoilers:
My thoughts on the ending? Well I figure it was most likely Jody's people who killed Todd. I often wonder what became of Jody. She was such an empty character yet she did not have to be.
Todd..well what to say about him? Clueless. And defines the meaning of the word self absorbed. I could not stand Natasha either. Wouldn't it be something if SHE had him killed?
I like the abstract way it ends although that is not usually my thing. It just seems to fit here. and I found this to be an intelligent, very smartly written book about two very damaged people. Highly recommended.
― A.S.A. Harrison, The Silent Wife
Of all the "compared to Gone Girl" books out there, I think this is the closest one to that although they really are two different books.
The Silent Wife is yet another book I reread recently. I am as impressed now as I was years ago when I read it. It's a great character study.
There is Jodie. And there is Todd. They have, perhaps one of the most dysfunctional relationships I've ever read about. But it works for them.
But it will not work for long. Jody, a soft spoken and reserved Therapist, lives with Todd. As the book opens we are given a glimpse of Jody. We are also told that this calm and placid woman has no idea that within a short time, she will be reduced to a woman capable of murder.
This is not a spoiler. It is at the beginning of the book. And wow..is that a powerful hook.
Silent Wife is such a great book. This is so much more then a mystery. Actually I am not sure I would even label it a mystery. It does become one but it is really a profile of a loveless couple's relationship.
Who should read this book?
Anyone who likes a slow burn or are fans of a short but deeply intense book that shows how a relationship can develop into a human tragedy. And yes mystery fans as well!
These two flawed people make so many mistakes and wrong decisions but that is not the power of the book. The power is, first off, in the pacing. As the book sweeps along, we as readers feel an all encompassing feeling of dread. The book does eventually become a mystery of sorts but also a tragic cautionary tale. It would not be good if I said anymore.
The other aspect of the book that is so powerful are the depth of characterizations. This book is bold. I loved that Jodie is a psychologist. She and Todd are two of the most self destructive s people I have ever read about. But more than that, they both have such so little self awareness. And THAT is what the writer does best. She puts us in the heads of these two people and though it is not a pleasant place to be, man is it interesting.
The story takes place in Chicago.. I loved the description of the Luxury Chicago High Rise the two live in. I do not even like High Rises but I liked this one.
And I found this book impossible to put down.
OK..Spoilers:
My thoughts on the ending? Well I figure it was most likely Jody's people who killed Todd. I often wonder what became of Jody. She was such an empty character yet she did not have to be.
Todd..well what to say about him? Clueless. And defines the meaning of the word self absorbed. I could not stand Natasha either. Wouldn't it be something if SHE had him killed?
I like the abstract way it ends although that is not usually my thing. It just seems to fit here. and I found this to be an intelligent, very smartly written book about two very damaged people. Highly recommended.
January 29, 2016
The beginning of the book had my emotions roaring. At one point my boyfriend threatened to throw the book out the window because even though he is nothing like Todd, I was so upset with Todd that I unleashed on the boyfriend about how stupid guys can be by taking a good thing for granted. Then I started to focus on Jodi’s behavior, and how she basically allowed this to happen. Needless to say, the relationship was screwed up, but it somehow worked out for them. I loved this book until the end, but the end did not settle right with me. I hoped, wanted, and maybe even expected… something… more...
August 9, 2013
Meh. First of all, the comparisons to Gone Girl are... weird. The books have only the slightest similarity. There is simply not as much at stake here as the book implies. There is one really interesting thing, that Jodi and Todd aren't actually married, and I would have liked to see more done with that. Todd was far more fleshed out than Jodi. The underlying pathology revealed toward the end to "explain" Jodi and her outlook is just handled so shallowly and is a bit clichéd. This is a fast, enjoyable read if you don't mind getting irritated a lot.
November 8, 2024
Jodi Bret and Todd Gilbert - who have been together for twenty years - live in a posh Chicago condominium and enjoy the good things in life: a lovely home; expensive cars; fine dining; evening walks along the lake; etc.
Jodi is a trained psychotherapist and maintains an office in the condo. She sees a couple of patients a day, and spends the rest of her time working out, reading, walking the couple's dog Freud, seeing friends, shopping, cooking gourmet meals, etc.
Todd is a successful developer who's currently experiencing a money crunch because of a pricey building renovation. Todd likes to ogle women, show off his expensive possessions, and spend time with Jodi - who coddles and indulges him.
The couple's lives are humming along smoothly when Todd mentions that he'll be going on a fishing trip next weekend, with some fellows from the office. Jodi immediately sniffs out the lie, and it's one lie too many.
Jodi knows that Todd is a serial womanizer, and Todd is aware that she knows. However, Todd's behavior has NEVER been acknowledged between them. Thus the evenings when Todd is 'working late' or 'having a drink with the boys' have passed without reproach, though Jodi does small vindictive things for revenge. Todd has never gone away for an entire weekend, though, and this seems to spell trouble.
Indeed it spells trouble.....BIG trouble. Todd has been seeing a sexy college coed named Natasha, who happens to be the daughter of his best friend Dean. Worse yet, Natasha is pregnant and expects Todd to marry her. Natasha and Todd's upcoming weekend getaway, planned by the coed, is to be a romantic interlude and an opportunity to discuss their (really her) plans. Number one on Natasha's list is for Todd to tell Jodi what's going on and move out.
Todd doesn't have the nerve to inform Jodi, but she finds out anyway - from Dean, who's furious about Todd knocking up his daughter. Even afterwards, when Todd knows that Jodi's been told, neither of them brings up the subject. In fact things at home go on much as before.....for a while. (Can you imagine a more fraught state of affairs?)
Todd knows he has to cut the cord at some point, and - once lawyers get involved - Jodi discovers that she's entitled to nothing because she and Todd were never married. Things eventually take a dark turn, which is foreshadowed at the beginning of the book.
The story alternates back and forth between Jodi's perspective and Todd's perspective, and we learn that they both come from dysfunctional families. In Jodi's chapters we read about her parents and two brothers. We also see flashbacks to Jodi's psychotherapy sessions, which took place during graduate school. Jody's psychoanalysis reveals some hard truths, and may be meant to explain her passive-aggressive behavior - but it's a stretch (IMO).
For his part, Todd is unable to hold his own against Natasha, whose assertive personality is the diametric opposite of Jodi's. Natasha is continually pushing Todd in directions he'd rather not go and is planning a huge wedding he can't afford right now. Todd's angst about all this has predictable results.
I listened to the audio version of this book, which was a mistake. The female narrator - who voices Jodi's chapters - speaks exceptionally slowly, probably to depict Jodi's shock at the crisis in her life. This makes the story, which is already slow, feel moribund. The male narrator - who voice's Todd's sections - is a bit better....but the tale still meanders along.
I found the story interesting from the perspective of two damaged people in a seriously neurotic relationship. A couple going on like this for twenty years seems incomprehensible to me. I'm especially bewildered by Jodi, who (it would seem) could do much better than a lying cheat.
I didn't particularly like the book, but readers interested in psychology and flawed relationships might be interested.
You can follow my reviews at https://reviewsbybarbsaffer.blogspot....
September 10, 2013
**Received from Goodreads first reads giveaway.
This was a great psychological book. It is the story of a 20 year common law marriage (and both parties) falling apart. We witness the disintegration of their relationship through both Jodi and Todd's point of view. We see how they rationalize, excuse, cope and justify their behavior. Todd is a habitual cheater and Jodi is aware but never confronts him on it but always lets him know that she will be there for him waiting with elegant meals and pleasant conversation. Denial is what holds them together. Both seem to be fine with this arrangement until he gets the daughter of his best friend pregnant. This is where the unraveling really begins.
This book was great. Even though I have mentioned the plot there is more much more. Subtle nuances, subtleties that really make this book work, some twists, turns and well....read it for yourself. I highly recommend this book.
This was a great psychological book. It is the story of a 20 year common law marriage (and both parties) falling apart. We witness the disintegration of their relationship through both Jodi and Todd's point of view. We see how they rationalize, excuse, cope and justify their behavior. Todd is a habitual cheater and Jodi is aware but never confronts him on it but always lets him know that she will be there for him waiting with elegant meals and pleasant conversation. Denial is what holds them together. Both seem to be fine with this arrangement until he gets the daughter of his best friend pregnant. This is where the unraveling really begins.
This book was great. Even though I have mentioned the plot there is more much more. Subtle nuances, subtleties that really make this book work, some twists, turns and well....read it for yourself. I highly recommend this book.
February 15, 2022
THE PLOT
Jodie's husband, Todd, is a serial cheater. He's an unimaginative male having a relationship with a much younger woman who happens to be the daughter of his bff. Jodie finds out the extent of Todd's lil "fishing trips" and decides to settle the score.
MY OPINNI
I read this book 3 years ago, but wanted to update my rating. I seem to be in the minority here with my 5 star review. I'm shocked at the bad reviews, while a double pack of ass book like "The Wife Between Us" made the NYT Bestsellers list. Anyways, I digress...
Okay, I can see why you'd be disappointed if you expected it to be a psychological thriller, because it really isn't. But, I found the writing so captivating, and Jodie's pain so tangible, I really didn't give AF. Reading this book was an emotional rollercoaster of anxiety, despair, worry, heartbreak, desperation, and more.
There was a lil bit of a reveal at the end, but the meat was mostly Jodie exploring love, loss, and how to cope with grief. I just LOVED the scene when Todd finally gets what's coming for him... The writing is simply incredible.
PROS AND CONS
Pros: Everything. I could literally feel Jodie's pain... That's when I know the writing is good.
Cons: Nada
Jodie's husband, Todd, is a serial cheater. He's an unimaginative male having a relationship with a much younger woman who happens to be the daughter of his bff. Jodie finds out the extent of Todd's lil "fishing trips" and decides to settle the score.
MY OPINNI
I read this book 3 years ago, but wanted to update my rating. I seem to be in the minority here with my 5 star review. I'm shocked at the bad reviews, while a double pack of ass book like "The Wife Between Us" made the NYT Bestsellers list. Anyways, I digress...
Okay, I can see why you'd be disappointed if you expected it to be a psychological thriller, because it really isn't. But, I found the writing so captivating, and Jodie's pain so tangible, I really didn't give AF. Reading this book was an emotional rollercoaster of anxiety, despair, worry, heartbreak, desperation, and more.
There was a lil bit of a reveal at the end, but the meat was mostly Jodie exploring love, loss, and how to cope with grief. I just LOVED the scene when Todd finally gets what's coming for him... The writing is simply incredible.
PROS AND CONS
Pros: Everything. I could literally feel Jodie's pain... That's when I know the writing is good.
Cons: Nada
August 2, 2019
Sadly this book did not reach the level of expectation I had for this novel. A decent read but not the exceptional one I had hoped.
Psychotherapist Jodi Brett is happy with her life, cooking for her husband, Todd Gilbert, working hours that suit her and walking the dog. She lives a fairly serene life while her husband Todd works as a professional renovator and has affairs. Jodi turns a blind eye to his extra marital relationships but all changes when he tells her he is leaving. Her life is turned upside down and Jodi will do anything to take it back.
Psychotherapist Jodi Brett is happy with her life, cooking for her husband, Todd Gilbert, working hours that suit her and walking the dog. She lives a fairly serene life while her husband Todd works as a professional renovator and has affairs. Jodi turns a blind eye to his extra marital relationships but all changes when he tells her he is leaving. Her life is turned upside down and Jodi will do anything to take it back.
August 6, 2015
Gerard: Would you say this book is terrible?
Jodi: Why yes, I would.
Gerard: Would you not recommend this to a friend?
Jodi: Oh, dear Gerard. Why would I do such an atrocious thing?
Gerard: silence
Jodi:Listen, this book is slow as shit rolling uphill, boring from page one, and even the ending sucks.
Gerard: I understand, Jodi. So you're saying you don't like it, or maybe it's just a *little* bad.
Jodi: Gerard, it's a fucking embarrassment to the reading community. Don't waste your money, and don't let your friends waste their money.
Gerard: silence
Jodi: And to those comparing it to Gone Girl; the only similarity is a husband and a wife with...issues. That's it. Over 300 pages of boredom.
Gerard: *jots a note*
Jodi:If you want to read a decent book that's "similar to Gone Girl", read "The Girl on the Train". Got it?
Gerard: silence
Jodi: annoyed
Gerard: ...
Jodi: I'm done. *Throws shitty book into Gerard's face and storms off.
Jodi: Why yes, I would.
Gerard: Would you not recommend this to a friend?
Jodi: Oh, dear Gerard. Why would I do such an atrocious thing?
Gerard: silence
Jodi:Listen, this book is slow as shit rolling uphill, boring from page one, and even the ending sucks.
Gerard: I understand, Jodi. So you're saying you don't like it, or maybe it's just a *little* bad.
Jodi: Gerard, it's a fucking embarrassment to the reading community. Don't waste your money, and don't let your friends waste their money.
Gerard: silence
Jodi: And to those comparing it to Gone Girl; the only similarity is a husband and a wife with...issues. That's it. Over 300 pages of boredom.
Gerard: *jots a note*
Jodi:If you want to read a decent book that's "similar to Gone Girl", read "The Girl on the Train". Got it?
Gerard: silence
Jodi: annoyed
Gerard: ...
Jodi: I'm done. *Throws shitty book into Gerard's face and storms off.
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