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The War of the Roses #1
The War of the Roses
“Terrifying, black-humored, black-hearted and bristling.” —Gillian Flynn, New York Times bestselling author of Gone Girl
Now a major motion picture, The Roses, starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Olivia Colman, Warren Adler’s iconic 1980s tale of a crumbling marriage—an era’s defining portrait of a macabre divorce.
Jonathan and Barbara Rose are the perfect couple, living the dream in their beautiful house, filled with their precious antiques, their darling children, and their prized Ferrari in the garage. It’s all any red-blooded American could possibly want. But when Jonathan experiences a sudden heart attack (or so he thinks) Barbara realizes that she wants a new life, without him. There’s just one they both want the house. For husband and wife, it’s not just a it’s a passion, one that will escalate an ugly divorce into a full-blown battlefield, complete with weapons and casualties.
In this viciously black comedy, the Roses will each do whatever they can to destroy their better half—no matter the cost to themselves . . .
“Brutally honest and darkly humorous, revealing the complexities of love.” ― The New York Times
“A darkly twisted, sharply written, rabbit-hole of a story.” ―Karin Slaughter,New York Times and #1 international bestselling author
Now a major motion picture, The Roses, starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Olivia Colman, Warren Adler’s iconic 1980s tale of a crumbling marriage—an era’s defining portrait of a macabre divorce.
Jonathan and Barbara Rose are the perfect couple, living the dream in their beautiful house, filled with their precious antiques, their darling children, and their prized Ferrari in the garage. It’s all any red-blooded American could possibly want. But when Jonathan experiences a sudden heart attack (or so he thinks) Barbara realizes that she wants a new life, without him. There’s just one they both want the house. For husband and wife, it’s not just a it’s a passion, one that will escalate an ugly divorce into a full-blown battlefield, complete with weapons and casualties.
In this viciously black comedy, the Roses will each do whatever they can to destroy their better half—no matter the cost to themselves . . .
“Brutally honest and darkly humorous, revealing the complexities of love.” ― The New York Times
“A darkly twisted, sharply written, rabbit-hole of a story.” ―Karin Slaughter,New York Times and #1 international bestselling author
253 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1981
203 people are currently reading
5352 people want to read
About the author
Warren Adler
79 books112 followersWarren Adler was an American author, playwright and poet. His novel The War of the Roses was turned into a dark comedy starring Michael Douglas, Kathleen Turner and Danny DeVito.
Adler was an essayist, short-story writer, poet and playwright, whose works have been translated into 25 languages.
Adler was an essayist, short-story writer, poet and playwright, whose works have been translated into 25 languages.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 253 reviews
September 5, 2025
✨ Rating: 4 ⭐️
🫧 Vibes: chaotic dark comedy
🎶 Song: bad blood - taylor swift
📖 Favourite Quote: "Possessions – what good were they? It was better to own nothing."
📚 Would I recommend? yes!
💬 tldr thoughts: It’s dark, unhinged, and hilariously messed up!
In the package:
📦 petty revenge
📦 unhinged warfare
📦 absurd humour
📦 unlikeable characters
Plot: Barbara and Jonathan have the perfect marriage. Or so we thought. Jonathan suffers what he thinks is a heart attack, and suddenly their relationship completely implodes, turning into a vicious, escalating battle over their home and pride. Both of them want to keep the house and none of them are willing to give it up.
Thoughts: This book was a good time! It switches so quickly from "I love you" from "I want to destroy you" that you can't help but laugh from the very beginning. The line between love and hate is REALLY thin in this book. It’s messy, dramatic, and a little terrifying—but you cannot look away. Honestly this was peak entertainment, I personally love rich people turning into absolute messes. The characters are so beyond unlikeable but thats the entire point.
If you're looking for a quick satirical read with some dark humour, this book is for you!
Thank you Random House Canada for a finished copy of this book!
✩⁺₊✩☽⋆ follow me on tiktok and instagram⋆☾✩⁺₊✩
🫧 Vibes: chaotic dark comedy
🎶 Song: bad blood - taylor swift
📖 Favourite Quote: "Possessions – what good were they? It was better to own nothing."
📚 Would I recommend? yes!
💬 tldr thoughts: It’s dark, unhinged, and hilariously messed up!
In the package:
📦 petty revenge
📦 unhinged warfare
📦 absurd humour
📦 unlikeable characters
Plot: Barbara and Jonathan have the perfect marriage. Or so we thought. Jonathan suffers what he thinks is a heart attack, and suddenly their relationship completely implodes, turning into a vicious, escalating battle over their home and pride. Both of them want to keep the house and none of them are willing to give it up.
Thoughts: This book was a good time! It switches so quickly from "I love you" from "I want to destroy you" that you can't help but laugh from the very beginning. The line between love and hate is REALLY thin in this book. It’s messy, dramatic, and a little terrifying—but you cannot look away. Honestly this was peak entertainment, I personally love rich people turning into absolute messes. The characters are so beyond unlikeable but thats the entire point.
If you're looking for a quick satirical read with some dark humour, this book is for you!
Thank you Random House Canada for a finished copy of this book!
✩⁺₊✩☽⋆ follow me on tiktok and instagram⋆☾✩⁺₊✩
August 26, 2025
After reading this, I'm no longer excited about the new movie, and don't feel like going to the cinema to catch a screening. I might still watch it online (as well as the original film), but yeah the book was really not for me.
I didn't like any of the characters, and I didn't find the story funny at all. Even though it's short, it felt long and I kept waiting for it to end. I also wasn't a fan of the way the female characters were written/sexualised, when it happened the first time I knew this book wouldn't be my cup of tea.
Can we talk about the poor pets as well, because what the hell...why would you do that??? Honestly, I wouldn't recommend this to anyone, I'm 101% sure that either movie is better, you do not need this book in your life. But if you really want to read it, who am I to stop you?
I didn't like any of the characters, and I didn't find the story funny at all. Even though it's short, it felt long and I kept waiting for it to end. I also wasn't a fan of the way the female characters were written/sexualised, when it happened the first time I knew this book wouldn't be my cup of tea.
Can we talk about the poor pets as well, because what the hell...why would you do that??? Honestly, I wouldn't recommend this to anyone, I'm 101% sure that either movie is better, you do not need this book in your life. But if you really want to read it, who am I to stop you?
March 22, 2023
SPOILERS:
I disliked the movie and dislike d the book.
Maybe in the minority here. Everyone..almost..who I know who has read it loves it.
I usually love dark humor. Issue is.I do not thin k this is funny. It really is a downer and I never got why either the book OR the film were so popular.
I get the message. But man is it a tough book to enjoy. Had the same issue with the film. And I did try.
Some people consider this a masterpiece so what do I know? I also have never ever seen a book that does not have SOME detractors. Even 1984 has people who dislike it.
So make up your own mind. I really tried to get the gritty dark humor which is ever present but did not feel like laughing..more crying. Very rough read for me.
I disliked the movie and dislike d the book.
Maybe in the minority here. Everyone..almost..who I know who has read it loves it.
I usually love dark humor. Issue is.I do not thin k this is funny. It really is a downer and I never got why either the book OR the film were so popular.
I get the message. But man is it a tough book to enjoy. Had the same issue with the film. And I did try.
Some people consider this a masterpiece so what do I know? I also have never ever seen a book that does not have SOME detractors. Even 1984 has people who dislike it.
So make up your own mind. I really tried to get the gritty dark humor which is ever present but did not feel like laughing..more crying. Very rough read for me.
May 18, 2019
Worst divorce ever. I suppose that's a cultural point that's passed: I don't think anyone is writing stories about divorce as they were in the late 70s.
***
Well, that's a relief. So lately I've been on a non-fiction binge, snarfing down everything by and about Edward Gorey. And the biography mentioned his close friendship with Alison Lurie, who wrote Foreign Affairs (a book I never had any interest in reading despite having a lovely copy on my shelves for twenty or thirty years). So I was looking up Alison Lurie who also wrote The War Between the Tates, and then I was kicking myself for not having realized that this author who wrote that one book I really loved that was made into a movie I really loved had written a book left sitting on my shelf for lo, these many years until I finally donated it to the Friends of the Library book sale.
So I requested a copy from the library and this evening I sat down with it all ready for a blackly comic tale fondly recalled.
And after a hundred pages or so I was just fed up and kind of disgusted when I got to the whole bit about the professor having an affair with the student who was so hopelessly in love with him for so long (wow, it's hard to believe that scenario would be anything less than squicky ever, just ew!) and oh, crivens, this must have been written after Lurie's divorce and it is so much nastier and meaner and devoid of empathy and humor than I remembered. So I could cast it aside with no regrets but a lot of amazement that I could possibly have enjoyed reading this book in 84-85.
Huh, so the movie came out in '89. I just assumed I had picked up the book when the movie was pending or just out, but whatever. Adler. The screenplay was by Adler. Based on his very successful novel.
Oh. Nevermind. The War of the Roses was based on The War of the Roses not The War Between the Tates. Why had I gotten that idea?Where had I gotten that idea? Why didn't I check? That one's easy: I didn't check because I knew. Had anyone asked I would have placed my certainty pretty high, too, because I remembered reading the book.
Well, this is just all kinds of relief, because I really was hating this Tate novel and I couldn't believe I remembered it so differently, but of course it was awful if I was comparing it to another totally different book. And I really did like Lurie on children's literature quite a bit and I was kind of sorry that I had tried rereading a book and had it backfire so disastrously.
So yay, now I get to take another crack at the War of the Roses and there's another one about the Children, and my memory was both better and worse than I had thought, but that's true of pretty much everything as one gets older. And I can carry on liking Lurie on children's books and just pretend that this evening never happened.
And now I'm going to go cross post this on The War Between the Tates so that in thirty years or so when I start wondering what it was about Lurie I can refresh my memory.
***
Rarely do I feel that an author shouldn't have written that particular story, and although it's a great book, it makes me think that. Adler doesn't understand why Barbara wants a divorce, and that pulls it off center. Someday I will have to watch the movie again, and see if it handles that better.
***
As a long-married adult with grown children the book wasn't even a little bit funny. The desire to keep the home and stuff and kids and ditch the spouse only is probably very common, but form this perspective it's pure horror. Metaphorically this laying waste to the home is apt, but wow, disturbing on every level.
Library copy
***
Well, that's a relief. So lately I've been on a non-fiction binge, snarfing down everything by and about Edward Gorey. And the biography mentioned his close friendship with Alison Lurie, who wrote Foreign Affairs (a book I never had any interest in reading despite having a lovely copy on my shelves for twenty or thirty years). So I was looking up Alison Lurie who also wrote The War Between the Tates, and then I was kicking myself for not having realized that this author who wrote that one book I really loved that was made into a movie I really loved had written a book left sitting on my shelf for lo, these many years until I finally donated it to the Friends of the Library book sale.
So I requested a copy from the library and this evening I sat down with it all ready for a blackly comic tale fondly recalled.
And after a hundred pages or so I was just fed up and kind of disgusted when I got to the whole bit about the professor having an affair with the student who was so hopelessly in love with him for so long (wow, it's hard to believe that scenario would be anything less than squicky ever, just ew!) and oh, crivens, this must have been written after Lurie's divorce and it is so much nastier and meaner and devoid of empathy and humor than I remembered. So I could cast it aside with no regrets but a lot of amazement that I could possibly have enjoyed reading this book in 84-85.
Huh, so the movie came out in '89. I just assumed I had picked up the book when the movie was pending or just out, but whatever. Adler. The screenplay was by Adler. Based on his very successful novel.
Oh. Nevermind. The War of the Roses was based on The War of the Roses not The War Between the Tates. Why had I gotten that idea?Where had I gotten that idea? Why didn't I check? That one's easy: I didn't check because I knew. Had anyone asked I would have placed my certainty pretty high, too, because I remembered reading the book.
Well, this is just all kinds of relief, because I really was hating this Tate novel and I couldn't believe I remembered it so differently, but of course it was awful if I was comparing it to another totally different book. And I really did like Lurie on children's literature quite a bit and I was kind of sorry that I had tried rereading a book and had it backfire so disastrously.
So yay, now I get to take another crack at the War of the Roses and there's another one about the Children, and my memory was both better and worse than I had thought, but that's true of pretty much everything as one gets older. And I can carry on liking Lurie on children's books and just pretend that this evening never happened.
And now I'm going to go cross post this on The War Between the Tates so that in thirty years or so when I start wondering what it was about Lurie I can refresh my memory.
***
Rarely do I feel that an author shouldn't have written that particular story, and although it's a great book, it makes me think that. Adler doesn't understand why Barbara wants a divorce, and that pulls it off center. Someday I will have to watch the movie again, and see if it handles that better.
***
As a long-married adult with grown children the book wasn't even a little bit funny. The desire to keep the home and stuff and kids and ditch the spouse only is probably very common, but form this perspective it's pure horror. Metaphorically this laying waste to the home is apt, but wow, disturbing on every level.
Library copy
January 24, 2011
You know how people are always saying that the book was better than the movie? The War of the Roses is the perfect example where the movie that followed was better than the original book. In fact, it wasn't until years after I saw the movie that I even realized that there was a book that preceded it.
Since I love the dark humor in the movie and its characters (perfectly portrayed by Kathleen Turner and Michael Douglas), I decided to give the book a try to see how it differed and also to see if I could get even more scenes involving two of my favorite movie characters: the Roses. I already knew the characters from the movie, so I figured the transition to the book would be easy. Unfortunately, the characters were dull and lifeless on the pages. The movie was much darker, more humorous, and really developed the characters more than the book did. After reading the book, I didn't come out with any new knowledge about the characters, didn't find them as intriguing, and don't care to follow-up my reading with the book's sequel, The Children of the Roses.
Skip the book and watch the fantastic movie.
Since I love the dark humor in the movie and its characters (perfectly portrayed by Kathleen Turner and Michael Douglas), I decided to give the book a try to see how it differed and also to see if I could get even more scenes involving two of my favorite movie characters: the Roses. I already knew the characters from the movie, so I figured the transition to the book would be easy. Unfortunately, the characters were dull and lifeless on the pages. The movie was much darker, more humorous, and really developed the characters more than the book did. After reading the book, I didn't come out with any new knowledge about the characters, didn't find them as intriguing, and don't care to follow-up my reading with the book's sequel, The Children of the Roses.
Skip the book and watch the fantastic movie.
July 12, 2025
War of the Roses has long been a favourite film for me and so I was delighted to receive an advance review copy of thus re-released novel in time for the new film adaptation. Plus I've never read the book and was interested in how much it differed from the original movie from 1989.
Jonathan and Barbara Rose appear to have it all. He's a successful lawyer and she runs the home and the children and is just about to spread her wings by starting a catering business. But all is not well in the Rose household - not that Jonathan knows it until he falls ill.
Almost the whole novel is taken up with what happens after Barbara decides she wants out. And its a terrifying descent into what can happen in a split when you're both stubborn, highly motivated and want the same thing. It's a salutary tale about marriage and divorce - and for a change it's not the lawyers making things worse.
There are lots of differences between the novel and the 89 film. I loved the film and the novel is just as good. In fact, I'd say the end is far superior in the novel - much more chilling.
A great read. Recommend.
Thankyou to Netgalley and Zando Projects for the advance review copy.
Jonathan and Barbara Rose appear to have it all. He's a successful lawyer and she runs the home and the children and is just about to spread her wings by starting a catering business. But all is not well in the Rose household - not that Jonathan knows it until he falls ill.
Almost the whole novel is taken up with what happens after Barbara decides she wants out. And its a terrifying descent into what can happen in a split when you're both stubborn, highly motivated and want the same thing. It's a salutary tale about marriage and divorce - and for a change it's not the lawyers making things worse.
There are lots of differences between the novel and the 89 film. I loved the film and the novel is just as good. In fact, I'd say the end is far superior in the novel - much more chilling.
A great read. Recommend.
Thankyou to Netgalley and Zando Projects for the advance review copy.
February 18, 2019
What an awful story! Such terrible, malignant, selfish characters, filled with malevolence and hatred. I didn’t find it humorous, but sad and sickening. I’m not interested in the sequel.
July 2, 2015
I think this is one of the first times where I can say that I preferred the movie to the book. The movie was twisted and obscene but in comparison to the book, it was tame. A very interesting read.
September 26, 2025
3,5 ⭐️
El reciente estreno de ‘Los Rose’, película protagonizada por Olivia Colman y Benedict Cumberbatch, ha venido acompañado de una nueva reedición de ‘La guerra de los Rose’, obra en la que se inspira la película. Publicada por primera vez en los años 80, y convertida en la obra más célebre de su autor, ‘La guerra de los Rose’ es una de esas historias que se leen con una mezcla de asombro, incomodidad y fascinación, constituyendo una de las sátiras domésticas más incisivas de la literatura contemporánea.
Jonathan y Barbara Rose son la pareja perfecta, el ejemplo vivo del preciado sueño americano con su hermosa casa, sus dos adorables hijos y un impresionante Ferrari en el garaje. Pero cuando Jonathan sufre un repentino ataque al corazón (o eso cree), Barbara se da cuenta de que quiere una nueva vida… sin él. Solo hay un problema: ambos quieren quedarse con la casa. Para conseguirlo, los Rose harán todo lo posible por destruir a su «media naranja», sin importar el precio que tengan que pagar.
Barbara es un personaje complejo y fascinante: ama de casa devota y amante de las apariencias, siente que ha sacrificado buena parte de sus aspiraciones personales para sostener el hogar y que ha recibido poco reconocimiento a cambio. Cuando despierta a la idea de que su vida no es tan plena como esperaba, decide reclamar su parte… y lo hace sin medias tintas. Su transformación la lleva de la insatisfacción silenciosa a la venganza activa, con una frialdad que sorprende, desplegando ingenio y crueldad a partes iguales.
Jonathan, por su parte, es el clásico profesional exitoso que cree haber cumplido con todo lo que se esperaba de él: proveer, mantener y ser el eje de la familia. Su reacción al cambio de Barbara es visceral. Incapaz de aceptar la ruptura, se aferra a la casa y a los bienes materiales como si fueran una extensión de su propia identidad. Ambos personajes están lejos de ser héroes trágicos; son obstinados, orgullosos, y están dispuestos a autodestruirse con tal de no ceder.
Aunque los hijos, Eve y Josh, no ocupan el centro de la narración, su presencia actúa como un recordatorio constante de lo que realmente está en juego: no solo la casa y sus objetos, sino una familia entera desmoronándose. Su mirada aumenta la tensión emocional y subraya el precio de la guerra conyugal entre Barbara y Jonathan. A su alrededor, los personajes secundarios —abogados, empleados domésticos, conocidos— amplifican el tono de comedia negra, intensificando el absurdo y contribuyendo a que la espiral de locura en la que los Rose se hunden resulte aún más perturbadora.
El divorcio se convierte en un verdadero campo de batalla. Lo que podría haber sido un trámite civilizado se transforma en una escalada de sabotajes, humillaciones y trampas —algunas literales— que alcanzan cotas de brutalidad sorprendentes. La casa familiar, símbolo de sus logros y de su identidad como pareja, se transforma en el escenario en el que ambos librarán una guerra despiadada. Lo grotesco y lo trágico se entremezclan para llevar al lector hasta un clímax tan intenso que cuesta apartar la vista de las páginas, aun cuando la tensión se vuelve prácticamente insoportable.
Uno de los mayores aciertos de Adler es convertir la casa en un personaje más. Sus descripciones detalladas la dotan de peso simbólico: es el trofeo y la prisión por los que ambos están dispuestos a perderlo todo. Al inicio es el símbolo del éxito compartido; al final, es el escenario de su destrucción mutua. Adler convierte cada objeto en un motivo de disputa, reforzando el tema del materialismo como identidad y motor del conflicto.
El tono de la novela es implacable, y el humor negro es uno de sus pilares centrales. Hay escenas que rozan lo caricaturesco en las que uno se debate entre la risa y el horror (he de confesar que en mi caso fue más de lo segundo que de lo primero). Adler se atreve a mostrar lo absurdo de una guerra conyugal en la que no hay ganadores, solo dos personas que se deshumanizan en nombre del orgullo. Lo que pudo ser un melodrama se convierte en una sátira feroz sobre el matrimonio, el ego y el consumismo. El resultado es tan incómodo como adictivo: el lector quiere saber hasta dónde serán capaces de llegar.
‘La guerra de los Rose’ no es una lectura cómoda. La escalada de hostilidades puede resultar agotadora, y la ferocidad de los protagonistas hace difícil empatizar con ellos. La novela se atreve a mostrar la fealdad emocional sin edulcorantes, con una honestidad brutal que pocas obras sobre el divorcio se han permitido. No hay moraleja amable ni reconciliación, solo la constatación de hasta dónde puede llegar la venganza cuando el resentimiento y la falta de comunicación transforman el amor en algo irreconocible.
A pesar de haber sido escrita en los años 80, la historia mantiene una vigencia sorprendente. La lucha por la casa como símbolo de identidad, el peso de las expectativas de género, el cuestionamiento del rol del ama de casa y la crítica al materialismo siguen resonando. Aunque algunas actitudes resultan desfasadas hoy día, la esencia del conflicto —orgullo, ego, resentimiento— es universal.
‘La guerra de los Rose’ es una sátira despiadada sobre el matrimonio y la autodestrucción, que combina lo íntimo y lo grotesco para mostrar lo que ocurre cuando el amor se acaba y solo queda la voluntad de ganar, cueste lo que cueste. Incómoda, oscura y a ratos absurdamente divertida, no deja indiferente y es lectura obligada para quienes quieran descubrir el material original que inspiró el clásico del cine protagonizado por Michael Douglas y Kathleen Turner.
El reciente estreno de ‘Los Rose’, película protagonizada por Olivia Colman y Benedict Cumberbatch, ha venido acompañado de una nueva reedición de ‘La guerra de los Rose’, obra en la que se inspira la película. Publicada por primera vez en los años 80, y convertida en la obra más célebre de su autor, ‘La guerra de los Rose’ es una de esas historias que se leen con una mezcla de asombro, incomodidad y fascinación, constituyendo una de las sátiras domésticas más incisivas de la literatura contemporánea.
Jonathan y Barbara Rose son la pareja perfecta, el ejemplo vivo del preciado sueño americano con su hermosa casa, sus dos adorables hijos y un impresionante Ferrari en el garaje. Pero cuando Jonathan sufre un repentino ataque al corazón (o eso cree), Barbara se da cuenta de que quiere una nueva vida… sin él. Solo hay un problema: ambos quieren quedarse con la casa. Para conseguirlo, los Rose harán todo lo posible por destruir a su «media naranja», sin importar el precio que tengan que pagar.
Barbara es un personaje complejo y fascinante: ama de casa devota y amante de las apariencias, siente que ha sacrificado buena parte de sus aspiraciones personales para sostener el hogar y que ha recibido poco reconocimiento a cambio. Cuando despierta a la idea de que su vida no es tan plena como esperaba, decide reclamar su parte… y lo hace sin medias tintas. Su transformación la lleva de la insatisfacción silenciosa a la venganza activa, con una frialdad que sorprende, desplegando ingenio y crueldad a partes iguales.
Jonathan, por su parte, es el clásico profesional exitoso que cree haber cumplido con todo lo que se esperaba de él: proveer, mantener y ser el eje de la familia. Su reacción al cambio de Barbara es visceral. Incapaz de aceptar la ruptura, se aferra a la casa y a los bienes materiales como si fueran una extensión de su propia identidad. Ambos personajes están lejos de ser héroes trágicos; son obstinados, orgullosos, y están dispuestos a autodestruirse con tal de no ceder.
Aunque los hijos, Eve y Josh, no ocupan el centro de la narración, su presencia actúa como un recordatorio constante de lo que realmente está en juego: no solo la casa y sus objetos, sino una familia entera desmoronándose. Su mirada aumenta la tensión emocional y subraya el precio de la guerra conyugal entre Barbara y Jonathan. A su alrededor, los personajes secundarios —abogados, empleados domésticos, conocidos— amplifican el tono de comedia negra, intensificando el absurdo y contribuyendo a que la espiral de locura en la que los Rose se hunden resulte aún más perturbadora.
El divorcio se convierte en un verdadero campo de batalla. Lo que podría haber sido un trámite civilizado se transforma en una escalada de sabotajes, humillaciones y trampas —algunas literales— que alcanzan cotas de brutalidad sorprendentes. La casa familiar, símbolo de sus logros y de su identidad como pareja, se transforma en el escenario en el que ambos librarán una guerra despiadada. Lo grotesco y lo trágico se entremezclan para llevar al lector hasta un clímax tan intenso que cuesta apartar la vista de las páginas, aun cuando la tensión se vuelve prácticamente insoportable.
Uno de los mayores aciertos de Adler es convertir la casa en un personaje más. Sus descripciones detalladas la dotan de peso simbólico: es el trofeo y la prisión por los que ambos están dispuestos a perderlo todo. Al inicio es el símbolo del éxito compartido; al final, es el escenario de su destrucción mutua. Adler convierte cada objeto en un motivo de disputa, reforzando el tema del materialismo como identidad y motor del conflicto.
El tono de la novela es implacable, y el humor negro es uno de sus pilares centrales. Hay escenas que rozan lo caricaturesco en las que uno se debate entre la risa y el horror (he de confesar que en mi caso fue más de lo segundo que de lo primero). Adler se atreve a mostrar lo absurdo de una guerra conyugal en la que no hay ganadores, solo dos personas que se deshumanizan en nombre del orgullo. Lo que pudo ser un melodrama se convierte en una sátira feroz sobre el matrimonio, el ego y el consumismo. El resultado es tan incómodo como adictivo: el lector quiere saber hasta dónde serán capaces de llegar.
‘La guerra de los Rose’ no es una lectura cómoda. La escalada de hostilidades puede resultar agotadora, y la ferocidad de los protagonistas hace difícil empatizar con ellos. La novela se atreve a mostrar la fealdad emocional sin edulcorantes, con una honestidad brutal que pocas obras sobre el divorcio se han permitido. No hay moraleja amable ni reconciliación, solo la constatación de hasta dónde puede llegar la venganza cuando el resentimiento y la falta de comunicación transforman el amor en algo irreconocible.
A pesar de haber sido escrita en los años 80, la historia mantiene una vigencia sorprendente. La lucha por la casa como símbolo de identidad, el peso de las expectativas de género, el cuestionamiento del rol del ama de casa y la crítica al materialismo siguen resonando. Aunque algunas actitudes resultan desfasadas hoy día, la esencia del conflicto —orgullo, ego, resentimiento— es universal.
‘La guerra de los Rose’ es una sátira despiadada sobre el matrimonio y la autodestrucción, que combina lo íntimo y lo grotesco para mostrar lo que ocurre cuando el amor se acaba y solo queda la voluntad de ganar, cueste lo que cueste. Incómoda, oscura y a ratos absurdamente divertida, no deja indiferente y es lectura obligada para quienes quieran descubrir el material original que inspiró el clásico del cine protagonizado por Michael Douglas y Kathleen Turner.
September 8, 2025
Thoughts
Filled with petty revenge, drama, dark humour, and unlikeable characters this book wont be for everyone. I had no patience for any of it and so the story dragged for me. By the end, I wanted to divorce the book!!
Filled with petty revenge, drama, dark humour, and unlikeable characters this book wont be for everyone. I had no patience for any of it and so the story dragged for me. By the end, I wanted to divorce the book!!
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October 19, 2019I remember the movie,not for the story,but because I like the actors.Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner,shouting at each other,as a marriage falls apart.
September 11, 2025
Ok feel like I have lots of thoughts on this one. Started it and loved it off the bat. Not a super original premise, couple falls out of love gets divorced it gets messy, but it had good humour in the beginning and was clearly a satire on the whole concept of marriage and love at first sight. But as the book went on the premise started to grate on me a bit. Like yeah we get it you hate each other, oh ok what other prank are you going to pull now?! And the more the husband’s character fell into this like toxic masculine ‘I hate women they’ve all wronged me I can’t trust women’ mindset the more I was getting sick of it, even if that was the point to show that he was an unlikable guy. Also the wife character I’m like what is your vibe?! Like nobody falls out of love like this and it just felt unrealistic to me even though the whole book was supposed to be a situation that gets blown out of proportion.
So all in all interesting to me and I’m glad I read it but it didn’t resonate with me and it felt like they were trying to push too many metaphors down my throat. Like I get it she’s the cat he’s the dog and I get it the house is a their relationship! Got bored of all that pretty fast.
So all in all interesting to me and I’m glad I read it but it didn’t resonate with me and it felt like they were trying to push too many metaphors down my throat. Like I get it she’s the cat he’s the dog and I get it the house is a their relationship! Got bored of all that pretty fast.
April 1, 2016
Written in 1978 this novel was translated to a film starring Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner in 1989 and was a huge success from the get-go. It tells the story of Jonathan and Barbara Rose iconic breakup of their marriage.
This story brings the dark side of the human nature. People just do the most horrible things to each other on the end of a marriage. Greed, materialism and selfishness whittle away at an individual’s integrity, destroy common sense and encourage turbulent feelings that lead to violence. Mr. Adler has created a masterpiece in his fictionalization of a macabre divorce.
I loved the book as much as I did watching the movie. The players antics are so vividly described I couldn’t help but picturing Douglas and Turner acting out their rage against each other, sad and funny at the same time. The narrative is well-done and entertaining. The details of how a relationship can deteriorate are extremely well-written. The dialogue is sharp, humoristic and brutal. The players are great: sexy, cruel, vengeful and resourceful.
“The War of the Roses” is a brilliant and clever book, wildly funny and deeply disturbing
This story brings the dark side of the human nature. People just do the most horrible things to each other on the end of a marriage. Greed, materialism and selfishness whittle away at an individual’s integrity, destroy common sense and encourage turbulent feelings that lead to violence. Mr. Adler has created a masterpiece in his fictionalization of a macabre divorce.
I loved the book as much as I did watching the movie. The players antics are so vividly described I couldn’t help but picturing Douglas and Turner acting out their rage against each other, sad and funny at the same time. The narrative is well-done and entertaining. The details of how a relationship can deteriorate are extremely well-written. The dialogue is sharp, humoristic and brutal. The players are great: sexy, cruel, vengeful and resourceful.
“The War of the Roses” is a brilliant and clever book, wildly funny and deeply disturbing
March 20, 2015
I actually liked this book quite a bit. Personally, I think it brings up a lot of interesting discussion points not just on divorce, but on love, marriage, women's (so-called) liberation, as well as patriarchy and selfishness and sacrifice. I do like the ending of the movie quite a bit more than the ending in the book- only because I think it's more well-written and less cheesy drama.
The characters were very well written and the plot moved briskly and kept my attention.
The characters were very well written and the plot moved briskly and kept my attention.
April 16, 2022
When I saw this book being offered by Netgalley for review, I decided to take a chance because I enjoyed this story as a movie. In this situation, the book IS NOT better than the movie, don’t bother.
I thank Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.
I thank Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.
August 21, 2025
The War Of The Roses is labeled as a dark humour novel, in my opinion, I did not find it one bit funny 🫣 Right from the start the writing was hard for me to get into, the storyline also felt disjointed for me, it just had a weird flow (it's a me problem). I know a lot of people are enjoying it, but I guess I might not be the right audience for this type of book. When I read the synopsis it sounded right up my alley, but the execution for me did not work.
The characters in the novel are absolutely dull, they have no life, they feel lifeless on the pages. They were also so one dimensional, had no depth to them and didn't feel like they were fully developed. Also, I thought it was actually a sad, manipulative story filled with so much hatred, I didn't see any humour in it (once again possibly a me problem). It just left me with a sour feeling and I didn't like that.
Overall, this was definitely not the book for me. I can see why others enjoyed it, this genre might just not be it for me. I am sad to say I didn't enjoy it, but that is the beauty of reading, we can't love everything!
✨ ️ Thank you to @randomhouseca & Warren Adler for my gifted copy in exchange for an honest review.
The characters in the novel are absolutely dull, they have no life, they feel lifeless on the pages. They were also so one dimensional, had no depth to them and didn't feel like they were fully developed. Also, I thought it was actually a sad, manipulative story filled with so much hatred, I didn't see any humour in it (once again possibly a me problem). It just left me with a sour feeling and I didn't like that.
Overall, this was definitely not the book for me. I can see why others enjoyed it, this genre might just not be it for me. I am sad to say I didn't enjoy it, but that is the beauty of reading, we can't love everything!
✨ ️ Thank you to @randomhouseca & Warren Adler for my gifted copy in exchange for an honest review.
August 29, 2025
Thank you Random House Canada for a copy of the reprint of this book from Warren Adler in 1981
In this dark humoured and deeply satirical novel on the divorce of the Roses, Adler explored themes of materialism, consumerism and the perils of losing sight of what really matters in life - the people, not the things.
I will admit that this is not the type of book I would normally ever pick for myself, yet I couldn’t seem to stop reading about this trainwreck of a divorce. It was like a car accident you could look or walk away from. It definitely felt in line with the times and I could see this 80’s movie playing out in my mind as I read. I’m definitely interested in seeing both the ‘80’s movie and the new remake with Benedict Cumberbatch and Olivia Colman.
In this dark humoured and deeply satirical novel on the divorce of the Roses, Adler explored themes of materialism, consumerism and the perils of losing sight of what really matters in life - the people, not the things.
I will admit that this is not the type of book I would normally ever pick for myself, yet I couldn’t seem to stop reading about this trainwreck of a divorce. It was like a car accident you could look or walk away from. It definitely felt in line with the times and I could see this 80’s movie playing out in my mind as I read. I’m definitely interested in seeing both the ‘80’s movie and the new remake with Benedict Cumberbatch and Olivia Colman.
October 5, 2025
This is a fun cautionary tale about marriage and materialism that adds to my read collection of books that were movies that I had no idea were based on books. The text and the turmoil both stand the test of time despite being published in 1981.
June 20, 2025
Zando Projects provided a galley for review.
I remember fondly the 1989 film version starring Michael Douglas, Kathleen Turner and Danny DeVito. So, getting a chance to read the original novel upon which it was based was an exciting prospect. I found it quite exhilarating to jump back to a classic, one that holds up extremely well after over forty years. The story had quite a bit of details that were different than the film, so it was a fresher, darker take on an already dark story.
The material things that make up the Rose's home are just as much a character as the couple themselves. That starts right from the opening chapter where Jonathan and Barbara meet at an auction. The whole theme of materialism is one that was prominent in the 80's when the story first came to be, and it still resonates today.
I was not aware that there was also a sequel written by Adler in 2013 called The Children of the Roses. His estate will be releasing another (previously unpublished work as the author passed in 2019) in the series The Curse of the Roses late in 2025 or early 2026.
I remember fondly the 1989 film version starring Michael Douglas, Kathleen Turner and Danny DeVito. So, getting a chance to read the original novel upon which it was based was an exciting prospect. I found it quite exhilarating to jump back to a classic, one that holds up extremely well after over forty years. The story had quite a bit of details that were different than the film, so it was a fresher, darker take on an already dark story.
The material things that make up the Rose's home are just as much a character as the couple themselves. That starts right from the opening chapter where Jonathan and Barbara meet at an auction. The whole theme of materialism is one that was prominent in the 80's when the story first came to be, and it still resonates today.
I was not aware that there was also a sequel written by Adler in 2013 called The Children of the Roses. His estate will be releasing another (previously unpublished work as the author passed in 2019) in the series The Curse of the Roses late in 2025 or early 2026.
July 19, 2025
What a horrible, horrible book.
Reading it was like crawling across broken glass. I hated every single character. Just awful people being awful to each other. I spent the entire time enraged: angry at Barbara, angry at Jonathan, angry at Ann, even slightly angry at Amazon that I had to pay £0.99 for the experience.
On the plus side it was quite short.
Reading it was like crawling across broken glass. I hated every single character. Just awful people being awful to each other. I spent the entire time enraged: angry at Barbara, angry at Jonathan, angry at Ann, even slightly angry at Amazon that I had to pay £0.99 for the experience.
On the plus side it was quite short.
September 9, 2025
Such a fun and unique book that perfectly shows just how easily love can turn into hate, into destruction. The Roses are out for blood and they don’t stop at anything to get what they want.
While reading the book, I was always navigating between finding all that happened funny and finding it all so horrible at the same time. I don’t think anyone would ever wish to see what was initially love turn into such negative emotions, yet I do feel as thought it represents the risk and shifting vision of your loved one when you go through a divorce.
While reading the book, I was always navigating between finding all that happened funny and finding it all so horrible at the same time. I don’t think anyone would ever wish to see what was initially love turn into such negative emotions, yet I do feel as thought it represents the risk and shifting vision of your loved one when you go through a divorce.
February 11, 2022
Having not seen the movie, but heard Warren Adler talking about writing on a podcast, I was keen to read this, thinking it would be an engaging courtroom drama. So it wasn't what I was expecting!
The story held my interest, but as the drama descended into complete horror - simultaneously reminiscent of a classic Tom & Jerry cartoon - I really struggled. Barbara's character was undeveloped, I had no empathy for her at all, which is perhaps what Adler was aiming for, but her reasons for wanting out of the marriage lacked depth, and her lack of all emotion towards Jonathan was hard to believe. We saw her side of the action, but none of her actual motivation, or emotions beneath the surface. This felt very much like a man writing a woman with little understanding of women!
Another example of this was the sexualisation of Ann, which was painful to read! Apparently her motivations towards Jonathan were mostly borne of lust, which I really struggled with. The pair had no meaningful conversations, and her opportunities to help him and to help keep him rational were completely lost. I get that she was young and naive, but she wasn't lacking the confidence to seduce him, so their lack of communication felt infuriating. Jonathan's acting out of sexual frustration was plausible, but her same motivation was not.
I appreciated the symbolism of the gradual destruction of the house, being the thing they were both fighting for in the first place, but I found the execution of it uncomfortable to read. Jonathan's descent into madness, fuelled by copious amounts of alcohol, made me wonder how he was capable of setting up such delicate and intricate booby traps, and then Barbara's abilities to evade them added to the farcical ridiculousness of the final chapters.
Overall, I was pretty disappointed. I'm tempted to watch the film, just to see if it's better, as other reviews suggest, and I'm interested to see how different the ending is, since the ending to the book is pretty disappointing, if only for the poor innocent children!
I read the first chapter sample of the sequel, simply because it was there and I was vaguely intrigued to see what happened to the children, but even in the first chapter, one of the female characters' main features is her big boobs (pointedly mentioned at least 3 times) and I found the objectification utterly cringey. I guess Adler was an author of his time, but that old-school casual misogyny isn't something I want to be subjected to when I'm reading for pleasure.
The story held my interest, but as the drama descended into complete horror - simultaneously reminiscent of a classic Tom & Jerry cartoon - I really struggled. Barbara's character was undeveloped, I had no empathy for her at all, which is perhaps what Adler was aiming for, but her reasons for wanting out of the marriage lacked depth, and her lack of all emotion towards Jonathan was hard to believe. We saw her side of the action, but none of her actual motivation, or emotions beneath the surface. This felt very much like a man writing a woman with little understanding of women!
Another example of this was the sexualisation of Ann, which was painful to read! Apparently her motivations towards Jonathan were mostly borne of lust, which I really struggled with. The pair had no meaningful conversations, and her opportunities to help him and to help keep him rational were completely lost. I get that she was young and naive, but she wasn't lacking the confidence to seduce him, so their lack of communication felt infuriating. Jonathan's acting out of sexual frustration was plausible, but her same motivation was not.
I appreciated the symbolism of the gradual destruction of the house, being the thing they were both fighting for in the first place, but I found the execution of it uncomfortable to read. Jonathan's descent into madness, fuelled by copious amounts of alcohol, made me wonder how he was capable of setting up such delicate and intricate booby traps, and then Barbara's abilities to evade them added to the farcical ridiculousness of the final chapters.
Overall, I was pretty disappointed. I'm tempted to watch the film, just to see if it's better, as other reviews suggest, and I'm interested to see how different the ending is, since the ending to the book is pretty disappointing, if only for the poor innocent children!
I read the first chapter sample of the sequel, simply because it was there and I was vaguely intrigued to see what happened to the children, but even in the first chapter, one of the female characters' main features is her big boobs (pointedly mentioned at least 3 times) and I found the objectification utterly cringey. I guess Adler was an author of his time, but that old-school casual misogyny isn't something I want to be subjected to when I'm reading for pleasure.
September 14, 2017
From bliss to warlike life, the book takes us on a dreadfully realistic trip to witness the decay of modern relationships that are filled with selfishness, materialism and absurdity. It triggers the eternal and important question: "How far are we willing,as spouses or as human beings, to allow our material possessions the power to define who we are? "
To sum it all up, when the magical love and the respect are gone; we are definitely sleeping with the enemy in a domestic torrential downpour of marriage life.
Remorse often kills!
To sum it all up, when the magical love and the respect are gone; we are definitely sleeping with the enemy in a domestic torrential downpour of marriage life.
Remorse often kills!
September 21, 2021
I read this because I liked the movie adaptation, starring Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner. The divorce in the novel is even more bitter and un-amicable than in the movie, if you can believe that. I thought the writing was somewhat amateurish, but overall the story was entertaining, if a bit extreme. The part about the dog was WAY over the top, which is why I only gave it two stars.
July 3, 2008
I'll come right out and say it: I liked the movie much more than the book. The novel is engrossing and well written but the movie had that evil snicker of a Danny DeVito twist and I'm a sucker for anything DD puts his mark on.
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August 8, 20213.5 stars
September 24, 2025
ugh, not my cup of tea...
May 24, 2020
Oliver and Barbara have been together for a very long time. He - a lawyer, making a career and a lot of money. She - jewel in his crown, a wonderful mother for two perfect children. Seems like a perfect marriage. In addition, they have a wonderful house, which they have shaped with their own hands (literally - Olivier copes well with carpentry as a lawyer, and Barbara even gained the plumbing license) and according to their own vision.
And everything is wonderful until Oliver has a heart attack during one of his business meetings. He lands in the hospital and, although it turns out that he is fine, he re-evaluates his life and wonders where the person he was thinking about just before losing consciousness was his wife. She doesn't know that she, too, when she heard that he was in the hospital, thought about her life and came to the worrying conclusion - that she would be happy if he died.
That's how the whole story begins. About how loving people lose contact with each other, which results in regret, anger, and hatred. Both are convinced that the house is theirs - each of them individually. Oliver thinks so because they bought the house for the money he earned. Barbara, on the other hand, because she put her whole heart into it. None of them wants to give way, which leads to a brutal battle.
The book is a study of madness and hatred. What stubbornness does with us and what other people can lead us to. In addition, it gained a lot in my eyes for the fact that the author did not give us a happy ending - he even stripped us of the hope that everything can eventually be fine. Love and family doesn't matter. The desire to own is what counts.
And everything is wonderful until Oliver has a heart attack during one of his business meetings. He lands in the hospital and, although it turns out that he is fine, he re-evaluates his life and wonders where the person he was thinking about just before losing consciousness was his wife. She doesn't know that she, too, when she heard that he was in the hospital, thought about her life and came to the worrying conclusion - that she would be happy if he died.
That's how the whole story begins. About how loving people lose contact with each other, which results in regret, anger, and hatred. Both are convinced that the house is theirs - each of them individually. Oliver thinks so because they bought the house for the money he earned. Barbara, on the other hand, because she put her whole heart into it. None of them wants to give way, which leads to a brutal battle.
The book is a study of madness and hatred. What stubbornness does with us and what other people can lead us to. In addition, it gained a lot in my eyes for the fact that the author did not give us a happy ending - he even stripped us of the hope that everything can eventually be fine. Love and family doesn't matter. The desire to own is what counts.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 15, 2025
Warren Adler’s tale of a divorce gone completely wrong is an incredibly interesting and even harrowing story, don’t be fool by the blurbs in the cover of the 2025 edition, the story is not humorous or comic. Yes there are moments where it’s a borderline a farce but Adler plays it straight, showing us what happens if things just keep escalating to a point of no return. It is also I found a kind of surprisingly nuanced look at loves end, Barbara arguably the antagonist or “villain” of the story is developed so we can truly understand where she is coming from, yes she does takes things too far because restraint is not a word anyone knows in the book, but still she is developed so we can understand her, agreeing or not is another thing. Even Jonathan’s point of view is shown and is so separate from Barbara’s that reconciliation is not possible because he wants one thing that she won’t give him. Truly is a story of taking things so far that even they loose sight of their goal they had at the beginning, and that is the key of the story taking things so far that the shocking end is the only end this book could have. Talking about the blurbs again I think Karin Slaughter put its best, “A darkly twisted, sharply written, rabbit hole of a story.” Adler’s prose is fluid enough that the book doesn’t feel heavy, even though you want to escape it. In the age were the more traditional values regarding marriage and stay at homes wives I believe it is a required reading, just to see what could await you when loves end.
December 26, 2025
Che cosa rimane di un amore finito?
Se si prende in considerazione il punto di vista di Barbara e Jonathan Rose, rimangono odio, sete di vendetta, recriminazioni e una meschinità fanciullesca che fa accapponare la pelle. Mentre lottano per ottenere la casa simbolo del loro matrimonio al capolinea - con tutti gli oggetti di valore stipati dentro, che entrambi sentono di meritarsi a titolo di risarcimento per i diciotto anni trascorsi insieme -, i due perdono di vista la propria identità individuale ma anche ciò che li ha uniti in passato. E nel farlo cadono in una spirale discendente di follia e orrore, da cui non riusciranno più ad uscire.
Un libro dalle tinte fosche ma con molti momenti di umorismo, che prende il concerto di perbenismo borghese e lo fa a letteralmente a pezzi.
Se si prende in considerazione il punto di vista di Barbara e Jonathan Rose, rimangono odio, sete di vendetta, recriminazioni e una meschinità fanciullesca che fa accapponare la pelle. Mentre lottano per ottenere la casa simbolo del loro matrimonio al capolinea - con tutti gli oggetti di valore stipati dentro, che entrambi sentono di meritarsi a titolo di risarcimento per i diciotto anni trascorsi insieme -, i due perdono di vista la propria identità individuale ma anche ciò che li ha uniti in passato. E nel farlo cadono in una spirale discendente di follia e orrore, da cui non riusciranno più ad uscire.
Un libro dalle tinte fosche ma con molti momenti di umorismo, che prende il concerto di perbenismo borghese e lo fa a letteralmente a pezzi.
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