The Trad Wife

by Carrie Hughes

The perfect wife. The perfect life. The perfect nightmare.

Faith is a beautiful 'trad wife' social media star with a beefcake husband, five cute kids and millions of followers of their picture-perfect life.

When they employ English content creator Melissa to promote their brand she has no idea what she has signed up for.

Behind the veneer of domestic bliss lies a nightmare - and she will be lucky to escape with her life.

A twisty, darkly comic thriller perfect for fans of Bella Mackie and Julie Cohen.

339 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 7, 2026

Reviews

[Nilguen · Rating 4 out of 5]

3,5 Stars

📗The Trad Wife
✍️ Carrie Hughes
🗓️ May 7
🎯 Slow burn domestic thriller, instagram persona vs. reality, insight into Mormon community

Have you ever been enchanted by a trad wife online?

📗Faith Eversen is the epitome of a trad wife with a large follower group who shares bits and pieces of her cinematic life on the Lavender Field Ranch. As a Mormon, she is submissive to patriarchy, where her husband Marty Eversen is the undisputed head of the community.

Melissa Fairbrock, a harried single mum from NY is obsessed with Faith’s content and schedules a meeting to interview her as a journalist.

Following the interview, Faith offers Melissa a job as a social media consultant. Though Melissa turned away from church, she‘d finally have more time with her daughter Willow.

Sounds pretty straightforward, right?
⚡️Only, if there wasn’t a dark truth beneath Faith Eversen‘s homespun persona.
And only, if Melissa hadn’t any ulterior motive to infiltrate the inner circle of Faith and Marty with her co-conspirator!

🕸️A web of lies and deception is ahead of the readers who tap into the trad wife universe in a Mormon community.

The premise is great regarding trad wife + social media. The delivery left room for improvement ;)

Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

[BookishKB]

🧺🔪 The Trad Wife 🔪🧺

📖 Bookish Thoughts
I’ll be sharing my full review closer to publication date.

🖤 What to Expect
• Trad wife
• Social media influencers
• Domestic bliss
_ _ _

📅 Pub Date: May 7, 2026
📝 Thank you to Hera Books and NetGalley for the advanced copy. All thoughts are my own.

[Mindy · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF at 50%

This one just didn’t work for me.

I made it about halfway before deciding to call it quits, mainly because the pacing felt very slow. At 50%, it didn’t feel like much had actually happened, which made it hard to stay engaged.

The FMC also really tested my patience. Watching her allow herself and her daughter to be treated the way they were was frustrating, and I just couldn’t connect with her character.

I also wasn’t expecting the heavy religious elements, and that ended up being a big miss for me. Had I known going in, I probably would have skipped this one altogether.

This was marketed as a darkly comic crime novel, but by the halfway point I hadn’t really seen much comedy or crime, which made it feel even more disappointing.

Overall, just not a fit for me.

[Aga · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you Hera Books and NetGalley for this ARC, coming out May 7th.

I’ve been fascinated by the trad wife movement for a while now, so I was genuinely excited to pick this one up.

Faith is living the picture-perfect trad wife life in rural Utah. Melissa, a single mum and social media marketing expert, is carrying secrets of her own. When Melissa is lured into working for Faith, she uproots her life and moves with her daughter from New York to Utah.

Then there’s Marty, Faith’s husband, a man with a full-blown god complex who has built his own little kingdom of patriarchy and self-importance. Honestly, the way he talks about himself gives very strong “certain president who thinks he’s the best at everything” energy. Subtle? Not remotely.

This is a gripping story about trad wife culture, patriarchy, control, and the influence of Mormonism. What really worked for me was the way the book explored manipulation, indoctrination, and the mental games at play. I also loved the snippets of Marty’s and Faith’s thoughts at the end of certain chapters - they added an extra layer of tension and made the whole thing feel even more unsettling.

What could have been stronger for me was Melissa’s reason for going to the farm in the first place. The blackmail angle felt a little stretched, and I would have liked more of her backstory and upbringing, especially because her past feels so essential to understanding her choices. Melissa is flawed, which I actually liked, but she makes a series of frustrating decisions despite knowing exactly what kind of situation she’s walking into, particularly given her childhood.

That said, I was completely hooked. I genuinely enjoyed trying to work out who was orchestrating everything — Marty or Faith? And the ending gave the story the closure it needed.

Overall, this was a solid 4 to 4.5 star read for me. The fact that I stayed up reading until 5am says plenty.

[Liralen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Melissa's not living the trad wife life, not by a long shot—she's a single mother to a seven-year-old, living a fast-paced life in New York, and occasionally self-soothing by watching trad wife social media content. She even has a small-scale podcast on which she discusses not being a trad wife but trying to bring some of that vibe into her own life. Her favorite content creator is Faith, a woman living with her husband and six kids in rural Utah...and when Faith offers Melissa a job, well, it's too good an opportunity to pass up.

Except, of course, everyone has ulterior motives...not least Melissa.

Now. I went down a trad wife book rabbit hole recently, and this is one of the places I landed. This is not the first trad wife thriller I have read, and it won't be the last, and while it is fascinating to me that so many of these thrillers seem to have basically the same premise (podcaster/journalist investigates ballerinafarm-inspired influencer), that broader discussion will have to wait...because I have a whole (virtual) pile of books titled some variation of "The Trad Wife" to get through. And oh but I cannot tell you how excited I am to be able to discuss all of these as a batch.

But I digress. We're not there yet. In this particular narrative, Melissa is skeptical...to a point. From early on in the book, it's clear that she has something of a parasocial relationship with Faith; they've never met, but despite what Melissa knows about the realities of conservative religion and the lives of women whose freedom is curtailed by men, she idealizes Faith's more "wholesome", rural life: that Faith bakes her own bread, that her children never seem to throw tantrums, and on it goes.

It was clear to me early on that Melissa was maybe not...making the best decisions. She has reasons to want to leave her New York life, yes. She also has reasons to want to get close to Faith. But once she's actually out in Utah, her freedoms disappearing one by one (or perhaps dozen by dozen), she's deeply passive. Shut down her podcast? Okay, whatever, she can start it again later. Hired for videography and editing, but her duties include cow-milking? Well, okay, everyone has to pitch in. Shamed for buying store-bought dairy products and told to drink unpasteurized milk? Well, Faith does look healthy... Hand her child over for unaccredited homeschooling that mostly consists of force-feeding religion down the kids' throats? No biggie, they'll just listed to some extra Taylor Swift. Not allowed to learn to drive? Well! She'll have to put her foot down about that!

Now, there's a certain amount of tongue-in-cheek—there's a reference to the Australia mushroom murders, for example, and of course the whole thing is heavily inspired by, well, social media trends of today. (See: unpasteurized milk. Y'all, pasteurization is literally just heating up milk to kill off bad bacteria. Save yourself and your kids from potential, and potentially dangerous, food poisoning!) But Melissa is also maybe not the brightest bulb in the box, and by the time she realizes that every other adult on the property also has ulterior motives, she's in way deeper than she'd expected.

Melissa reads to me as, if not unhinged, having a screw or two loose—but as the book goes on it becomes clearer that a loose screw or two still puts her among the more stable adults around. I could have used, umm, a few more screwdrivers to go around, I think; the book escalates quickly, and gets a lot darker than I expected (except, still fast, so it didn't feel dark so much as a lot).

Content warnings for this one will likely be spoilery, so I'll put them in spoiler tags, but if you're someone for whom content warnings influence reading decisions, I'd consider checking them first anyway. So: heavy-handed toxic religion, mention of past rape, mention of past suicide, on-page sexual assault, on-page physical violence

So where does that leave us...? This is the third book in this general vein that I've read to date (see Yesteryear and Her Beautiful Life), and it's not my favorite. But it's doing some very specific things, and I am genuinely fascinated by the sudden appearance of this subgenre...and eager to see where other books on the topic go with it.

Thanks to the author and publisher for providing a review copy through NetGalley.

[Miesha (BookedAnBusy) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I fear the trad wife trope has me in a chokehold. So naturally, I had to pick this one up. Melissa was the only perspective in this, and she was an interesting character to be in the mind of. One minute I was rooting for her, then the next I was shaking my head at the dumb decisions she was making and dragging her daughter along for the ride. You can tell that Melissa had ulterior motives, and I wanted to know why. When you see the behind the scenes of the ranch, you can tell that things clearly aren’t perfect as they are made to be on social media.

Faith was also an interesting character, but I didn’t trust her at all. You didn’t know what was behind the veneer that she not only showed social media, but even with Melissa. As the book went on, you can slowly see the cracks behind her “perfect” facade. I thought I knew where the story was going, but in the last 95% of the book I was proven wrong. The conclusion shocked me in the best way, because me being the thriller queen I was so sure I had it figured out. Overall, I really enjoyed this one, and recommend this to readers who enjoy a strong atmosphere, revenge, secrets and underlying tension.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

Melissa is floundering in her inner city life. She is a single mum struggling to balance motherhood with an unrewarding career. Her one escape is watching Faith - a trad wife
influencer as she leads her simplistic, back to basics life. Is that all there is to it though? When Melissa and Faith’s paths cross, Melissa is given a chance to immerse herself in Faith’s world - but what if there is a secret agenda or two that is less than pure?

I enjoyed this book. The plot got under my skin easily and I was mentally watching between my fingers as Melissa is lured into an existence cut off from the rest of the modern world. The pace really picked up halfway and became so chaotic and claustrophobic that I couldn’t put the book down. I wanted more for some elements of the plot and the motivation for some events didn’t seem to fit in but this didn’t detract from my enjoyment of the book. I would definitely recommend this if you enjoy a domestic thriller.

[Caitlin Bunting · Rating 3 out of 5]

Firstly I just want to say I really do like Carrie’s writing style and find her books easy to read. However, I just don’t think I am the right target audience for this kind of book, I can see how it would work for others but for me the whole topic is just too infuriating. I will continue to read more from Carrie’s backlist.

[Madd · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for this free eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I'm actually super torn about giving this a low rating because I think it's better than I'm giving it credit for but MAN were the flaws prominent imo. I think a lot of people will like this way more than I did.

The pros: The meat and potatoes of this book is honestly fantastic. By that I mean the commentary on Mormonism and the trad wife trend (and their intersection), of course. I've never been Mormon but I went to school with many when I was in Arizona, and from my knowledge, this is a very good critique of both the religion and tradwives. The villains are phenomenal—I don't think its a spoiler to say Marty is one, and he was genuinely unsettling. I loved that he was treated as the creepy villain he is. I wasn't a huge fan of Melissa's voice, but I loved her as a character, and I loved Willow and their relationship, especially how it was tested. And while they (obviously) have less time in the story, I loved the other people in Melissa's life, too (Beverly, Alexandra, Eric, Joel, etc). Once the story really got going (about a third of the way through), it was frequently quite gripping and often got very intense, especially near the end. And I want to give a special shoutout to Faith, because how could I not mention the titular trad wife herself! I love the versions of her we see, I love the stages of understanding her that we and Melissa go through. I found her fascinating!!

The cons: I feel the need to point out that someone (not a child) says "fricking bitch" completely unironically in this book. But anyway. Part of this is on me; I'm realizing I don't really like thrillers. But I especially don't like bad thrillers, and I feel that this is. We get information around a third of the way through that is meant to be a recontextualization, an interesting plot twist—but it isn't. It just means Melissa, despite being in a close 1st Person, has been lying to us for the first third of the book. This twist is cheap and only gets cheaper when we learn more about it. Not to mention the absolutely relentless drops of Melissa's Secret Mission and What She Knows About Marty, and so on. I swear to god, for a while, it's every single chapter. Another Bad Thriller Thing I hate is having like eight twists at the very end. This doesn't have that many, but it does have like three in quick succession, and it felt super cheap to me. Aside from that, there is a small romance aspect in this that (rightfully) never takes center stage, but it is insta-attraction followed some time later with a makeout session that had absolutely no buildup. Every now and then we get a section in italics that's not from Melissa, and these do absolutely nothing to serve the story. As a matter of fact, they detract from it. I can't remember the number of times I was actually interested only to have the tension ruined by these little asides just saying shit and ruining the suspense. One of the villains is even kind of ruined for me by these little asides, shifting them from the master manipulator they're said to be to just kind of mustache-twirling and full of shit. I also wasn't a huge fan of how Melissa is kind of the Only Good Woman in this book. I kind of get it, it's far from the top of my list of grievances, but it didn't sit right with me. To top it all off, this book ends with disaster (in the fun way), and then it is all wrapped up nicely in a bow—in the epilogue. We just get a real fast summary of what happened afterward. No scenes, just telling. What an ending.

Overall, this book had a good core, and I think other people will like it more than I did.

[Nicole Austin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you NetGalley and Hera Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

“The Trad Wife” by Carrie Hughes is one of those slow-burn thrillers that feels a little too real at times, especially if you’ve ever fallen down a rabbit hole of perfectly curated influencer content and thought, what’s actually going on behind the scenes?

The book follows Melissa, a struggling podcast host and single mom who becomes way too invested in a popular trad wife influencer named Faith. The type with a perfect farmhouse, soft aesthetic, submissive wife vibes, and a dreamy cowboy husband. Melissa is both fascinated and suspicious, convinced that something about Faith’s life (especially her husband) doesn’t add up even if she doesn’t really have proof. It’s very much giving parasocial obsession.

So when Faith randomly invites Melissa and her daughter out to her ranch for an interview and then offers her a job, Melissa jumps at the chance. Which is already a bit of a dubious choice, and those kinds of decisions don’t really stop throughout the book.

Once they arrive, the vibes immediately get weird. The ranch is super isolated, the community is deeply religious (and very intense about it), and the whole “traditional wife” lifestyle starts being pushed onto Melissa and even her young daughter. It quickly goes from “quirky influencer life” to “this might actually be a cult.”

That’s where the book really shines. The atmosphere is so unsettling; there’s this constant sense that something is wrong, even when nothing outright scary is happening yet. The isolation, the lack of technology, the control Faith and her husband seem to have over everyone. It all builds this slow, creeping tension. And the little snippets from Faith’s POV? Super interesting. Honestly, I wish there were more of them because they add a whole extra layer of “something is definitely not right here.”

Thematically, the book does a great job calling out the hypocrisy of trad wife influencers, especially the irony of building a brand (and making money) off a “traditional” lifestyle that depends on modern platforms. It also highlights how unrealistic that lifestyle is, especially when compared to someone like Melissa, who’s just trying to survive as a single parent.

That said, the pacing is very slow. Most of the book is buildup, and then everything explodes in the last chunk. If you’re not into slow-burn thrillers, this might feel like a slog at times. The payoff is there with secrets about the ranch, some illegal activity, a big twist about Faith’s true motives, but it all happens pretty quickly after such a long lead-up.

The characters are also kind of hit-or-miss. Melissa can be frustrating with her questionable decisions (especially involving the safety of her young daughter), and not everyone will connect with her motivations. But Faith? She’s easily the most interesting character; she is calculated, manipulative, and way more complex than she first appears.

Overall, this is a creepy, thought-provoking thriller about social media, control, and the dangers of believing everything you see online. “The Trad Wife” is definitely an engaging read if you like culty vibes, messy characters, and stories that slowly unravel into chaos.

[Christina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Title - The Trad Wife
Author - Carrie Hughes
Rating - 4/5
Genre - Slow Burn / Twisted Thriller
Main Character - Mellissa / Willow / Faith
Pages - 333
First of this book is a Arc for me to review. Second off what is a trad wife?? It is a traditional wife the 1950's gender role woman. So this book was good it had a lot of twist some religion as well. Some popular social media stuff so a little to keep everyone interested which is great. It Had a single mom who has a daughter willow. She is trying her best to raise her daughter in the big town but it is hard between her stay at home job and she goes into the office couple time a week. To trying to not let her daughter get bullied. Mellissa is a social marketer does social media stuff but on her free time she loves to watch this woman. Who is her everything she is perfect from her country life style to her clothes they make, even her husband is handsome. Faith has 6 kids she works at the farm with there own home business the kids go to homeschool she bakes for them everything so the kids don't get processed foods. But yet Mellissa think there's something else going on. Melissa messaged Faith and asked if she would be willing to do a interview with her. Faith messaged back and said shed love to and bring her daughter with her. So Mellissa goes down on the plane to visit Faith to see if her life is real or what secrets she is hiding. After her interview faith has asked if Mellissa and willow want to stay in the cabin and Mellissa can help her on the marketing social media etc.. so they go back home and they talk it out and they think it is a good idea. so off they go faith tells Mellissa only 1 building has internet. that she would have to sign a form saying shed only work on what the business needs and no telling anything else, no use of internet any other time. Mellissa thinks the way she's trying to control her with the internet is weird.. skip to almost the end faith dresses Mellissa in a wedding dress and someone magically shoots faiths husband. The police show up arrest Mellissa and people and melissa's daughter willow says it was her... investigation is done they said the shot would of had to come from a ways away not close so there clear etc.. But who shot faiths perfect husband?? Someone thought things on this blog was weird as well and wanted to do digging in as well so what did that person find?? You will have to read it to see what happens to faiths perfect life and family what happened to faiths husband. Do Mellissa and willow go back home or stay down country.
i loved this it kept me interested the whole book.

[Charlotte Oliver · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley, Carrie Hughes, and Hera Publishing for providing me this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Overall rating: 4.5 stars.

As stated in a previous review, the world of gender relations and trad wives in the modern age is one that is ripe for breaking new grounds in feminist/women-centred literature. In that respect, The Trad Wife does not disappoint.

I devoured this book because I was so absorbed in everything that happens. I love how we are allowed an understanding into why Melissa is lured into the trad wife content, even outside of her personal backstory. It allows a point of sympathy not just for the character, but to other consumers in the real world and allowing them to examine their own biases and lives. While many may disagree with me on this and think the decision to go to the ranch was stupid, I would point out that humans are not rational beings, and the book does a great job at explaining the thought processes and rationale behind everything.. Additionally, Melissa's job and career provided the perfect foil for her internal monologue to extrapolate all the same philosophical questions most of us will have through exposition, keeping long contextual descriptions feeling more natural.

I really enjoyed the slow build-up into the uncanny valley as more information comes out about Faith and Marty's commune, and the eventual isolation and brainwashing of Melissa and Willow. You really feel the dread and the feeling of hopelessness in their situation, and you are gripped on the edge of your seat as you try to brainstorm how they'll escape from their situation. I also liked how the book kept a sense of humour while also never letting up from the tension - this is all done through the use of Melissa's internal sarcasm as her safe and rebellious way to retort to her situation. This also included several cultural references that extrapolated more about the characters in interesting and funny ways. For instance, Marty singing along to Born in the USA by Bruce Springsteen, seemingly unaware of the true meaning of the lyrics.

Perfect for fans of films such as Midsommar, and anyone who enjoys a creepier, cult-like setting, this book comes highly recommended by me and I'm excited to read more of Carrie Hughes' work in the future.

[Chapters&Chaos · Rating 3 out of 5]

Slow burn thriller about a social media manager and a picture-perfect trad wife influencer whose life isn’t nearly as perfect as it looks online.

This story follows Melissa and her daughter Willow, who are living in NYC while Melissa works for an online content company and tries to grow her podcast. When she becomes fascinated with a wildly popular “trad wife” influencer — complete with a dreamy cowboy husband and a picture-perfect farm life — she sees an interview as the perfect opportunity to grow her show.

Melissa is invited out to the farm and eventually offered a job working for the influencer, Faith. But Melissa has ulterior motives of her own… and once she arrives, it quickly becomes clear that things at the ranch are not nearly as perfect as they look online. Secrets start surfacing, and the deeper she gets, the more dangerous things begin to feel.

What I liked:
• A great reminder that things on social media are rarely what they seem.
• An interesting premise that honestly didn’t feel that far-fetched.
• The writing style was very atmospheric with lots of imagery.
• The side characters added depth to the story (without getting into spoilers).
• I liked the alternate POV from Faith — I only wish there had been more of it.
• The ending mostly wrapped up the loose ends in a satisfying way.

What didn’t work as well for me:
• The pacing was very slow for the first ~70% of the book. I’m not a slow burn reader, so that was tough for me. I kept going because I needed to know what was going on.
• I struggled with some of Melissa’s decisions… she had me yelling “girl WHAT are you doing” more than once.
• Most of the action and resolution happened in the last ~10%, which made the ending feel a bit rushed after such a long buildup.
• The heavy religious elements weren’t really my thing personally, although it was an interesting way to build the thriller plot.

Overall this was a really interesting concept with strong atmosphere and an important theme about curated social media lives vs reality. If you enjoy slow burn thrillers with a creepy underlying vibe, this might be one for you.

Thanks to NetGalley, Canelo Publishing, and Carrie Hughes for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

[Mana · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked up The Trad Wife by Carrie Hughes during a particularly cynical streak, mostly because I’m exhausted by those "wholesome" internet accounts where women pretend that baking bread in a floral dress is a personality. Faith is the queen of this digital vanity; five kids, a husband who looks like a gym-obsessed statue, and millions of followers eating up her filtered life. Melissa, a single mother and social media editor, walks in to help the brand and realizes the whole thing is a sun-drenched nightmare. It’s disturbing because it’s so light and airy on the surface while being absolutely rotten underneath.

The husband is what really made my skin crawl. He isn't just background noise; he is a cold, calculated manager of a human product. He doesn't love Faith; he owns her image. Seeing the way he treats her like a high-performing appliance was far more unsettling than any typical thriller villain. He’s the architect of a very pretty, very expensive prison, using "tradition" as a weapon to make sure the profit keeps rolling in. It’s that specific brand of quiet, structural control that feels way too real in 2026.

Hughes is sharp here. She doesn't waste time on sugarcoating the reality of influencer culture. The camera isn't just a tool in this house; it’s the warden. I loved how the tension builds from just feeling "off" to a full-blown survival situation. Melissa isn't a hero; she’s a witness to a slow-motion car crash, and her realization that she can't just "log out" of this family is terrifying. It’s a cynical, intellectual look at what happens when you sell your soul for a high engagement rate.

The writing is lean, almost mean in its observations. I appreciated that Hughes didn't make Faith a simple victim; she’s an accomplice in her own cage, which makes the whole thing feel much more honest and messy. It’s a biting analysis of the power dynamics we usually ignore because the lighting is so good. If you’ve ever looked at a perfect life online and felt a shiver of doubt, this book will confirm your worst instincts. It’s a brutal reminder that perfection is usually a lie designed to swallow you whole.

[Ashley Cohoon · Rating 3 out of 5]

⭐⭐⭐☆☆ (3/5 stars)

This one had such an interesting premise, and honestly, parts of it really worked, but overall it just didn’t fully come together for me.

The Trad Wife dives into influencer culture, specifically the whole “perfect trad wife” aesthetic, and contrasts it with the reality behind the scenes. We follow Melissa, a single mom who becomes obsessed with Faith’s curated, picture-perfect life… and then somehow ends up in it. Which is where things start to feel a little unsettling, a little culty, and a lot more complicated than they first appear.

The concept is so good. The idea of social media versus reality, the control, the patriarchy, the religious undertones- it’s all really compelling. And I will say, the atmosphere is one of the strongest parts of the book. Once Melissa and her daughter arrive at the ranch, there’s this constant underlying tension where you just know something isn’t right.

Faith as a character was definitely the standout for me. She’s layered, a little unpredictable, and way more interesting the more you learn about her. Those glimpses into her perspective added a lot to the story.

But… the pacing was a struggle.

This is very much a slow-burn thriller, and at times it felt too slow. A lot of the book is buildup, and then everything kind of happens all at once toward the end. I kept waiting for things to fully click into place, and while there is a payoff, it felt a bit rushed compared to how long the setup took.
Melissa was also a bit hit-or-miss for me. I understood her motivations, but some of her decisions, especially involving her daughter, were frustrating enough to pull me out of the story at times.

Overall, this is a solid, thought-provoking read with a great premise and some genuinely creepy moments, but uneven pacing and character choices kept it from being a standout for me.

If you like slow-burn thrillers with cult vibes and commentary on social media and control, this is definitely worth checking out- just go in knowing it takes its time getting there.

A big thank you to NetGalley and Hera Books for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Chrissy · Rating 1 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley for sending me an e-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Blurb:
Faith has it all. A picture-perfect family, a devoted husband, and millions of followers watching her flawless “trad wife” life online. Everything looks soft, beautiful, and completely under control.

So when Melissa is hired to help grow the brand, it feels like stepping into a dream. But the deeper she gets, the more the cracks begin to show.

Because behind the curated smiles and cozy domestic bliss, something isn’t right. And this “perfect life” might be far more dangerous than it looks.

Review:
The Trad Wife was a tough one for me.

From the start, I struggled to connect with the characters. Many of them came across as frustrating in their decisions and reactions, which made it difficult to feel invested in what was happening. I understand that flawed characters can make a story more compelling, but here it felt like there was very little balance to ground them.

The writing style also added to the challenge. Scene transitions often felt abrupt, and the lack of clear breaks made it confusing at times to follow where we were in the story. I found myself having to reread sections just to reorient, which took me out of the experience.

As for the plot, it leaned heavily into dramatic and over-the-top territory. While I can appreciate a bold, heightened storyline, this one sometimes pushed past the point where it felt believable for me.

The book also touches on themes of religion, particularly within a Mormon/LDS context. It presents a very intense and, at times, unsettling portrayal of belief and influence, so I would recommend going into this one with that awareness.

Overall, The Trad Wife is a strong concept that may work for readers who enjoy provocative, high-drama stories, but it ultimately wasn’t the right fit for me.

Dark and unhinged, The Trad Wife is about image, control, and the unsettling truth hiding behind the lives we envy online.

Expected publication date:
May 7, 2026

[chrissyg☕️lattesbooksandblankets · Rating 3 out of 5]

Trade Wife by Carrie Hughes follows Melissa Fairbrock, a harried single mother and New York journalist who becomes fascinated by the carefully curated online persona of Faith Eversen; a popular “trad wife” influencer living on the idyllic Lavender Field Ranch. Faith presents a cinematic, seemingly perfect life rooted in traditional values, submission, and community, shaped by her Mormon beliefs and her husband Marty’s authoritative leadership.

Intrigued, Melissa arranges to interview Faith, but what begins as professional curiosity quickly evolves into something far more immersive. Accepting a role as Faith’s content creator, Melissa relocates to the ranch with her daughter, only to find herself increasingly entangled in a world where control, autonomy, and identity begin to slip away.

The novel initially pulled me in; the first quarter was compelling, with an intriguing premise and a strong sense of tension beneath the surface. However, as the story progressed, the narrative became heavily saturated with religious ideology and repetitive themes that overshadowed the plot’s momentum. What started as a potentially sharp exploration of influence, identity, and power dynamics gradually felt weighed down by its focus, making it difficult to stay engaged.
By the 70% mark, the tone had shifted into something more unsettling and, at times, frustratingly repetitive. Additionally, despite being categorized as a comedy, the novel reads far from it, leaning instead into darker, more uncomfortable territory (more psychological themed)

Ultimately, while the premise held promise, this book wasn’t for me. Readers interested in deeply religious themes or cult like community dynamics may find more value here, but had I known how central those elements would be, I likely would have chosen differently. Overall: An intriguing concept that lost its appeal as the story became overly steeped in themes that didn’t resonate with me.

Thank you netgalley, for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

[Sue - Recos and Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

I admit that there’s something oddly fascinating about women who fully embrace traditional gender roles, championing the stay-at-home, 1950s-style homemaker life. But is it really as perfect as it looks? This book takes a closer look…(fictional of course)

📘 INSIDE THE PAGES

Melissa is a single mom in New York, raising her daughter Willow while trying to stay afloat in the brutal world of content creation. Faith, by contrast, is the picture-perfect “trad wife” with the devoted husband, five children, and millions of followers hanging on her every post.

When Faith invites Melissa to move to the ranch and take on the role of social media manager, it feels like the opportunity she’s been waiting for. But it doesn’t take long for Melissa to realize that behind the polished posts and curated life, something far more complicated is unfolding. And once you’re part of the “family”… leaving might not be so simple.

🌟 MY THOUGHTS

My second recent read about this “trad life” phenomenon and now I’m even more fascinated/scared/disturbed by it all. Early on this book felt so real I had to keep reminding myself it was fiction, but then certain elements, like Melissa’s choices, did lose me a little.

❤️ WHAT I LOVED

✨The fact that I had such a strong reaction to the characters shows just how vividly they were written.
✨That constant sense of dread running through the story. You know something is going to go wrong, it’s just a question of how far it will spiral.
✨The way the story slowly peels back its layers, revealing that more than one person is hiding an ulterior motive.
✨The humor worked for me, sharp and perfectly timed to cut through the tension.
✨And the explosive ending, which felt incredibly satisfying.

I’d describe this thriller as a slower burn, and it may unsettle some readers with its exploration of religion and how it can be manipulated. That said, it also serves as a sharp reminder that on social media, not everything that glitters is gold.

[Leanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Trad Wife is a sharply observed, darkly comic thriller that peels back the glossy filter of influencer culture to reveal something far stranger—and far more dangerous—lurking underneath. Faith, the picture‑perfect trad‑wife star with her sculpted husband, five photogenic children, and millions of adoring followers, is the kind of character who seems almost too curated to be real. And that’s exactly the point.

When Melissa, an English content creator, arrives to help elevate the brand, she thinks she’s stepping into a dream collaboration. Instead, she finds herself trapped inside a nightmare wrapped in gingham and God‑bless‑this‑home décor. The tension builds beautifully as Melissa begins to sense the cracks beneath the curated perfection—those tiny, unsettling moments where the mask slips and something colder peers through.
The novel is at its best when it leans into the absurdity of the influencer world: the staged breakfasts, the forced smiles, the relentless performance of domestic bliss. But beneath the satire is a genuinely gripping crime story, one that grows darker and more claustrophobic as Melissa realises just how far this family will go to protect their image.

The humour is sharp, the pacing tight, and the atmosphere wonderfully off‑kilter. It’s the kind of book that makes you laugh one moment and shiver the next, all while nudging you to question the stories we consume—and the ones we’re encouraged to believe.

The Trad Wife is a clever, unsettling, and wickedly entertaining thriller about curated perfection, hidden rot, and the danger of stepping behind someone else’s camera. A brilliant pick for readers who love their crime fiction with a satirical bite and a glossy, untrustworthy sheen.

With thanks to Carrie Hughes, the publisher and netgalley for the ARC

[Jessica’s Bookshelf · Rating 4 out of 5]

Title: The Trad Wife
Author: Carrie Hughes
Genre: Women’s Fiction| Mystery Thriller
Pages: 339
Publisher: Hera
Release Date: 7th May 2026
Format I read: Digital Ebook

💭 My Thoughts 💭

We follow the story of Melissa who has a obsession with influencer Faith. Faith seems to have the perfect life with her husband Marty and the children on there ranch over in Utah. Melissa is having a tough time in her job being overlooked by her boss and determined to make her podcast her focus. So she writes to Faith to get her as her next guest and to have a sneaky look at what’s playing on her mind. What is the real truth with Faith? Surely someone can’t be so perfect!
This is where the story really ramps up.

Carrie has created a tense, unsettling and drama filled novel. Looking at topics that include religion, domestic abuse and motherhood. I did feel a lot for Melissa and the situation that her and willow found themselves in but I also felt frustration with some of the choices Melissa created for herself. It was very slow paced and tension building although from 81% I felt the story really rushed through and I was left with some answers. We never really hear anything again about characters including Asher ( Marty’s brother) and Zac who are integral parts of the story.

Overall I enjoyed the premise of the story and it was another good read from Carrie. The chapters were short and really snappy each one leading the next so you always had to consume just one more. I also loved the look into Trad Wife society as it’s not something I knew much about before reading. Also it’s a great reminder that when were following our favourite influences it may not be all great and shining as they portray in their content.

Jessica’s Bookshelf rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

✨Thankyou so much to Carrie, Hera and NetGalley for my early arc copy of the book in exchange for an honest review ✨

[Carrie Shields · Rating 3 out of 5]

𝐒𝐡𝐞'𝐬 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞. 𝐑𝐞𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐚 𝐛𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞. 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬'𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐞 𝐟𝐮𝐧. 𝐒𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐬 𝐬𝐡𝐞'𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐥, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐰𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐧 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐧𝐨 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐥 𝐨𝐧 𝐚 𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐡 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐚𝐧'𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐠𝐞. 𝐈𝐭'𝐬 𝐆𝐨𝐝'𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥. 𝐁*𝐭𝐜𝐡 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐧𝐨 𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐚 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐬𝐡𝐞'𝐬 𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐮𝐩 𝐟𝐨𝐫.

On paper, this setup is irresistible. A picture-perfect “trad wife” influencer with the flawless family, the curated life with millions of adoring fans, and then the outsider who steps behind the scenes and realizes something is very, very wrong. When Melissa accepts a job working with Faith and her seemingly idyllic household, it quickly becomes clear that the online version of this life is doing a lot of heavy lifting. There is a darker reality underneath the polished content, and the story builds toward uncovering what is really going on behind closed doors.

I will say the premise absolutely hooked me, and there were moments where the tension hinted at something sharp and unsettling beneath the surface. The commentary on curated online identities versus reality is timely and had a lot of potential. However, I found myself waiting quite a while for the story to fully get going. I was well past the halfway mark before anything truly notable happened, and that slower build made it difficult to stay fully invested. I kept wanting the narrative to dig deeper into its own themes instead of skimming the surface.

That said, once the story does pick up, it becomes a bit more engaging, but I had already lost interest. The idea at the core of this book is strong, and while this one did not fully land for me in terms of pacing or depth, I can still see it working for readers who enjoy a slower burn with a social media twist and a sense that something is off long before it is revealed. 2.5 stars rounded up. Thank you to Hera Books for this early copy that will publish May 7, 2026.

[Rachel B · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC.

This book was okay. It had a lot of potential but sort of fell apart.

Our book follows Melissa, a podcaster with a day job, who is obsessed with trad wife influencer Faith. Melissa writes to Faith for an interview and gets offered a job at Faith’s home, where she lives with her husband Marty, a menagerie of children, and other people who work around the farm. Since this is a thriller, you know that all is not what it seems.

I was really invested in the story for the first half. Around that point, things started to break down. First, Melissa is an infuriating narrator. Her internal monologue’s tone was very off-putting to me, and she makes consistently stupid choices. This book leans very heavily into anti-Mormon themes and conspiracies. We learn early that Melissa was raised Mormon but isn’t anymore. She discusses Mormonism with such vitriol that I expected some past religious trauma to be explained. Nope! Nothing beyond surface level. I’m not religious, so I wasn’t offended by Melissa’s constant anti-religion comments and thoughts, but it just didn’t seem to be rooted in anything.

We also learn early on that Melissa is being blackmailed by someone to be at Faith’s farm to find dirt to bring the family down. When it’s revealed who is blackmailing her, why, and with what info, I was left thinking, huh? The identity of the blackmailer makes no sense. The thing the blackmailer is holding over Melissa’s head makes no sense. It’s not a strong enough thing to keep her in a situation that’s so dangerous to her and her daughter. Again, Melissa is stupid.

There was a lot of telling and not showing in this book. All of the character’s motivations are very explicitly spelled out, and the whole motive for Melissa and the blackmailer is something that happened off-screen years ago. There is no closure or further exploration of that.

Overall, a quick read but not mind blowing or particularly thoughtful.

[Bonita. E · Rating 4 out of 5]

As someone who often times loved to watch The cozy and aesthetically pleasing Trad wives videos on Tiktok, this book intrigued me a lot.

Its a bout a single parent, Melissa who works in social media agency, as she got a job offer from a famous Trad Wife influencer, Faith, that she obsessively always checked on social media. She curious whether the life Faith has is all fake or is it as real as seen on the screen.

So Melissa and her daughter moved to that small town, with little to no internet and practically cut off from the outside world. Everyone in there is a Mormon and practiced the trad wife lives to the chore.
And strange and thing keep on happening in there as Melissa keep on trapped on the clutch of this cult that tried to brainwash her and her daughter. and most importantly the most dangerous person in there is the husband, the hot cowboy who controlled everything.

The story also sometimes has a snippet of POV from faith, as she is also the mastermind behind many things that happening in there, and Melissa also not as innocent as she appears to be as she also has secret that forced her to come and live among these mormons.

Its very slow pace which I didn't really mind, its scary not because of the thriller aspect of it but more of the religious dogmas that happened here, its kinda bring a bit of dangerous trauma i had in life. I enjoy a lot reading this and the journey I had, I'm not particularly fond of the main character nor I'm impressed with the twist that this book has but its an over all a fun time read.

Thank you netgalley for the e-ARC for an honest review!

[Kat · Rating 4 out of 5]

✨️ Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an early arc for a honest review.

Trad wives are the latest phenomenon that seems to be popping up left and right, we have all seen them online and wondered how on earth do they seem to do it all. Is there life as magical as their online persona would suggest? This book dives deep into a social media star trad wife and the secrets that unfold are quite shocking.

When single mom, Melissa gets a chance to become a social media manager for a famous trad wife, she jumps at the chance for a new start and a stable life for her daughter. Living in the big city has some downfalls and when she is shown the country farm life, its almost as if divine faith stepped in to save Melissa and her daughter. Faith, the social media trad wife, takes Melissa under her wing almost immediately and as the cracks of Faith and her family start to unravel, Melissa begins to wonder if everything and everyone is as it seems.

This is a great twisting and diabolical story of social media, the power of religion and taking back ones power. The absolute lengths that Faith and her husband take to get Melissa to become part of their family will take some aback but it really does happen and I think the author portrayed it so well. I think the overall theme of indoctrination and how quickly your whole life can change to the point where you start questioning whether to go along with something or not was very powerful in this overall story. Overall great thriller story, I do think there were opportunities to flesh out more at the end with the characters but I did feel like everything got wrapped up overall.

[Anne DuRoss · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you NetGalley for this advanced copy of The Trad Wife.

Due to Goodreads lack of half stars, I rounded this up to a 4 star read.

The Trad Wife is definitely a slow burn of a read, but one that I think many can relate to as many of us have fallen prey to social media influencers and wondering how their lives look so perfect.

Melissa, a single mom to Willow, living in NYC feels like she is being pushed out of her job by younger staff members. She also runs her own podcast and decides to ask Faith, a trad wife social media star, if she can interview her. Long story short, Faith invites Melissa and her daughter to come and live and work with them. Melissa and Willow move to Utah to live with Faith and her family.

Immediately, things are off. The list of things Melissa can't do and can't have send red flag after red flag but Melissa stays. Meanwhile, Willow is becoming indoctrinated and still Melissa stays.

I won't go into more detail in order to avoid spoilers but just know that what you probably are imagining regarding stereotypes and relationships in a particular religion is present.

For as slow a burn as this book was, the ending felt very rushed to me.

I found myself being annoyed at some of the characters but at the same time, invested in wanting to know how this would end. Kudos to Carrie Hughes for making me want to stick around to find out.

I do think that those that love a thriller and are interested in the social media world of perfect online worlds and closed door messes will appreciate this one!

Thank you again to Net Galley for the opportunity to read this.

[Ebony · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and Hera for the advanced reader copy.

As soon as I read the prologue, I was intrigued, but my favourite thing about this book was the humour woven throughout, from the very first page. Carrie's writing style is witty and gave me a few giggles, but without taking away the suspense or seriousness from the main storyline.

One of the things that really stood out to me from the beginning, is how sharply The Trad Wife taps into our modern obsession with influencers and online lives. It feels incredibly relatable, even uncomfortably so at times. But this is just the start of the story...

I loved the short, snappy chapters that always end in a way that nudges you to read just one more (and then another, and another...). It's very easy to lose track of time with this book, I read the first 70% in one sitting and only stopped otherwise I would not have woken up for work the next day! The writing style isn't overly polished, but to me that is part of it's charm as it almost felt like it reads like a conversation with a friend, which made it feel natural and easy to sink into.

This is definitely more of a slower burn thriller, but it doesn't drag. There is a steady sense of unease and unanswered questions that builds throughout until you are then hit with the action later on.

Overall, this is one of those books that I kept catching myself smiling at, but not just because it throws in the odd funny line, but because I genuinely enjoyed my time reading it. It is gripping in a quiet, addictive way and I could not stop reading because I needed to know what was going to happen next. I will definitely pick up another of Carrie's books again!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[Reader jhophop · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.0 stars
Format: Digital Book

No Notes if You Love…
-Low Spice
-Characters acting poorly
-Psychological Killer energy
-Judging Social Influencers
-Dark Humor


Is Spring 2026 the season of the Trad Wife?

The Trad Wife by Carrie Hughes: A quick, bingeable read with a completely unhinged final 25%.

Faith is the ultimate “perfect life” influencer: millions of followers, a dreamy cowboy husband, and a carefully curated existence on her secluded Lavender Fields Ranch in Utah. Together with her husband, Marty, she’s built a wildly successful lavender brand that fans absolutely eat up. Everything looks flawless; almost too flawless.

Meanwhile, Melissa, burnt out, broke, and stuck in a NYC content job, can’t stop watching. A single mom barely making ends meet, she starts doom-scrolling (or bloom-scrolling, in this case) and becomes increasingly obsessed with Faith’s life and the world of Lavender Fields.

You can guess where this is going… but not how far it goes.

Bad decisions are made. Lines get crossed. And there are plenty of moments where you’ll find yourself thinking: Melissa…how did you get yourself here?

This was a very easy, enjoyable read that I flew through in just a few days. It won’t be for everyone, and yes, parts feel a little predictable, but the entertainment factor is high, and that last stretch really delivers on the chaos.

The Trad Wife Releases May 7 and is definitely worth a look if you’re into influencer culture, obsession spirals, and messy, can’t-look-away choices.

Thanks to NetGalley and Hera Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

[Gabi · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was maybe a 3.5 star read for me. Let me tell you why.

The trad wife topic is fascinating to me. I can see how it can be an appealing concept, especially now, that women have more rights and that can be an actually conscious and informed decision, especially for the once that really want to be parents and care for their kids without worrying about other problems. And the slow living is a dream of mine, to be honest, and I hope someday I can live like that. So to read about it is like second best.

That being said, this book was heavy on religion and especially on Mormon, and since I'm not a religious person I couldn't connect too deep with the characters and the story. It was interesting for me to read about it and learn more, but because it's a topic not close to me, I was just too far removed from it.
I can't say I knew much about Mormon people and I should probably read more about it, but in this book was very intense and heavy on blame, shame and all those bad feelings that are used for manipulation (you will see why). They were very strict with their beliefs and the wives had to be obedient to the man.

It was unsettling for me to read such a drastic religious faith. And the controlling element was very disturbing for me and even without being so unpredictable, I was kinda feeling scared and weird and uncomfortable.

This book was such an interesting spin on trad wife phenomenon and religion as a way of manipulation (which is done for centuries now), and it certainly raised a few questions that I might get into a rabbit hole to answer.

Thank you NetGalley, Carrie Hughes and Hera books for this ARC!

[Sabrina · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Trade Wife by Carrie Hughes was an interesting and engaging read that kept me curious about what would happen next.

I went into this book without much prior knowledge about Mormon culture, aside from occasional exposure online, so I found it fascinating to see how the story explored this world and its dynamics. The concept felt unique and, at times, quite intense, which made the reading experience even more compelling.

The pacing worked well for me, and I often found myself wanting to continue reading after each chapter. However, I did take longer to finish the book, which was more due to personal reasons than the story itself.

One aspect that didn’t fully work for me was the structure of the second-person reflections that appeared throughout the chapters. At times, it was confusing to follow whose perspective they represented, and I think a clearer format or even dedicated chapters for these sections might have made them easier to understand.

There were also some plot twists throughout the story that I found intriguing, though I would have personally preferred for certain reveals to come later in the book, rather than being introduced midway through.

Overall, this was a solid and thought-provoking read with an engaging premise and strong themes, even if some structural elements didn’t fully work for me.

✨ Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an advance copy of this book. I’m sharing my honest thoughts voluntarily and with appreciation for the opportunity to read it early.

[Alexandra Amaral · Rating 2 out of 5]

Content creator Melissa is somewhat obsessed with a famous trad wife influencer, Faith, who has dedicated her life to her husband, five kids and homemade organic cooking. When Melissa reaches out to Faith and eventually ends up being hired by her, she feels like it's the perfect chance to look behind the curtains of Faith's picture-perfect life. But what she ends up finding out is more than she expected, and it might be too late to run.

I feel like this wasn't a book that fit my personal taste, but it had some interesting themes and potential in it. The super sarcastic humor of the narrator didn't really work for me, and felt a bit cringy at times. I also found her quite unlikable and her actions frustrating. Most of the characters' motives were a bit confusing to me, and we get to know many of them only on a surface level. Some of them felt like just an afterthought who were kinda forgotten about in the ending. The story moved slow and felt repetitive, while the ending was pretty rushed and abrupt.

There were some nice twists in the plot, but they didn't always feel well-thought-out. I liked the religious themes and the notes on how the job of a trad wife influencer is full of contradictions. The feminist conversations about the whole phenomenon of trad wifes and women's lives in extreme conservative religious groups were interesting. I felt like these themes could've been explored a little bit deeper, but maybe it wasn't the purpose of this book that seemed to lean more to a comical writing style.

Thank you NetGalley for the eARC ♡