The Wife in the Photo by Emily Shiner

I received this book for free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

The Wife in the Photo by Emily Shiner
Published by Bookouture on September 7, 2023
ISBN: 9781837903863
Genres: Psychological Thriller, Domestic
Pages: 296
Format: ARC, eBook
Source: NetGalley, Publisher
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I pick up the photograph from their mantlepiece and carefully wipe away the dust. The beautiful wife. Supposedly happily married and enjoying a family vacation. I know her husband killed her. And I'm going to make him pay...

This is my first job as a housekeeper, but Evan Warner doesn't need to know that. It's the first of many lies I'll tell him. He just lost his wife, Lola, and now he and his young daughter Jessica are adrift. But no amount of cleaning will rid this house of the secrets that have seeped into the cracks. I never forgave Lola for what she did to me. But I can't let Evan get away with her murder.

In their impressive home, I busy myself preparing meals and peeking at carelessly discarded mail, looking for proof of his crimes. Evan hovers and I'm sure he is watching me... even as I bond with Jessica. But whenever he catches us alone together, his face darkens. I realize I have to get her out of this house before it's too late for her, too.

Then I find Lola's diary, tucked away in a closet out of sight. Her words, hastily scrawled on these pages, change everything I thought I knew about this family. As I hear footsteps on the stairs, I know I'm trapped. And I'm in more danger now than ever before...

The Wife in the Photo is a totally twisty psychological thriller guaranteed to keep you up all night. Fans of Freida McFadden, Gone Girl and The Couple Next Door will find it impossible to put down.

See what readers are saying about Emily Shiner:

"O.M.G!! WOW!! This. Book. Was. So. Good!! I was absolutely addicted to it and read it in one sitting! I could not get enough of her twisted, jaw-dropping, suspenseful, head-spinning read! A 5 star must-read book!... I was yelling at my e-reader!" Goodreads reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

"Love, love, loved this absolutely gripping edge-of-your-seat page-turner!!! I devoured it in one sitting!! Perfect... makes the hair on your arms stand on end... extremely fast-paced... will absolutely blow your mind with its explosive twists!!! Do not start this book until you have cleared your schedules as you will not be able to put it down!! Action-packed, intriguing, will keep you up at night with a pounding heart!!" Bookworm86, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

"Will BLOW YOUR MIND! A wicked page-turner... will keep you glued to its pages-and, guessing wrong about who to trust-until its breathtaking ending! Full of heart-pounding suspense and jaw-dropping, stunning twists you will NOT see coming... a gripping story... My favorite!" Goodreads reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

"GRIPPING. INTENSE. UTTERLY BINGE-WORTHY!" Goodreads reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

"Kept me up two nights in a row. Truly a page-turner and so fast-paced. I love Emily Shiner!" Goodreads reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Wife in the Photo is a deliciously dark story about loss and vengeance. Next level domestic suspense!

I was really taken aback at The Wife in the Photo. I don’t really know what I was expecting but it wasn’t this. Honestly, I was hovering around the 3-star mark for a lot of the book but the last third of the book made me change my mind and quite frankly shocked me. I had a slight inclination of how it was going to end but the ending that was delivered made me laugh – I love it when someone nasty is outdone, it cracked me up.

Being an avid reader of Thrillers especially of the domestic variety, there isn’t a lot that shocks me, but this genuinely did, it came out of left field and I’m pleasantly pleased. The prologue set the tone and built up what would be an emotive story. It immediately made me want to find out what had led to the wife being pushed to her death.

The story is told in dual perspectives – from the husband, chief of police, Evan Warner, and the housekeeper he hires to get their house in order, Ariel. There is also bonus chapters from the Lola’s diary and the daughter, Jessica’s diary. We first met Ariel when she is watching the Warner’s home with a clear vendetta against Evan. Lola is dead, apparently from an accidental fall, but Ariel isn’t convinced. She witnesses a black mini cooper and wonders how its all connected. Her motive is to protect the daughter but why? What is her connection to the Warner family.

The Wife in the Photo examines the intricacies of family life and the fallout of a partner/parent dying. How things would be affecting the family post loss, the housework building up, relationships breaking down and frustrations mounting. I think that the author did a phenomenal job of highlighting the realism of those issues.

Evan is a dodgy character. You can clearly see that he is covering up for something. His wife’s death was no accident but was it him and how far does the rabbit hole go? He’s had an affair with a very young work colleague and has to immediately call it off after his wife dies. Life is getting on top of him and his daughter Jessica, so when his assistant, Miriam recommends a woman to cook, clean and get their lives back on track he jumps at the proposition.

Ariel is a mysterious woman. She obviously has an ulterior motive for working for the Warner’s but just what is it and why in particular does she want to keep Jessica safe? She witnesses some very odd behaviour from Evan but also from Jessica herself. Will she gather the evidence she needs before Evan gets onto her?

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