𝑺𝒉𝒆 𝒌𝒏𝒆𝒘 𝒕𝒘𝒐 𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒅𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒍𝒐𝒐𝒌, 𝒋𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒕𝒘𝒐 𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒅𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒂𝒍𝒆 𝒈𝒂𝒛𝒆: 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒄𝒉𝒆𝒄𝒌𝒔 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒐𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒔 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒔𝒊𝒅𝒆, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒄𝒉𝒆𝒄𝒌𝒔 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒅𝒆𝒄𝒊𝒅𝒆𝒔 𝒊𝒕 𝒇𝒆𝒆𝒍𝒔 𝒉𝒖𝒏𝒈𝒓𝒚. 𝑰𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒇𝒇𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆, 𝒐𝒓 𝒂 𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒅𝒂𝒕𝒐𝒓’𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕, 𝒏𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒆𝒍𝒔𝒆, 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒆.

It isn’t a lie, this is a brutal, immersive novel and one that left me feeling the despair that Sandrine faces living in her skin. She is disgusted by her existence and her imperfect body, prefers to avoid her dreadful reflection in the mirror. It’s not a mystery why women feel ashamed of not living up to ‘ideal’ standards of beauty, nor is it hard to wonder how someone like Sandrine has turned a cruel, critical eye on herself. There is a weakness in her, a disappearing self and yet she is tender and caring of others, which is what leads her to fall for a man whose wife, Caroline, has disappeared. “She felt a wave of sorrow sweep over her”, when she first heard him appealing for help, sobbing over his missing wife on television and the radio. Deciding to take part in a “White Walk” (search) the missing woman’s parents set up, she meets him for the first time, and admits she is there because of him. She felt so sorry for his pain and loss, she was there for him, not so much Caroline. She goes back to her lonely little life, hating the weekends when she is not at work, left to her own company. She hates her own miserable company. News comes that points to the harsh reality the Caroline is likely never coming back and something horrible happened to her. Just when Sandrine thinks there is no hope and she should just end it all, the man contacts her and so begins her life as the second woman.

Sandrine is soon living with the man and his young son, Martin. Their passion is immediate and intense. She loves him with abandon, trembling for his every touch. He possesses her in a way she has always longed to be wanted. Suddenly, she has her forever, her happy ending and if she is standing in the former woman’s life, so be it. She cannot deny that Martin, the boy, is troubled, such a timid, sad child. It isn’t her place to be more than ‘fond’ of the boy, who isn’t truly hers. He is a clever boy, she knows that right away and if his father is often brusque with him, it is only because he wants to toughen him up. Her man, he is quick to anger, but it’s only natural with what he has been through. They fall into a rhythm of their own and she is even wearing clothes that delight her partner, despite feeling such garments don’t flatter her. He knows best, and she wants to please. She abides by his every desire, demands. His ways are set, she wants to mold herself to fit his needs. They have their routines now but suddenly, the missing woman is on television, her memory clouded, lost. That’s when everything spirals out of control.

Living with Martin expanded her universe, but the outside shrinks, including work. He likes his privacy; from the start he cautioned her against confiding in others. Certainly, there was talk, people who thought he killed his wife, but she refused to reveal anything to her co-workers, protective of their love. Who are others to pry, anyway? Now, with Caroline found alive, there would be more curiosity seekers. Worse, Caroline is going to be coming back to the house, hoping to ignite her forgotten memories, spending time with her son Martin. Her beloved doesn’t exactly embrace the idea, in fact, he meets it with scorn. He feels invaded, and how should Sandrine feel? Is Caroline competition? It’s all too bizarre to contemplate.

Caroline arrives with her parents and two police officers by her side. Sandrine’s beloved, thankfully, seems emotionally detached, leaving her feeling strangely relieved. Maybe her life with him is secure and Caroline isn’t a threat? She doesn’t remember anything, not yet. Sandrine doesn’t want to hear what the cops have to say, she wishes Caroline would just go away again but soon she wants more time with her son, Martin and Sandrine’s beloved doesn’t like that. In fact, it infuriates him as does the way everyone seems to be judging him, looking at him with suspicion. Their life together is being probed and he is angered by what Sandrine might say. He takes it out on her, and she agrees with him, how dare these people assume things, he is a good man! The female cop is harassing them and it’s making life unbearable for her man. Right now, Sandrine has news, happy news, but how can she share it? Her beloved is confiding more about Caroline and their troubled marriage, how difficult his wife was. Secrets he never revealed to others. Why is the female cop fishing for information from Sandrine? Sandrine doesn’t know who Caroline is, she is a mystery to her.

Her man is getting more and more irate, over time, accusing her of speaking for him when truthfully, Sandrine is only trying to protect him. She can no longer gauge with accuracy what will upset him and how to avoid inflaming him. It is all coming apart. She cannot retreat deep enough into herself to keep their life contained. Caroline is remembering things, who will Sandrine believe?

What a ride! If you get triggered by abuse, you won’t be able to read this. Sandrine is filled with so much self-loathing she practically embraces it from others. Love and hate are the same for someone like her, and it’s heartbreaking. How easy it is to slip from lover to prisoner. The threat of humiliation, shame is often what keeps women walled in too. I don’t want to give anything away, this book spirals into darkness. It is a woman’s horror story! Yes, read it!

Publication Date: May 30, 2023

Pushkin Press

It is a disturbing and beautifully written story dealing with domestic, mental and sexual abuse. This is not a typical gripping psychological thriller but a more reflective monologue of the main character Sandrine. From time to time, I just couldn't read, and I felt that when I read one more word, I would scream. I can say that it is a dark, intense and thought-provoking novel that everyone should read.

The Second Woman by Louise Mey tells the story of Sandrine ,who lives with her partner,whose first name we never learn, and his young son. The couple met in unusual circumstances, Sandrine sees a TV news report of the search for the man's missing wife and, feeling drawn towards him,joins the search and engineers a meeting. After the wife's clothes are found next to a ravine it's assumed she's dead and eventually Sandrine moves in with the man and his son.
Things get very complicated when the "dead" wife,Caroline, is found but suffering from acute memory loss.

This is a powerful and insightful book,from the start it is obvious that Sandrine's relationship with the man is unhealthy and as the tale progresses the full extent of both her situation and his narcissism is revealed. As Caroline's memory begins to come back the tension is ramped-up considerably in Sandrine's already volatile little household.
Characterisation is excellent,not least Sandrine whose behaviour completely baffled me at times until I realised what Louise Mey was portraying. This is a book that I was still thinking about several hours after I'd finished it,always the sign of an excellent read.

**Please be aware that the story revolves around physical and mental domestic abuse so please don't read it if that is going to adversely affect you in any way.**

Deep Delve..
A disturbing and often shocking deep delve into coercive control, manipulation and abusive relationships through the medium of Sandrine and her fight for survival. Effectively portrayed in varying points of view and timelines with an edgy narrative and carefully constructed characters as the tale becomes increasingly hostile and unpredictable. Perfectly translated from the French.

This is an explosive novel that centres on coercive control and the power of a controlling man. An unsettling and heart rendering story that is developed brilliantly and finishes with an intense finale. Highly recommended read and worthy of five stars.

I am giving this 4 stars despite it being a DNF for me. The writing is so visceral, telling the story from the perspective of Sandrine, a shell of a woman who has been put down, humiliated and abused by her family since she was a child and now treated that way by the man she loves.

I had such a visceral reaction to this book, I could hardly get out of bed, I just wanted to coccoon myself under the covers and cry while reading it, that I can't bring myself to finish it right now despite really wanting to know how it ends. Look at me! Taking care of my mental health!!

I do actually recommend this one, even though I only made it 3/4 of the way through....

Thank you to the publishers and netgalley for the arc.

There is something off with Sandrine - her body too large, her face too common, her personality too unappealing, her hobbies too uninteresting, her job too unimportant. Except there is nothing off with Sandrine: the thing is that patriarchy has been nibbling at Sandrine’s confidence and sense of self since she was little, first through her father and now through her partner.

"The Second Woman" is a harrowing account about the psychological effect of abuse and trauma. To be honest, after reading the first half of this book I thought about abandoning it, because of its chillingly hyper realistic, although never gratuitous, portrayal of the main character’s suffering. Louise Mey’s simple and straightforward prose kept me going and I’m thankful I managed to accompany Sandrine’s story until the end of this novel.

Victims are survivors, although not all victims survive. Statistics on domestic abuse are there for anyone to see. “The Second Woman” is an important read as it brings awareness to those who have never been through a similar situation, as well as to society in general. Patriarchy and power still go hand in hand - while prevention of domestic violence is crucial, I believe breaking the cycle can only start with education.

Many thanks to Pushkin Press who kindly provided me with an advanced reading copy via NetGalley.

4/5

Chilling portrayal of obsession and domestic violence. Atmospheric and tense. I read it with my heart in my mouth. The sense of foreboding is so thick I kept wanting to cover my eyes. The prose is so lyrical and stunning I couldn't pull my eyes away until I was done.,How I hope Louise Mey has other books out there!!! Color me a big fan. Rounding up to 4.5 stars. Thank you Pushkin Press and NetGalley for an Arc of this.

This is a harrowing novel about a woman's life suffering domestic abuse. Sandrine is a meek, docile woman and has little confidence in herself. She spends her day belittling herself with disparaging self-talk (calling herself repeatedly a "stupid, fat bitch"). She has internalized the misogynistic judgment of her father and depends on her partner for validation. Years ago she had seen him on the television crying after the disappearance of his wife and she immediately fell in love with him, naively enamored with his breast-beating display of grief. She confused the spectacle of emotion with authentic love. Now she lives with him and patiently endures his daily humiliations and narcissistic sadism, just in return for those fleeting moments when he distractedly strokes her belly in front of the television. She relishes those chance moments of cheap bliss. She thinks that when he holds her neck he is expressing true love rather than more sinisterly asserting possession over her. But when the first wife reappears suffering from total amnesia, Sandrine is forced to reconsider what her role in the family will be.

It's a grim portrait of the psychological effects of domestic abuse—the woman's demure subservience, her relentless self-blaming, her apologetic self-effacement. Her partner, on the other hand, is a boorish patriarch, manipulative and violent. He teaches his quiet, sensitive son not to cry but to fight, and never to be in the kitchen. His whole idea of masculinity is rooted in a tyrannical sense of male dominance and entitlement. What the novel astutely shows is how that patriarchal entitlement works in such an insidiously effective way—when her partner capriciously gives and then withholds his affection, when he turns his violent outbursts into an accusation about her, he warps her whole sense of self-worth. He gaslights her into believing that all of his actions are actually her fault. He is the good one who cries for love; she is the abject failure. Even the first wife, a feminist, an aspiring veterinarian, was ensnared by her abusive husband's one-two tactic of humiliating her and then blaming her. The same acts of humiliation only rendered her more vulnerable to more acts of humiliation.

Overall, it's a very sombre book. I think what I found so strange and unsettling is the general absence of other characters—there's the first wife, the second woman, the husband, his son, the police—but their wider circle of family, friends and colleagues, are just a silent, distant chorus.

Thanks to Netgalley and Pushkin press for the advance copy!

I still have chills after finishing The Second Woman by Louise Mey.
I love this style of writing the telling of this story in simple, almost hypnotic.
This book is absolutely riveting and compulsively readable.

"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

Thank You NetGalley and Pushkin Press for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

A chilling read about the reality many women face everyday. This can hit very close to home for many people so I would definitely be aware before reading about domestic abuse and body issues mainly. This is a heart wrenching and heart-warming book which lets you look through the eyes of Sandra a domestic abuse victim giving a really unique POV to the reader. I found this to be a really interesting book, even scary to read at times with the reality of what both men and women go through everyday all over the world. I did find this slow at parts and sometimes annoying with how introspective it gets but it is overall good to shine a light on an important topic.

The Second Woman by Louise May

“She forgets Monsieur Langlois because Sandrine doesn't like Monsieur Langlois because she is in love with the man who cries”

The man on TV is crying, appealing for any information on his missing wife Caroline. No man that cries could be a bad person Sadine tells herself.

One day his wife is found with no memory of her husband or son. The police are convinced her man has something to do with Caroline’s disappearance. But soon her memory returns and she remembers exactly what her life was like before.

Sadine is soon asking herself if he is the man she believed him to be. The coercive control begins followed quickly by emotional abuse, bullying, name-calling and threats and finally, he becomes physically abusive. There are three people in the relationship - her, the man who cries and Monsieur Langlois. “She waits for Monsieur Langlois, who calls her a slut and a fat sow, to go away and for the man who cries to come home”.

Her inner voice is a constant friend. She doesn't want to go back to her old life of being alone and having no one. This is a better life, isn't it? Sandrine faces a daily struggle in deciding whether to stay or leave this abusive manipulative life.

I was so unsure of this writing style- a single point of view, no exclamation marks but as I continued to read I realised the author knew exactly what she was doing. All of this led to the intensity, the drama and how it feels to be trapped in this type of relationship; a single voice, all alone with no way out. Also, I thought the two different names for each side of her man were sheer brilliance. As one name was mentioned, a look was given or a sharp word spoken it instantly initiated fear, hatred, disgust and viciousness depending on from whom it came.

It was such a poignant novel in today's world and Mey handled this subject flawlessly and diplomatically. The Authors' note shocked me as to the facts concerning abuse. My heart broke for Sandine who craved love, friendship and to feel appreciated. Her life of abuse started at a young age by her parents and their treatment of her made her feel worthless and hatred for herself.

This book had me gripped from start to finish with its suspense. The build-up was crucial and loved how the story and characters evolved. I definitely would like to read more by this author.

This was an intense read — not exactly what I was expecting but a fantastically powerful book. I was thinking it was more of a mystery/thriller — especially with the question hanging in the air about what happened to the first woman. That seemed to become evident pretty quickly, but the suspense remained as you watch things slowly unravel with the "second woman" and her new partner.

The writing of the book has a voyeuristic quality — you as a reader can start to put the dots together, but yet the main character (Sandrine) isn't there with us (yet). Expect to feel a lot of emotions on this roller coaster of a book. It's a hard read at times (big TW for abuse), but there's moments of real love, compassion, and tenderness woven in there too.

This is one I couldn't put down as I wanted to see how it would all resolve in the end.

Missing persons don't always stay that way

Sandrine lives alone, rarely speaking to anyone other than her colleagues. She is resigned to her solitary life, until she sees on TV a man despairing for his wife who has mysteriously disappeared. Sandrine is drawn to him and eventually the two strike up a relationship.

When the man's wife reappears, Sandrine is forced to confront the truth about him. Is he all she thought he was, or is he hiding an abusive and manipulative character? Who can she trust - the man she loves now, or the woman he loved first?

I really, really, really enjoyed this story. Beautifully crafted and perfectly executed. Will recommend this story to others.

A chilling, nuanced read. Timely and electrifying, I whipped through this. Smart and harsh, a must read.

Make no mistake, this is a deep-dive into the chilling consciousness of a woman living in a relationship of coercive control filled with psychological violence as well as the more common physical brutality.

Mey has written this in the present tense and completely through Sandrine's point of view so that we live through this experience with her: her constant double-guessing, her suppression of that inner voice that tells her this is not right, her concerns for the child Mathias and her own hopes for a baby.

There's nothing glib about this book and Mey seems to have done her research very well (see her afterword for the shocking statistics) - she also doesn't turn this into a thriller. There's very little plot which would have seemed, somehow, disrespectful of the experiences being charted, reflective of that of so many women trapped or haunted by such toxic masculinity.

One of the most chilling scenes is where the father tries to impose a catechism of hateful misogyny on his son, too young to know what he is learning as he repeats obediently that all women are dirty liars.

I love the nuance of the book: the male cop who makes mistakes as he struggles to undo his own cultural understanding of violence against women; the older man who is too awkward about touching violated women in case his own intentions are on a continuum with that of their abusers.

This is hard to read at times but is also enlightening and crucially important - especially for those of us lucky enough (and isn't it only luck?) never to have lived through this experience in real life.

Thanks to Pushkin Press for an ARC via NetGalley, and a book I'll be urging all my friends, male and female, to read.

This book is emotionally disturbing, yet it brings an awareness to women that need an understanding of what life in abuse looks like. The author describes the intimacy of a woman's thoughts through Sandrine; and sadly these thoughts are refections of many young ladies who also feel alone and lack confidence in themselves. The book emphasis the origin of these feelings by detailing the life she had before she went with the man. His name is never mentioned because he is one in the sea of many who humiliate, beat, and disrespect women. He is important to tell this story but not so that he needs a name. The courage Sandrine develops is initially started with the help and support of others and is heart moving to read. She is brave.