4/5 stars
Nicole is British-Jamaican woman who has moved to Nigeria to be with her Nigerian husband who she met while studying in the UK. While she is there, she discovers the Lagos Wives - a group of international woman who have all moved to Nigeria to be with their Nigerian Spouse. Nicole's husband is the son of an important man referred to as Chief. They live in a massive house, have house staff, nannies and drivers and it seems like Nicole's life must be perfect. However, when Nicole suddenly disappears, the family seems to not take her disappearance very seriously so her aunt from London decides to visit Nigeria and do some investigating for herself. Through her investigation, she discovers secrets involving Nicole, her husband and their friends from the Lagos wife community.

The story is told in two perspectives, Nicole's perspective (before) and her aunt Claudine's perspective (after) in alternating chapters. I enjoyed this format as each chapter in the different timelines gives you a little bit of information. The book is sold as a 'thriller' however, I would more say it’s a family drama kind of story. There isn't much suspense but it's still enjoyable to read. The ending was a little bit of a let down for me, and isn't as complicated as you may think. There are also a few characters (like some of the Lagos Wives) that don't really add anything to the story so I feel like it could do with some editing to make the story more punchy. Overall, I did enjoy the book, it kind of reminded me of Crazy Rich Asians but in a less light-hearted, serious kind of way. Very interesting read on the superrich in Nigeria and the resilience of women. Thanks Netgalley and Random House UK for the advanced copy in return for an honest review.

I was lucky enough to be given a pre release copy of this book to review.

There are many rich layers to the book and I devoured it. It is written in the first person from three main characters points of view and kept my guessing the whole way through. It also taught me of a way of life I never knew existed.

The author has ventured from writing for young adults to adult fiction, and I look forward to more books from them..... I'd even like this story to continue. As with all good reads, I felt sad when it had come to an end.

This book is told from two perspectives, Nicole who goes missing and Claudine her aunt who travels to Nigeria to find her. it works quite well, although I failed to empathise with Nicole. The pace is very slow, which left me losing interest at times, but the plotting had great promise. It just failed to deliver for me, sadly. I enjoyed the insight into life in Lagos for the wealthy though. Thanks to Net Galley for my ARC.

3.5 stars.

Nicole was born and raised in England where she meets her Lagos, Nigeria born husband, Tonye. They get married and move to Nigeria in order for Tonye to continue working for the family (his father’s) very successful business.

In Lagos, Nicole lives a life of luxury and spends time in a society group called the Nigerwives, who are a group of foreign women married to extremely wealthy Nigerian men.

Nicole and Tonye have a very strained relationship and one day she disappears. Her estranged aunt, Claudine from London visits Nigeria determined to find Nicole despite it being her first time in Africa.

The story is written from Nicole’s perspective (pre disappearance) and from Claudine’s in her search to find Nicole.

It was an interesting read, particularly being Nigerian and recently returning from a holiday there, to hear how life in Lagos and Nigerian culture is described from an outsider’s (Claudine’s) point of view. The author also does a clever job of intertwining stories from Nicole’s past in London and the issue that estranged the two, whilst also giving us glimpses of Claudine’s life back in the Caribbean.

However I was let down a bit as there was a point where it felt like the story really dragged and things became a little unrealistic. It also seemed to harp on a bit too much of negatives of living in Lagos and Nigerians in general. Also whilst the ending, from my perspective wasn’t predictable, it was very underwhelming and let me unsatisfied. There were so many better ways it could have ended.

Overall I’d give this 3.5 stars. It initially showed promise but started to dwindle the more I continued.

i guess i wanted more drama...

I went into <i>The Nigerwife </i>by Vanessa Walters expecting it to be the kind of thriller that makes for an entertaining beach read. Something in the realms of authors like Liane Moriarty. We have the dual timelines/povs, the sine qua non of domestic thrillers, that switch between the present day, where we follow Auntie Claudine as she travels to Nigeria to look for her estranged niece, whose disappearance does not seem to be of much concern to either Nicole’s husband or her in-laws, and the ‘past’, where we get an insight into Nicole’s married life. The ‘missing woman’ plot makes for a rather tired premise, however, given the story’s setting and the focus on an aunt-niece dynamic (while usually in these type of thrillers, it’s about sisters, mother-daughters, current wife-former wife), I did hope that <i>The Nigerwife </i>could make for a gripping read. Sadly, the novel feels bogged down by scenes that reveal very little about the characters. Much is made about Nicole’s powerful in-laws but those family dynamics are barely hinted at. The novel lacks suspense, and atmosphere, which is a pity. The characters are surface-level, and the story relies on the usual cliches of the genre. The twists and reveals at the end were predictable and lazy.
As per usual, the opinions expressed above are entirely subjective so if you are interested in this book you should definitely check it out.

After the mysterious disappearance of her beautiful niece Nicole, in Lagos, Jamaican heritage Claudine sets out for Nigeria to see if she can find the niece she raised as a daughter. I enjoyed the 'before' (the disappearance) Nicole pov which described the sequence of events leading up to her disappearance being interspersed with 'after' written from Claudine's pov. Claudine stays with Nicole's Nigerian husband and his extended privileged family and this book is as much about patronage, power, family duty, loss, keeping up appearances, cultural isolation, marital strife, abuse and very interestingly, generational trauma. Lagos itself is like a character in this book- exciting, vibrant, dangerous, glittering glamorous, but also a socially stratified and a complex, unreliable place. It is somewhere that alienates Nicole and baffles Claudine but which provides untold opportunities and riches for other black British and women of other nationalities who have married Nigerian husbands , becoming Niger wives. I never did really get to grips with why Nicole was estranged from Claudine and I found the start of the book a bit meandering but then was drawn in to the lives of the characters and wanted to find out what happened in the end. I'm glad I didn't give up on this book because it is a richly interesting book about what you give up or lose when you marry and move to the country of your husband's birth and have to navigate a new life as a mother without your own family anchoring you to your identity before children and marriage. It's about visibility as a woman and agency.

A fast-paced and well-written thriller. Walters has a penchant for writing that makes you emotionally attached to the characters, even though there are instances where you don't particularly like them. A dazzling debut!

When I read the description for this book on NetGalley, I was really intrigued. I found the book to have a very slow build-up to the eventual outcome of Nicole's disappearance and found that part to be quite rushed.

There is a good mix of characters, but I found most of them unlikeable. I enjoyed the story and carried on reading just to see what actually happened.

The book covers a lot on Nigerian society and intercultural marriages. It's told from two points of view Nicole's before her dissapereance and Aunt Claudines in her search for what happened.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the digital copy.

I found this engrossing as I was enveloped by the hierarchical social structure in Lagos, and the mystery of what happened to Nicole. I think it's more of a domestic suspense than a thriller, but that didn't make it any less enjoyable. I love stories set in places I've never been, as a way to experience the differences in their culture and I loved the descriptions of the clothes and the surroundings, the way of life. I thought the two different points of view - Nicole and her aunt - made for a good way to tell the story and I was invested in both of them.

This is definitely one of the books that everyone will be talking about this year! It hooked me in quickly and I'm pleased to say it more than lived up to the initial promise.
There was a really interesting range of characters in the book and I particularly enjoyed how the different perspectives of Britain and Nigeria were contrasted through individual motivations, coalescing in the frustrating but sympathetic British-Nigerian character of Kemi. Every character has their own faults though, all enmeshed in the intricate power and social layers within Lagos society.
I'm normally not a fan of books which flash back and forwards but I feel the two perspectives generally mirrored each other nicely without being repetitive or too confusing. We could watch as Nicole struggled to break free of her ties while knowing that they only drew closer around her as Claudine sheds light on the networks she lived within.
I've already recommended this book to a couple of people and I can't wait to discuss it with them!

2.5 stars

Okay, I thought this was meant to be a thriller??? Honestly, I am disappointed and I wouldn't of asked for the arc, if I knew it would be more of a domestic drama.

I didn’t care for the characters and I found it hard to connect to any of them.
The paragraphs were toooo long and I felt bored reading them.
I never DNF a book and I was so close with this one.

I’m sorry this wasn’t for me at all.

Thank you to Netgalley for my ARC.

Claudine, the aunt of the disappeared Nicole flies to Nigeria to try find her niece who disappeared two weeks previously. At first glance it appears that neither Nicole’s husband or his family have much interest in finding out if she is dead alive and the police aren’t doing anything.

The book is written as a series of flashbacks from Nicole’s perspective leading up to her disappearance and in the present day from Claudine’s perspective. As the story progresses we learn about the history of Nicole and Claudine’s relationship and what has happened in their past combined with Nicole’s life up until she disappeared.

Now I love a good mystery but I’m afraid that this book did not do it for me. I never got to the point of caring, in any way at all, for any of the characters. The most interesting part of the book for me was the concept of the Nigerwives but other than that this is very slow moving and to be honest, not particularly interesting story. By the end I honestly wasn’t sure if I cared whether Nicole was alive or dead and unfortunately I wasn’t getting any sort of build up of suspense leading to a climactic end to the story either. As for the ending itself…. Well, meh.

From a cultural perspective, and I don’t know how much is accurate, it was interesting to get a perspective to life in Lagos for the wealthy. However, I never really got any “feel” for Lagos as a place, other than that there appears to be a lost of traffic. Not a book I’d recommend.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House for an advanced reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis : The Lagos Wife is a novel about the mysterious disappearance of Nicole Owurari, a British woman living in Lagos, Nigeria and the psychological can of worms this opens up for her aunt, who travels to Lagos to find her. -

My Thoughts - This book offers an intriguing glimpse into Nigerian affluent society, skillfully portraying their behaviors and existence. The depiction of the emphasis on wealth as a measure of one's worth and the challenges of intercultural marriages resonated well. The author effectively conveyed the struggles faced by women in such marriages, particularly after relocating to the man's home country. Witnessing similar challenges in women I know over the years, I appreciated the author's portrayal of loneliness, isolation, and financial dependency.

However, the compelling plot was hampered by subpar writing in certain instances. There was an excess of details on trivial matters and a lack of crucial details. The author tended to tell the story rather than show, with character descriptions lacking depth. The characterizations were weak, with some seemingly detailed characters contributing little to the plot. The ending felt illogical, somewhat far-fetched, and appeared suddenly without proper build-up throughout the novel.

Despite these drawbacks, I enjoyed the book due to its engaging plot involving London and African cities and cultures. However, I wouldn't readily recommend it. Vanessa Walters shows promise as a writer, and with time and editorial assistance, she could refine her craft.

*Sincere thanks to @randomhouse @penguinrandomhouse for the advance copy via @netgalley. As always this is an honest review*

Thanks to Netgalley for an advance copy for a honest review. This book completely transported me to Nigeria and a whole new lifestyle of Nigerwives and I found it utterly fascinating. If you enjoy a book where you can google locations and phrases used then this is perfect for you!
I enjoyed the switching between then and now and the perspectives from two different characters. There was a lot to unpack behind the main characters and why they may have done what they did but this was excellently handled as the story evolved. i also really enjoyed the ending! This book is the oxymoron of an easy but challenging and thought provoking read.

I must admit I find this quite hard to get into at first as I couldn't gel with the characters but then it got going and I'm glad that NetGalley gave me the chance to read this book. Overall it was an enjoyable read and I would read more books by Vanessa Walters

Dark Secrets..
Nicole has a seemingly perfect existence. The perfect house, husband and lifestyle. She has it all. Now in a group of ex pat wives in the heart of Lagos, she is part of a community. Then Nicole goes missing and everything is about to fall apart. As an investigation commences, aunt Claudine flies in and then she begins to dig… With a cast of deftly drawn and wholly credible characters and a propulsive and suspenseful plot populated with twists, dark secrets are effortlessly drawn to the surface and distinctions are drawn leading the reader to a crashing denouement.

An interesting insight into Lagos, its culture and norms, albeit 10 years ago. I enjoyed the contrasting UK and Nigerian narratives and the highlighting of the male dominated structures in both societies through a page turning story about the disappearance of a Nigerwife
Thank you to netgalley and Random House for an advance copy of this book

Nicole Oruwari doesn't know who to trust. This multi-layered, tw0-perspective novel - split between Nicole and her aunt Claudine - gives an illuminating insight into life in 2014's Nigeria. Having moved to Lagos with her husband and two young sons, Nicole realises that she is disposable, and has to reckon with a legacy of epigenetic trauma and childhood abuse. When her husband's father is a Big Man in Nigeria - and her boyfriend's best friend's father is potentially the biggest - how is Nicole ever going to be free, and if she achieved freedom, could she take her two boys with her? An enlightening read, and a glimpse into a very different world.

Nicole Oruwari is 'The Lagos Wife' in Vanessa Walters' novel. A British-Jamaican woman who had a difficult childhood but had the intelligence to be aiming to become a lawyer and the beauty to meet and fall in love with a rich Nigerian man. However, two children and a move to Nigeria later, Nicole loses her self. All her tasks are undertaken by servants, no one notices if she stays in her PJs all day, people refer to her as dumb, and she is described as 'our wife' by her husband and father in law. She realises she is in a gilded cage, but she is uncertain there is any way out, particularly as things weren't left positively with her family in England. She also realises that she is disposable, and could become the trash she see's floating in the lagoon beside their home.

Claudine is the closest to a mother Nicole still has. She is actually Nicole's aunt and took on the role of mother when her sister died. When she hears that Nicole is missing, she flies straight out to Nigeria to try to find answers despite their more recent estrangement. There she is met by indifference, defensiveness and secrets.

Told in alternating perspectives (Nicole and Claudine) and alternating time lines (before and after), Walters' novel tells the story of what led up to Nicole's disappearance, and responses to it. Throughout there are strong themes of power and corruption, cultural isolation, intergenerational trauma, family secrets and marital relationships. Walter's lived in Nigeria for two years and draws impressively on her knowledge of the place, which means that the novels location is an important part of the story.

Some reviews I've seen of this novel have been negative, with one showing a GIF of a yawning face. This wasn't my experience at all. I really liked Walter's use of the two perspectives and timelines, which I felt added to the tension and pace. Some foreshadowing was bit obvious, but the secrets revealed as the novel progressed were not obvious and were very satisfying. The position the Oruwari family have in Nigeria added depth to the novel, as did the experience of 'Nigerwives'. I definitely think this book will appeal to people who enjoy reading books set in different cultures, as well as those who enjoy more domestic thrillers.

Thrilling, suspenseful. A read you will not be able to put down. With formidable prose and a compelling storyline. This is a book you must read!