ARC audiobook provided in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed that this book had dual narration to cover both the male and female characters! It really helped set the scene and both narrators were very clear and easy to listen to for long periods of time. The story itself was well written but fairly predictable in my opinion. I didn’t for see the culmination of events that happened at the end, but other parts I felt I noticed quite early on. I still thoroughly enjoyed the story and how it all wrapped up and would definitely recommend to anyone into psychological thrillers and mysteries!

Thank you, NetGalley, Bookouture, and Emily Shiner, for an advanced audio copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
The Wife in the Photo revolves around the unexpected death of Lola, Evan's spouse, and Jessica's mother. Ariel, a hired housekeeper, joins the household to support Evan and Jessica. However, Ariel becomes suspicious that Evan might be responsible for Lola's death. Did Evan really do it?
I had difficulty getting through this book due to its slow pace. I appreciate diary entries because they provide a backstory and should immerse the reader in the writer's emotions. However, I didn't experience this connection when encountering journal entry chapters.
I am also unsure why this was titled The Wife in the Photo. There is no wife in the photo in the story!
I did enjoy the narration, which was easy to follow. I need easy-to-follow audiobooks to get into the story entirely.

Oh, my!! The secrets. The lies. The twists and the turns. If you want a book that has it all, this one is for you. Dark and twisted with suspense around every corner. A guessing game of who is the real master manipulater? I believe the title could have been something different like The Lies That Bind or Family Ties, Family Lies or Deadly Secrets. Those seem more of a descriptor. I enjoyed it and didn't want it to end.

I received an advanced copy from NetGalley and unfortunately I didn’t like it.From the huge plot holes to the non-sense plot twist it was extremely predictable.Do not recommend

I downloaded this AudioARC from NetGalley and listed to it while doing some admin.

Three stars from me means that I believe the author has achieved my aims and it's a good book, but I personally did not fall in love with it.

I suspect that this would make a great TV drama - it's packed full of action and has clear "bad guys" that people love to hate. It also includes first person narratives from characters who die, which reminded me of the first series of Desperate Housewives and, like the later series of that show, The Wife in the Photo take melodrama to a whole new level.

For me, that detracted from what could have been a tightly-written thriller, but I know that lots of people really enjoy this sort of "drama drama". If you like your thrillers complete with blood-thirsty sociopaths, The Wife in the Photo will be right up your street, and I commend it to you.

Three word review: melodramatic domestic noir.

If you love multiple unreliable narrators, this book is for you. Everyone in this book is flawed (just like in real life), We have Evan Warner, a police chief; the death of his wife has sent him into binge drinking, or is it his guilt over his mistress? His daughter, Jessica, is acting strange, possibly afraid for her life. Then, we have “Ariel” who becomes obsessed with this family as she attempts to prove that Lola’s death was no accident.

When Ariel becomes employed to clean and cook for the family, she hopes to uncover a motive and proof of Lola’s murder, but she slowly peices together an altogether different story. The Warners might just be playing a high-stakes cat and mouse game with their new housekeeper.

This story twists the idea of a parent’s love for their child, and contains severe themes of obsession and self-harm,

I really enjoyed listening to this story, even if I called the main twist from the first couple of chapters. I am actively thinking about just how far I would go to keep my child safe.

I didn’t love how we somewhat ended on an unresolved note, but similar to Verity, it is something I can make peace with.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the early review copy of this book. All opinions above are my own.

Outstanding!!! A psychological thriller that will have you on the edge of your seat. You may guess the ending, but most of us have been wrong. You can't trust anyone in this twisted action packed book. I was intrigued by every twist and changed my mind several times with the deception and lies displayed to surprise you.
Told in multiple POVs and narrator to help transition the characters easily.
Lola, a mother and wife, is found dead at the foot of the steps. No one suspects her husband, but she leaves her diary behind and a trail of his demeanor to investigate. Overwhelmed, he hires a housekeeper to help with their daughter Jessica and the housework. She conspires against him by snooping through his personal belongings to prove he killed his wife. It is very intense and while she is snooping, I'm holding my breath.
The title does throw me off though LOL
Excellent writing and I can't wait to read her next one, so I pre-ordered The Hotel!
The audio is amazing with the narrators Todd Kramer, Kate Handford are perfectly in sync.
Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for this amazing ARC in exchange for my review!

This was a fast pace thriller with more than one twist at the end! The only way I can describe this book, The Housemaid by Freida McFadden meets “no body, no crime” by Taylor Swift. Such a fun quick read!!

Thank you to NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Evan is the local police chief and when his wife, Lola, falls to her death, he realizes he needs help with his home and his daughter. Ariel comes in and seems delightful on the surface, but she has a hidden agenda.

This was a great psychological thriller, but it was a little too slow and repetitive for me. It was very predictable and the twist at the end was “eh”. The journal entries were a little confusing, I understand why it was written like that-but it was distracting. I think if you like an easy read that won’t keep you up at night-this is it!

I was surprised by this book greatly. I'm not sure what I was expecting, but it wasn't this and I'm so glad!

Lola's fall off her porch, and subsequent death, are ruled accidental. Evan, Chief of police and grieving widow, is now left to maneuver life as sole parent to their teenage daughter Jessica. But are things really as picturesque as they appear?

An old friend of Lola's doesn't think so... and she embarks on finding out the truth. What ensues is more than anyone bargained for...

I listened to the audiobook version, my only complaint is that the narrator reading Evan was not my cup of tea... but I just sped up his readings and did fine.

If you're looking for a decently fast paced read that does make your heart stop at certain intervals and completely destroys whatever you think you know... THIS IS IT!

positives:
I was hooked from the beginning & it had an Interesting storyline. I liked the multiple POVs. I listened to the audiobook in less than 24 hours!!

Things to work on:
-Author kept repeating/teasing the same illusion there were secrets…but nothing was actually being revealed
-Characters seemed under-developed.
-Plot twists were not too revealing
-Too many irrelevant details given
-the ending caught me off guard. It was very rushed and left me with more questions than answers.

I give this book a 3 but I feel like it has potential for a 4.5+

I read a lot of thrillers and this one missed the mark. It didn’t grab me. Instead, it felt more like background noise as I was not able to get into the audiobook. There were times where I felt like I could get sucked in, but it passed. The twist was too predictable and left me rolling my eyes. I had high hopes for this one.

Thanks to NetGalley for this advanced audiobook in exchange for an honest review!

The Wife in the Photo is a domestic thriller. It was an interesting book that kept my attention throughout most of it. While there were twists, I guessed all but the final reveal. But that may be because I’ve read so many books of this genre.

The book is told through various narrators. While there were several points of view, my favourite was the excerpts from the wife’s diary. I actually wish there was more of that story, I found it the most interesting.

The ending was frustrating to me, but I’m sure there are those will enjoy it.

I felt like this was pretty standard fare for the genre. It was enjoyable, but probably not one I will think of in the future. I would read this author again. I give it a 3.5, rounded up to 4.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me an audio copy of The Wife in the Photo which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

I really enjoyed the narrator of this audiobook, however I found the middle of the book was slow after the development of the characters. They make you believe you know who the killer is, but with a few twists… you find things make not be what you believed. The ending was a little abrupt, other than that it was just ok for me.

Good listen with lots of twists and turns

Evan Warner is the local police chief he has recently just lost his wife, Lola, and now he and his young daughter Jessica are adrift.
Ariel takes on a job as a housekeeper, having known Lola and is determined to prove Evan murdered his wife

The Wife in The Photo is a psychological triller that kept me on my toes until the end! This book tells the story of Ariel, who is helping Evan and Jessica, a father and daughter, after the death of their wife/mother Lola. Little do Evan and Jessica know, Ariel is connected to the family, and has her own reasons for wanting to know what really happened to Lola. Readers are kept guessing through this book, as you learn about connections between characters, and who is really telling the truth.
I would like to thank NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this audiobook for a fair and unbiased review.

This one started off strong and I was engaged for the first 20% but it went downhill from there. It’s very much a slow burn. It was very repetitive and I had the full storyline figured out in the first couple of chapters. I found it very stilted and boring and there was no suspense or thrill in the way of twists. The characters were just awful and I couldn’t relate to any of them. The outcome very much left the listen incomplete. The narration didn’t work for me at all, it was so forced and stilted and just not engaging. Unfortunately this wasn’t for me.

Thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture Audio for the opportunity to listen to and review #TheWifeInThePhoto

The Wife in the Photo
By: Emily Shiner
5⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I have read a few of Shiners novels and they always delivers. She draws you in the first chapter.

Lola is dead haven fallen from the stairs of her home. Her husband Evan would be considered a suspect if accused. They also have a daughter Jessica.

The novel draws us in with diaries from Lola and Jessica. Evan hires a housekeeper to attend to the home and she has her own motives.

Full of twists and turns until the very last sentence! If you love a good binge worthy, fast paced psychological thriller I highly recommend this one.

Thank you Bookouture, Netgalley and author Emily Shiner for this advanced copy. Available Sept 7, 2023.
#bookouture, #bookstagram, #emilyshiner, #netgalley, #bookreview, #bookoutureaudio, #bookstagram, #stamperlady50

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion. WHAT IN THE HECK DID I JUST READ....Lola is dead and it looks like that her husband is responsible but wait he is the Chief of Police and now has to raise his 14 yr old daughter on his own. That is where the new housekeeper comes in to help them out but instead of just helping out she is there to keep Jessica save from her own father. Who is this stranger and why does she care so much about Jessica? As the answers start to get revealed we realize that there is something else going on which is a lot more sinister than we thought in the first place. Hold on everyone because things are going to get pretty messed up before this one ends. Enjoy!!

Copied from Goodreads:
2.5⭐️ “The Wife in the Photo” is a new domestic thriller by Emily Shiner scheduled to be released in the U.S. on September 7, 2023.

Despite narration by several characters (Evan, a widower; Jessica, a 14-year-old who has just lost her mother; Ariel, the housekeeper/would-be-sleuth; and the journal of the deceased Lola) the text moved logically and without confusion. I appreciated the character development and reveals, although the twists were to be expected if you’re a fan of this genre. I found the ending to be rushed, seemingly intent on wrapping up loose ends than plot development.

Many thanks to Bookouture Audio via NetGalley for this audio ARC in exchange for an honest review.