This was a great book with awesome twists and turns. It felt a bit predictable at times but over all it was a fun listen. And the narrators were great!

⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 5 Stars

Happy pub day to Emily Shiner and The Wife in the Photo! Thank you to Bookouture Audio and NetGalley for allowing me to read an ALC (Advanced Listener 🎧 Copy) for an honest review!

📅 Today (September 7, 2023) is the pub date for The Wife in the Photo by Emily Shiner. The narrators🎙️are Todd Kramer & Kate Handford. 📅

Evan Warner and his daughter Jessica are grieving the loss of their wife/mother. The house 🏡 is a mess, they are emotionally 😭 wrecked, and they just can’t seem to find a new rhythm 🥁 since Lola’s passing.

In turn, Evan decides to hire a housekeeper to clean 🧼🧽 and cook 🍳🥘 a few times a week 🗓️. He couldn’t believe his luck 🍀 to find someone readily available via referral ☎️ from his administrative assistant.

Ariel starts her fist job as a housekeeper for Evan and Lola under the guise that she is experienced and had a recent opening in her schedule. What’s her motive? Is there anything else she is keeping from their family? She sure seems to know a lot about them and uncovering Lola’s diary 📔 helps to solidify some thoughts. Lola isn’t the only that kept track 📝 of their daily life. Will the two diaries prove be to helpful or a hindrance once the end game is revealed?

I could only formulate one suspicion that was correct ✅ while 🎧📖 reading. Other than that, I had absolutely no idea💡what was going to happen until the very end 🔚 of the 📖 book. Here’s wishing you luck 🍀 in figuring out a convoluted plot with multiple story lines!

My synposis: Police chief, Evan Warner, lost his wife, Lola in an accident...leaving him a widower and his 14 years old daughter, motherless. After realizing that they can keep up with the house, Evan decides to hire, Ariel, as their housekeeper.

To all their friends, Evan and Lola had a perfect, happy marriage. Behind closed doors, Evan was withdrawn. When Lola caught Evan cheating with a younger woman, she decides to take her daughter and leave while Evan was at a meeting. He comes home to find Lola laying at the bottom of the deck stairs, dead.

Ariel becomes the Warners' housekeeper but she has secrets. Lola and Ariel share a past...a past Ariel is trying to make right. First, she need to find out what really happened go Lola. After 15 years of estrangement, that's the least Ariel can do.

Rating: I gave this book a 4 stars rating. Granted, I figured out who the killer was before I hit the middle of the book. However, the writing style was so good, it kept me engaged. You get Lola's side of her story from her diary. You get Ariel's side of the past relationship between her and Lola. You get Evan's side of his story as to why he chested. Then you get Jessica's side of the story. Her side was probably the most bizarre version.

It was really interesting to see everyday living through all these POVs because they're all so different. Ariel saw Jessica as being scared of Evan. Evan saw Jessica as getting out of control. Jessica saw Ariel as an intruder. The entire book was very engaging and it was paced well.

I finished this book in the morning yesterday. I absolutely loved listening to this one it had me completely hooked from the very start. This book is fast paced and that makes it so easy to fly through it and forget you’re actually reading.📖 I thought I knew what was going on multiple times, but I was wrong every time. The twist filled roller coaster ride this book took me on was perfectly amazing! If it weren’t for silly adult responsibilities, I think I would have had this book finished I’d a day. I have loved everything I’ve read from this author, and I can’t wait to read more! I obviously gave this book 5⭐️‘s.

I dont think Ms Shiner is for me, unfortunately. The narration was fine, the story just didn't grab me like I had hoped.

3.5⭐
Well, that was wild! What did I just read??🤪

Lola died when she fell down the stairs. The widower and Police Chief Evan Warner is mostly busy and with a 14-year-old daughter Jessica, he wants some order at home and maybe a hot meal for them both so he hires a housekeeper through a recommendation, Ariel.

Ariel however has a different agenda. She wants to investigate the death of Lola which was ruled an accident. Finding evidence against Evan is key and protecting Jessica from him.

I like Emily Shiner's writing and the audiobook was done well with Todd Kramer and Kate Handford.

I do like this domestic suspense. Ariel's snooping around the house was nerve-racking at times. The plot with this theme has been done before. I guessed some of it yet I was surprised by the twists. I should have known better than to make such a low-key prediction! The Wife in the Photo is a fun popcorn thriller that's mostly implausible and OTT. Be in the right mindset and I think it's entertaining.🍿🎧

Thank you Bookouture Audio and Netgalley for this ALC.

3.5 stars

1 witness, 2 family members, 3 scorned scorned women and 1 dead body - this pretty much sums up the whole story.
After Lola is found dead, many believed that she slipped and fell but there are 2 women who didn't believe it at - one wants revenge for the death and another wants to save her grand daughter. But no one realizes that the real killer is among them!

Emily Shiner's The Wife in the Photo was a really good read, though not too fast paced - there were some sections that could be edited better as there were repetitions of the same statements in different tenses.

Thank you to NetGalley, Emily Shiner and Bookouture Audio for approving the audiobook ARC

Quick and fun psychological thriller! Shiner did a great job getting you into these characters heads. Saw the plot twist coming from a mile away but I enjoyed Shiners writing so much, that it really didn’t ruin the read for me. The writing was very simple, if you’re looking for a lot of character detail and depth, this is not the read for you. The ending seemed a bit abrupt but overall I enjoyed myself. Highly recommend the audiobook! Todd Kramer and Kate Handford did a great job bringing these characters to life!

The premise is interesting, no doubt. But the execution, ugh, it had me banging my head against the wall. The story unfolds in an unbelievably dragging manner right from the outset.

And I don’t even want to talk about the plot holes. A sieve might have less!

And what can I say about the characters, their motives, and actions–a lot (cuz I have so much to rant about!)

Oh, and we know who the killer is from the beginning. How? Evan tells us through his actions and thoughts.

The sole silver lining in this otherwise dismal experience was Kate Handford’s narration.

The Wife in the Photo was a terribly disappointing experience.


Wordsopedia Rating 2/5

(2 stars for the author’s efforts and also, I hate giving 1 star to any book)

The Wife In The Photo took me a minute to get into. I do believe this was largely in part due to the audio version. The male narrator seemed very robotic and at times, it was distracting. It sounded as though he were an AI narrator.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. It was a slow burn at first but once it picked up, it took off! There were unexpected turns and the author certainly held my attention. I will say that I did guess the ending! I am both proud of myself and disappointed when that happens! 😂

BLOG TOUR HOST Sept 7th!

The queen of revenge plots, Emily Shiner (favorite author), returns following Her Husband's Secret and You Can't Hide with THE WIFE IN THE PHOTO —another clever diabolical cat-and-mouse thriller—but which character is the cat, and which character is the mouse?

Like a tennis match back and forth, your loyalties will change. Predator or prey? Trust no one! With a cast of unreliable narrators, be prepared for the unexpected and sharp turns and twists to the wicked conclusion.

A woman sets off on an obsessive path to justice, no matter what dark family secrets are revealed. She doesn't know she isn't the only one plotting her REVENGE!

No one (and I mean no one) is what they seem. The fates of all the players twist and turn until the shocking truth emerges: You can't always get what you want. But sometimes, you get what you deserve.

Meet the Warners:
LOLA WARNER always wanted a home that looked like something from a storybook. A white picket fence. Lola wanted. Lola got. For a while, anyway. How many secrets can be hidden behind the flawless front door? Then, one day, out on the deck, a person is coming towards Lola. It is fast. She is on the edge. Her foot slips. She falls. She looks peaceful. However, she is DEAD. Who is the person at the top of the stairs?

What an opening!

Told from POVs.

EVAN:
Evan is a chief detective, the husband of Lola, and the father of teen Jessica. People have been coming by to babysit him since the funeral. He drinks more and needs help around the house and someone to help with Jessica. However, he needs to be careful. He must ensure he does not slip up and tell anyone the truth. He will hire a housekeeper. She cannot be young or good-looking as the neighbors may talk. His relationship with his daughter is strained. She stays in her room. They barely communicate.

ARIEL:
Ariel Anders is a stalker. She has been watching, waiting, and keeping tabs on Evan and Jessica. Lola deserves more. She must keep Jessica safe from Evan. It is time to put her plan into action. All the pieces are in place, and she is ready. Lola would want her to protect Jessica.

LOLA'S DIARY:
Readers get snippets from Lola's diary leading up to her death. She thinks Evan is disconnected. He seems distant and silent. He comes home late and gets in the shower. (yep). She needs to get his phone when he is not looking to check it. But oh no, he has changed his password. (not good) Is Evan finding comfort somewhere else? If he is having an affair (you bet). She thinks they can get through it. She wants to fix things, but does Evan? Then she finds the letter. She will ask him about the letter when he is not drinking. When she is sure, she will be safe. Of course, he denied it. He must end the affair, or she will end the marriage.

Miriam is Evan's assistant. A grandmotherly type. He will ask her if she knows anyone interested in a housekeeper position. A cook. A cleaner. Run errands—someone to come into the house and improve Evan's life.

Miriam knows Aerial. Upon her recommendation, Aerial gets the job as a housekeeper. She is not pretty or striking, so she will be PERFECT, Evan thinks. Aerial would like to move in and live there instead of her car, but Evans says it is not a live-in position. (darn) She will take what she can get. She needs to snoop. She will improve Evan and Jessica's house and then RUIN him.

Aerial knows the truth will come out, and it could get ugly when it does. She needs to make sure Jessica trusts her.

JESSICA's DIARY:
Jessica is a wild card. She and her father do not seem to get along. Aerial wants her to open up to her. Jessica is not happy her dad hired a housekeeper.

Evan is happy with Aerial's work. She is a great cook and housecleaner. All seems to be working until he notices his bedroom door is cracked. He tells her his bedroom is OFF LIMITS. That makes her want to snoop even more. (right?) What is he hiding? She thinks he murdered his wife. She must dig through photos, papers, life insurance policies, anything—to find something to incriminate him.

She plans to get rid of Evan and help Jessica. However, nothing is as it appears. Was Evan having an affair? With whom? What is he hiding? Everyone has SECRETS! Maybe Lola had a diary that Aerial needed to find. She thinks this house is evil. She finds a gun, but he is a cop.

Jessica could be in grave danger from her father. She seems to be acting out, smoking weed, being manipulative, and being disrespectful—poor thing. Aerial is sure Jessica has more secrets, and she must learn them all. But Evan does not trust Aerial, so she may lose her job and her opportunity to gather info.

However, there may be MORE than ONE person plotting REVENGE! After all, accidents tend to happen. Who knows how to play the game? Who is using whom? Who will outsmart the other?

DYNAMITE! Devilishly clever, Emily Shiner ratchets up the suspense and misdirection with this twisty, thrilling game of cat-and-mouse and house of smoke and mirrors that will have you guessing, second-guessing, and then gasping with surprise.

THE WIFE IN THE PHOTO is a magnificent, intricately plotted psychological thriller that will have you questioning everyone’s motives until the stunning ending—a must-read for thriller lovers.

The twist-filled plot fearlessly delves into the depths of revenge, obsession, and family secrets with a final knife twist—be prepared for a 360-degree head spin. For fans of authors Freida McFadden and Miranda Rijks. Be sure to check out Emily's backlist and stay tuned for The Hotel! (Blog tour Sept 8th)

Get this one on your list! I read the e-book and listened to the audiobook narrated by Kate Handford and Todd Kramer for a highly entertaining performance and listening experience.

Thanks to Bookouture, Hachette UK, and NetGalley for a gifted ARC and ALC in exchange for an honest review.

Blog review posted @
JudithDCollins.com
@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustReadBooks
My Rating: 5 Stars
Pub Date: Sept 7, 2023
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Dark, twisty & a total page turner!

Description from NetGalley-
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.

I definitely liked this audiobook. It felt similar to Frieda McFaddens The Housemaid. The perfect book to pick up to start out spooky season!

Thank you to NetGalley & Bookouture for this ARC audiobook!

Title: A Gripping Thriller with Unforeseen Twists - "The Wife in the Photo" by Emily Shiner

"The Wife in the Photo" by Emily Shiner is a psychological thriller that will keep you interested from beginning to end. I read it in one day. This tale delves into the mysteries surrounding the death of Lola, Evan's wife. Fans of Frieda McFadden and Kiersten Modglin will undoubtedly find themselves engrossed in this riveting story of secrets and deceit.

The story centers around Evan and his daughter, Jessica, who is grappling with the tragic loss of Lola. Evan hires Ariel, a housekeeper, to bring some normalcy back into his daughter’s life. Ariel is not just any housekeeper, though; she is desperate to uncover the truth about what really happened to Lola. From the moment Ariel steps into Evan's life, the tension begins to build, and the reader is drawn into a complex web of intrigue.

While the storyline may seem somewhat predictable at times, Emily Shiner skillfully keeps you engaged. As the narrative unfolds, secrets are unraveled, and hidden motives are brought to light.

Ariel's relentless pursuit of the truth adds an element of suspense and intrigue to the story, making her a character worth rooting for. This is a must-read for anyone who enjoys a quick, easy psychological thriller.

This releases September 7, 2023. Grab your copy soon!

Thank you to @Bookcoutore for this Arc Read :)

#psychologicalthriller #EmilyShriner #FreidaMcFadden

⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Wife in the Photo
By: Emily Shiner
Publication date: September 7, 2023

“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...”

The Wife in the Photo is a psychological thriller. Lola is found dead at the bottom of the stairs and her husband is never looked into, Ariel knows Evan (the husband) did it and she just has to find a way to prove it. Ariel gets a job in his home to take care of the house and she starts investigating it herself.

Let me start off with what I liked about this book:
- [ ] Multiple POVs
- [ ] The narrators

What wasn’t my favorite:
- [ ] The twist were very obvious in my opinion
- [ ] It was also drawn out

Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for gifting me this ACR in exchange for my honest reviewer.

The Wife in the Photo is a new thriller from the pen of Emily Shiner. This author already has several books in the thriller genre. Going into her new release, which is officially out tomorrow, I didn't know what to expect from the book. I was interested in the title, the cover and the annotation. But after listening to the audiobook, I can say that it is a very good thriller indeed.
The Wife in the Photo is a thriller with a very engaging plot that draws the reader in from the very beginning. Throughout the story, the author creates a fog over the entire story, while with the increasing pages she gradually reveals various facts that build tension in the story and arouse the reader's attention to continue it further.
As the chapters go by, the story gets more and more tangled. Although at first you feel that you already really know what the truth is, the alternating narrators of the story will offer you diametrically different points of view, as a result of which you have no idea until the last page who is actually telling the truth and who is not.
Several narrators take turns in the story - Ariel, Evan, Jessica and Lola through her notes. Each of the characters offers a unique view of the entire situation, while these views sometimes coincide, and sometimes take a completely different direction, which is what the author tries to confuse the reader with, and in the end, quite successfully.
In the work, the author deals with topics such as infidelity, envy, lies, at the same time she also goes into psychological topics and also opens various social topics. The author managed to process the themes themselves very well and they appear natural in the story.
This is the second audiobook in the English language that I have received, and I can say that I was very satisfied. It was told in a comprehensible, engaging way, and I would even say that it emphasized even more what the author wanted to convey with the book.
The Wife in the Photo is a quality thriller that I thoroughly enjoyed listening to. Emily Shiner was an unknown author for me, now I definitely want to read her other works.

Holy unreliable narrator, Batman! There are three people telling us their side of the story and the details do not match up. Pop some popcorn for this one and hang on for a rollercoaster ride. We start the book with the tragic death of Lola, wife to the police chief and mother to 14-year-old Jessica. How can this family go on after such a tragedy? Ariel is conveniently available to step in to be their housekeeper. One or more of these three people are not what they tell us they are. Perhaps it is all of them? You will have to read the book for yourself and find out. This was shades of "Gone Girl" for me in the way these characters interact with each other. I have a new author on my Must Read list.

Thank you to Bookouture for both an audio and digital ARC in exchange for an honest review. Release date is tomorrow September 7, 2023.

Great narrators help to hold this murder mystery together. It starts really well and the premise was good, Evan has recently lost his wife and takes Ariel on as a housekeeper and to keep an eye on his daughter Jessica. Unbeknownst to Evan and Jessica, Ariel has an ulterior motive for being there and as the story unfolds it becomes clear there is more to Lola’s death than meets the eye. Lots of twists and turns, if a little predictable. Thank you to NetGalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed This story very much but didn’t find myself rooting for any of the characters.
I was Invested in the secrets and mystery and things were wrapped up opened ended for a possible book 2. Maybe?
One thing I felt Is that the title doesn’t fit the book at all and I found Myself wondering if I missed something.
Will read this author again!

First I would like to thank NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for the chance to listen to the audio version of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This was a quick and wild ride right from the first few minutes of the book. This twisty psychological thriller was so good that I listened to it in one day. You won't know who to trust in this story because there are so many twists and turns.

Evan Warner and his daughter, Jessica, are reeling from the death of Lola (wife and mom).... but Ariel, who seems to know more about this family than anyone else thinks otherwise and sets out to expose Evan as the killer of his wife.

There are excerpts from Lola's diary as well as from Jessica's diary that she has kept since the day her mother died that are shared periodically throughout the novel. I guarantee every reader will be confused as to who they should believe or not.

The end of the book is a shocker and I believe has been left open to further exploration in a sequel.

Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I rated this book three stars because I struggled getting into the book like I was hoping. It was following three main characters, two were their POV and the other character you learned through her diary entries. There were a couple unexpected plot twist throughout the book which made it worth the read. I had a hutch who the main suspect was but I was thrown for a loop at the end of the end. I wanted to enjoy this book more than I did and I might have if I would have had the possibility to read the physical book instead of Audiobook.