Ahh, yes! Our favorite love-to-hate character, Paul Strom, is back and may have finally met his match with his new wife, Cecilia, who’s definitely not as innocent as she first appeared. Revenge is a dish best served cold, and sometimes you have to give people a taste of their own cruel medicine.

Similar to its predecessor, The Second Mrs. Strom is told through the short timeline of the main narrative but also includes flashbacks to the past. The biggest differences between this book and The Best Day Ever are:
- This book includes a more balanced split of POVs between the FMC & MMC.
- While Mia was an innocent victim in Paul’s narcissistic deranged games, Cecilia may be just as unhinged as he is! A true match made in Heaven…. Or seemingly more like the opposite!
- This domestic thriller had many more unexpected and shocking twists and turns! It’ll make your head spin.

Because we get to view situations through both the eyes of Paul & of Cecilia, it adds a multi-layered perspective to the story and in my opinion- gives it an advantage over the first book. This isn’t a book I’d recommend reading as a standalone. Having the backstory of The Best Day is important to really understanding Paul’s character and fully enjoying this deliciously devious follow-up novel.

Will Paul finally get the comeuppance he rightfully deserves? And why does Cecilia want revenge? These questions and more will be answered in this highly anticipated sequel!

4.25 ⭐️ Thank you to NetGalley & Bookouture for the opportunity to read this digital ARC. All opinions expressed are my own.

The Second Mrs. Strom is a fast paced thriller and is the sequel to Best Day Ever. I could not put this one down. Kaira Rouda is an expert at writing unlikeable characters and Paul Strom is beyond unlikeable. He is a despicable person. I really enjoy that this author uses snark and dark humor. This book entertains from beginning to end. Clear your schedule because you won't be able to put this one down. .

This book right here is jam packed with quotes and expressions of love (or obsession) that will have you reading, and rereading each sentence just to let it absorb a little further into your soul.

It’s weird to describe a book classified as a thriller with such passion and emotion but sometimes books hit a little differently depending on the mood you read them in.

My mood was just right for this one.

Last night I scrolled through my netgalley shelf looking for a book I knew I could get lost in, and that I did. Everything was so life like and the characters both lovable and hatable, layered and raw made them so real.

I am jealous of every person who is yet to read this one as I would love to experience it again and go a tad bit slower so I squeeze every last bit of goodness out of it.

Pre-Order the book, then come check on me, I barely survived that book-coaster 😰

Teaser :

I don’t want the perfect marriage. I want revenge…

If you had met me a year ago, you wouldn’t have noticed me. A beautiful woman, but a struggling nobody in a tiny apartment, invisible…

Meeting Paul changed that.

And now here I am in Paris, after a whirlwind courtship and a stunning beach proposal. I smile at my handsome husband, my eyes shining in the candlelight, my huge diamond ring sparkling on the starched white tablecloth. Other women look at me in envy. They see a couple completely in love.

They’re wrong.

Despite this incredible luxury vacation, my husband and I can’t escape our problems. I can’t get over what he did with that woman just after our wedding, and my bright smile can’t hide the hardness in my heart.

I wonder if Paul knows the truth. That our first meeting, when we fell in love, wasn’t the coincidence he thinks it was. That what I want from him has nothing to do with his money.

And now that he’s wronged me, I’ll stop at nothing to get it…

This is an engrossing page turner with striking imagery and breakneck twists. The author has a crisp writing style which guides readers through this layered and innovative thriller. It was a treat to read.⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I powered through this one as I love Rouda's books and I loved this sequel! Paul and newest wife, Cecilia are vacationing in Paris for their anniversary but it's clear they have some "issues" as Paul is controlling and it's clear he's counting on the fortune Esther left him. They actually met at her memorial service as Esther was older and Paul knew he would inherit her money as he'd been her "companion" until the bitter end. But Cecilia has plans of her own. and we see both sides of each of them: the loving husband and wife, and the devious, scheming people who will lie about literally anything to get their hands on money! Vacillating in time between each of them and un-named diary entries, the novel follows the trajectory of their courtship, marriage, and scheming ways until your head is spinning like a top!
Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!

This book was great! I don’t know what was coming next and the twists just kept coming. Very few parts were predictable, the author knows how to keep a reader on their toes! I loved Cecelia and could see that Paul was bad news. Great character development and great cast. Another awesome story from her!

The Second Mrs. Strom
By: Kaira Rouda
Publisher: Bookouture
Pub date: August 16
5 💍💍💍💍💍

The perfect follow-up to Best Day Ever! Paul is back with a new wife. Rouda nails this one!

Paul and Cecelia are celebrating their one year anniversary in Paris! This should be the perfect setting to reignite their passion.

Paul is still arrogant, deceiving, and controlling but he may have finally met his match with Cecelia!

He is ready for them to start a family. Cecelia has other ideas, which prove to add a multilayer of twisted situations which shock Paul.

I loved the background of Cecelia which is shared with her past/present which gives us insight.

Thank you Bookouture for the gifted copy. My colleagues at @thrillerbookloversthepulse are thrilled to share this twisted novel.

#thesecondmrsstrom, #kairarouda, #booksconnectus, #bookouture, #thrillerbookloversthepulse, #pulsepoint, #bookreview, #stamperlady50

This was different. Psychchologically intriging. Not for people who strughle with a slower pace. Personally, for me it was worth the wait

The Second Mrs Strom Kaira Rouda The story was repetitive in parts and the alternating POVs were at times confusing. Both Cecilia and Paul were unreliable and unlikable characters. Paul was as disgusting as ever and it was good to read about his comeuppance Wasn't a favorite by Ms. Rouda

Thank you to the author, publisher, and Netgalley for the opportunity to preview the book.

I really enjoyed "Best Day Ever" by Kaira Rouda and was eager to dive into the follow-up novel "The Second Mrs. Strom." The story revolves around the self-absorbed and sociopathic Paul, who, unfortunately, hasn't changed at all! Paul is now married to Cecilia and they are celebrating their first anniversary in Paris. Without giving too much away, I must say that Paul's overconfidence and Kaira Rouda's storytelling kept me engaged. I love novels told from the perspective of an unreliable narrator, and it was fascinating to delve back into Paul's mind and his madness. I also felt Cecilia's perspective added so (SO!) much to the storyline as well! This 5-star novel is absolutely gripping, and once again, Kaira Rouda amazed me with her well-crafted twists and turns. I highly recommend "The Second Mrs. Strom" to everyone!

I did not realize this was a sequel. I felt the back and forth between times was kind of choppy and confusing. Overall, it seemed obvious these two both had some sort of hidden agenda. Wasn't all that interesting to me. I have enjoyed previous books by Kaira way more. Didn't even finish it honestly.

A fun, fast read, a guilty pleasure read. Unlikeable rich married couple scheming against each other, parts of it weren't believable but it is best to not take it too seriously and just enjoy

My first book by this author and I utterly enjoyed it!

Throughout the whole book you know something is going to happen. Both Cecilia and Paul were on my radar, because I did not really thrust either of them. I was wondering who played the role of the cat and who was given the part of the mouse? 

Paul really is a despicable person. He thinks he rules the world, waving his money around. Whatever he wants, he thinks he can have. Beware of this kind of attitude, because when you put yourself on a pedestal, there is a long way to fall. 

Cecilia is naive, young and beautiful or this is where looks can deceive?

I loved the writing style, the premise, the scheming. In a way, they were more than evenly-matched. 5 stars

Thank you

i was excited to read Kaira Rouda's next outing, after enjoying The Favourite Daughter and finishing it in two days. since i haven't read Best Day Ever, i went into The Second Mrs. Strom completely blind, not knowing what to expect beyond the description.

The Second Mrs. Strom is a fast-paced, twisty thriller. since i just visited Paris, a lot of the locations mentioned in the book came alive in my imagination, which admittedly made me instantly fond of the book. as with TFD, the book takes place within a short time-frame, and Rouda uses time-stamps to create a sense of urgency that keeps the plot moving and the reader engaged. Paul's narration is sinister, and the time-jumps ensure the narrative is fraught with tension. it was interesting to see the dissonance between Cecilia and Paul's recollection of events; how differently they both view each other and their marriage. although i was able to predict quite a few twists, Rouda chooses the perfect moments to reveal them, casually dropping bombs mid-chapter that changed how i viewed the story and kept things exciting.

there were some things that prevented me from giving this book a higher rating. the dialogue, in places, is stilted and overly-formal - although i did feel like this added to Paul and Cecilia's awkward, strained dynamic, it came across as heavy-handed at times. Rouda also often uses long discussions as exposition for the characters' backgrounds. Paul's internal monologue tends towards hyperbole, and comes across as slightly unsubtle. He constantly asserts how he is in control / everything is perfectly planned / Cecilia is no longer the perfect wife he thought her to be, and the repetition / being in his head can get tiring after a while. He is also unreliable - his mood swings abruptly, and he can go from hating Cecilia to loving her in the space of three sentences, giving the reader whiplash. Cecilia's chapters provide a welcome break from his, and I found her to be a more consistent, nuanced character.

the time-jumps are a favourite narrative device of mine in this genre, and Rouda makes very effective use of them in TSMS. however, there was one point, in chapter 28, where things got confusing. in the chapter, Cecilia's friend Christopher tells her - "And I told him I would see you here, in Paris." despite the fact that they are at the gym, about to attend a Pilates class, at the time.

overall, i did enjoy The Second Mrs. Strom. despite my complaints, i flew through it in less than 24 hours & i am looking forward to continue to read the author's work. Rouda always manages to write easy, engaging thrillers that snap me out of a reading slump.

thank you to the publishers & Netgalley for sharing a copy of the ARC with me, in exchange for my honest review! all quotes included are from the ARC, and are subject to change in the final copy on the day of publication.

Great book by this looking forward to more. It starts slow but gets interesting as you keep reading. Nice twist at the end.

In this sequel to Best Day Ever, Rouda reunites us with the narcissistic Paul Strom, who is in the process of getting a well deserved comeuppance.

His wife is not who he thinks she is, and their apparent married bliss is far from picture perfect. So what's really going on here?

Rouda delivers another entertaining story (though it can seem a tad repetitive in parts), making you wonder who the psychopath really is.This gets 3.5 stars, and will be enjoyed by her many fans!

A very readable thriller from the author of 'best day ever'. The story is pacy and the plot unfolds perfectly. Rouda brings the detestable Paul to life in such a sparkling and entertaining way and every other character get a similar deft treatment making a very readable and entertaining story. The writing is dry and humourous with lashings of dark humour. Highly recommend.

OMG! How could I forget about the despicable, narcissistic, sorry excuse for a man, Paul Strom?!?! It's been a few years since I've read Best Day Ever. I've probably read about 1000 books since then, but this book is the sequel, so I would definitely recommend reading that one first in order to experience the full effect of his character. Rouda's books are like dark, guilty pleasures that I sinfully devour every time I get my hands on them. This was yet another fun, quick read to add to her collection. She does psycho perfectly! A little repetitive but I absolutely loved it! A must read in my opinion!

Thank you to the author, Bookouture, and NetGalley for granting me digital access in exchange for my honest review!

Kaira brings back the devilish, narcissistic Paul Strom in a sequel to "Best Day Ever"! I found "Best Night Ever" hilarious and loved every moment, especially the dinner at the Eiffel Tower. I stayed up all night to finish the book in one sitting, and can't wait for more of Cecilia Strom's story.

Kaira Rouda excels at dark humor and snark, and this book was no exception. Set in Palm Beach, the characters were devilishly entertaining, making the read a blast. The nods to real locations like Worth Avenue and The Blind Monk added to the fun, and the Paris adventure was a highlight.

This book is highly entertaining and guaranteed to make you laugh. Paul is a riot, while Cecilia is a killer addition to the story. For maximum enjoyment, I recommend reading "Best Day Ever" first to dive into Paul's character and backstory.

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher. Comes out Aug 16!

A story of a man who will stop at nothing to get what he wants.
Great writing with well written characters.
Interesting storyline with a great twist in the story relating to his wife.
I flew through this book in a couple of sittings.
My thanks to netgalley and the publisher for my copy.