I found this to be a real page turner. Although the story is told from multiple points of view it doesn’t get confusing. Having personally been on several cruises the descriptions of shipboard life are very accurate. What a twist at the end, I hadn’t been expecting that!!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I try not to read other reviews before I leave my own however in this case I was curious if I was the only one who felt a certain way about this book. I will say that I agree with the majority of the reviews so far posted in that the book was very long and drawn out. The characters were doll and none of them were ones that I felt any type of connection with, more frustration than anything. If the book had been in about half as long I probably could have persevered a little better.

Since childhood Natasha has dreamt of being a nurse, but the reality is harsh, working long hours in an inconceivably demanding hospital, she has become disheartened and exhausted beyond belief. When she meets Daniel, she thinks all of her dreams have come true as he is handsome, rich and utterly charming. After a whirlwind romance and engagement, the couple are swiftly married. Tasha is pleased to be giving up work, it gives her time to recalibrate from her stressful career. She easily falls into the role of housewife, supporting her husband when called upon.

As a belated honeymoon, Daniel suggests an all-expenses paid cruise, as well as generously offering to pay for Tasha’s three best friends and their husbands. Tasha is perplexed to discover that her friends seem reluctant to accept the offer of a holiday, but they finally concede. As the ship sets sail, Tasha begins to realise that Daniel isn’t quite who he portrays to be, and that her friends and their husbands are reluctantly complicit in this duplicity.

What an amazingly gripping book. I loved this one from the very first page and it kept me hooked throughout. I was totally immersed in the plot and the descriptions of the ship were so detailed it was easy to see in my mind’s eye. The plot is compulsive with limitless tension and mind-blowing twists that left me reeling long after I had finished the book. Although I already hold Val in high regard for writing some brilliant books, for me this could possibly be her best yet.

Natasha is married Daniel who is incredibly rich. He decides they should go on an all expense paid trip and bring their couple friends. Except all of the women have a reason to want to kill Daniel, and Natasha and Daniel are both pretty shady. This was a really good thriller, and it definitely made me jump a few times!

A murder mystery set on a cruise ship featuring a group.of university friends and their husbands. I persevered with the story but the characters were boring including the charismatic baddie Daniel and the glamorous cruise liner setting was written in a lacklustre manner. .

When Natasha meets Daniel, she knows her life is made. Rich, handsome and charming, Daniel will make the perfect husband. Even if she won’t make the perfect wife…

She is thrilled when Daniel suggests an all-expenses paid cruise for Natasha, her friends, Barbara, Tracy Ann and Michelle, and their husbands. What better way to show everyone that Natasha has finally made it?

But as the ship sets sail, she learns that far from being the perfect husband, Daniel has terrible secrets that are about to be revealed. And each of the wives has their own reasons for wanting him dead.

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The wives didn’t hit the spot for me, there were so many characters and I just didn’t connect with them.
I also didn’t feel any chemistry between the characters and couples.

It was a quick read, only 299 pages. But unfortunately not for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and BoldBooks for providing me this ARC.

I was really disappointed with this one. It took about 60% of the book before anything really ‘thrilling’ happened, and from there it still wasn’t anything special. The characters were super boring, there was nothing memorable about them. The multiple POV’s were hard to remember who was who, and then some chapters were just labeled ‘Wives’ and it would jump between each person's thoughts. It was also super annoying to read the same scene from 4 POV’s… I think the ‘best’ part was one of the reveals at the end of why everyone hated Daniel, and how he used them all for his own personal goals.

Deliciously clever. It had all the elements I love in a good read. The setting on the cruise was absolutely stunning, it created the perfect dramatic backdrop for a good whodunnit.

I don't want to spoil it but its so clever, I thought I had it figured out but I was way off.

This was a good read full of bad people! Really not a nice friendship group. The book is quite slow paced but has short chapters so this kept me engaged.

This is a fab book I really enjoy Valerie's books. I was hooked from the beginning to the end

Thank you for the opportunity to review

Natasha is a Practice Nurse at the local hospital, and she used to love her job but now she seems to be rushed off her feet. She meets the dashing and charismatic Daniel, who also happens to be wealthy too. She has something positive in her life to look forward too. She is now 36 and the only single person in her group of friends, which consists of Barbara, Tracy-Ann and Michele and herself. Her relationship with Daniel is supposed to be a fling. But she gets a surprise when he asks her to marry her, and she agrees.
After the wedding Daniel asks Natasha to go on a cruise and tells her to bring her friends with their other halves too. She is delighted but when she tells her friends the news, the reaction is not what she expected. But they agree to support their friend. But whilst on the cruise, Natasha finds out what Daniel is really like. He is not the Charming charismatic person they are all led to believe.
This is a gripping story with lots of twists and is told in several POV’s of each friend having secrets that are linked to Daniel and someone who wants he dead. But why? Like her other books. I enjoyed this tale, and I wasn’t expecting the ending. 4 stars from me.

This is not the first suspense thriller I've read called THE WIVES but it is my favorite so far! I love the ladies drama, the intrigue, the twists and how the mystery unravelled as we went. What a great time, highly recommend!

Thank you to NetGalley for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

I really like how Valerie Keogh writes- short, fast paced chapters that move the storyline, revealing twists along the way.
I didn’t see the final twists of this story coming…..I’m not sure that I liked how the book ended but I totally didn’t see it coming!
This wasn’t my favourite of Keogh’s books but still a recommended read.
4 couples travelling together, on a cruise ship for a week- what could possibly go wrong?
Thank You to NetGalley, Boldwood Books and Valerie Keogh for the opportunity enjoy this ARC.

Loved!!! I was blown away and the twists? Fantastic!! I love a good twist and this book delivered! Thanks Netgalley for always coming through!

Natasha and Daniel recently rushed into a marriage. Natasha was a nurse, but is now content just being a trophy wife of her rich investor husband. Daniel mentions wanting to go on a cruise to Africa and ends up paying for Natasha’s three friends and their husbands. Natasha has felt distant from them lately and is ready to reconnect. From the start, secrets are revealed, one by one. It seems like everyone is hiding something, and everyone has a connection to Daniel, who is appearing more and more untrustworthy and suspicious as the story goes on. His own wife even beings to hate him because of what she’s found out.
You can’t have a “thriller” set on a cruise ship without at least one murder. The drama kept unfolding, but to me, this was a slow-paced story. It was predictable and not very thrilling for me at all. It was told from the perspective of all the wives, and it took a bit of time for me to have all 8 of the main characters differentiated in my head. The last twist just seemed unnecessary. Also, all the characters were extremely unlikeable.
I do want to thank NetGalley and Boldwood Books for an opportunity to read this ARC for free in exchange from my honest review.

Love a good who done it! How well do you know your significant other? How long together until you discover who they really are? When a group of friends dubbed “the wives” welcome their friends new spouse into their lives he immediately worms his way into their relationships and starts to break down their friendship. I really enjoy Valerie Keogh’s books and make a point to read any I come across; The Wives did not disappoint. That ending though 😱

The book started off so strong. But then quickly lost momentum. Short choppy writing. Very repetitive. Plot was boring. I did not even care to know who or why the person killed Daniel. And the multiple POV written in 3rd person also got very confusing.

I enjoyed the story, but I think it could use more elements to evoke a stronger emotional response. While it was a good read and I would recommend it for those who enjoy slow suspense, I wish there was more anger and hunger for revenge in the storytelling. I appreciate Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC. Thank you!

Four wives in their forties, best friends for decades, take turns narrating this thriller, which soon reveals secrets being held by all, and a tide that all too quickly turns deadly when one of them, Natasha, marries the devilishly handsome Daniel (who perhaps not surprisingly, has secrets upon secrets of his own).

When the wives, and their husbands, go on an all-expense-paid cruise to Zanzibar (paid for by none other than the dastardly Daniel), the stage is set for murder.

With a plot that this reader found simplistic, and characters with backstories undeveloped enough to make it difficult to identify each as separate and interesting, nonetheless this book was a quick and lightly enjoyable read — a good fit for a rainy, lazy, afternoon.

Thank you to Netgalley for an ARC of this book. All thoughts presented are my own.

*** Three and a half shiny stars

I enjoyed The Wives by Valerie Keogh. I like all of her books and this one isn't any different! I enjoyed the cruise setting and the whodunit and I really didn't figure out the ending. I recommend it to anyone for a quick thrilling read! Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!