Gripping book that, once it got its hooks into me, was difficult to put down. Highly recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in excahnge for an honest review.

I have read many of author Valerie Keogh's novels and always love her writing style and the stories. The Wives was great, not her best personally, but still a very good read.

The novel is told through many different characters point of views and really held my attention.

We meet characters Natasha, Barbara, Tracy Ann and Michelle, all very good friends and have many get togethers with each other and their spouses.

Natasha has recently married Daniel, he is very charming and rich and not what he appears to be.

Daniel suggests going on a fabulous cruise with them all and off they go. Many secrets are revealed the very first evening of their trip, and things really go from bad to worse and we learn of who Daniel really is and each woman has their own secret that we get to hear about.

Really great writing, again, and I loved the setting on the cruise ship.

Thanks to Netgalley, the author and publisher for allowing me an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book had me gripped from the first paragraph. A group of university friends, Natasha, Barbara, Michelle and Tracy -Ann, a tight knit group who's husbands all get along well. The only singleton is Natasha, who, whilst her friends got married and had children, devoted herself to her nursing career. Now facing exhaustion and burn out, she meets charismatic, charming and rich, Daniel,who seems like the answer to her problems. Marrying him allows her to give up nursing and she can look forward to having children and being like her friends. However, her friends are reticent about Daniel at first, though seemingly more accepting following their marriage. Natasha is thrilled when Daniel suggests inviting her friends and their husbands on an all expenses paid cruise. She's surprised at their initial lack of enthusiasm but eventually they all agree. However, being in close proximity, cracks begin to show in the friendships and each one seems to be harbouring secrets. What follows is a twisting, many headed monster of a plot with red herrings a plenty leading us in several directions before the brilliant denouement which I didn't foresee. Fast paced, intelligent, brilliant storytelling.

Thanks to NetGalley, Valerie Keogh, and Boldwood Books for allowing me to read an advanced copy of The Wives in the return of an honest review. I received an advanced reader copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This is a book where I ended up not caring at all about who actually committed the crime. The chapters alternate through the perspectives of four women, but they all feel very similar personality wise. Each chapter ends in a sort of question as to what will happen or who did what in the past. No one was likeable and there was no big plot twist to keep things interesting. It did make me want to go on another cruise though, so I guess that is something.

Thank you #Netgalley for the advanced copy!

So many twists and turns amongst this small friend group, especially with Natasha brings her new relationship into the mix. She is so happy, jumps in quickly and marries Daniel, much to her friends surprise. When they all go on a cruise together, things begin to unravel. Each wife has their own secret involving Daniel. Though not a fast paced thriller, it was a good read with a who done it vibe,

Explosive thriller.
Best friends,perfect marriages, a holiday to die for....
There's no such thing as a perfect husband.
Daniel Vickery-Orme has terrible secrets that are about to be revealed, along with wife Natasha, a cruise on the Dutchess Mary all expenses payed for by Daniel for all these friends turns into a gruesome nightmare.
Absolutely brilliant thriller that you won't be able to put down.
It's a mind blowing twisted story with clever characters bringing the enjoyment of reading leaving you with your mouth wide open.
Oh I loved this book.

A group of friends go on a cruise paid for by one of the husbands, Daniel. Friends they may be however there is a lot more bubbling under the surface than just the calming waves of the sea. There are several secrets, many of which centre around Daniel whose wife Natasha has not long given up work to be at his beck and call so it seems, and she’s no longer sure of the life she wants or even the friends surrounding her. Who is telling the truth and what is really going on?

Valerie is a master at compelling plotlines and keeping the reader in for “ just one more chapter” that turns into more and more. An array of characters that you are uncertain as to whom to believe or even like makes for interesting reading, not sure what is coming next even though there is a hint or two along the way. A plot I invested in and thoroughly enjoyed. Clever, thrilling and captivating. Bring on the next one!

For more reviews please follow me on X (formerly Twitter) @nickisbookblog
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I really enjoyed this book. Found it a bit slow to begin with, however I then couldn’t put it down! I can see this being a tv drama!

Wow, another winner by Valerie Keogh.

Daniel is everything Natasha has been looking for, her dream man. Confident, good looking full of charisma and not short of funds, what more could she want? Daniel offers to pay for her girlfriends and their partners to go on a cruise with Daniel picking up the bill. Unfortunately, Natasha is about to find out that behind the charming facade, he has qualities that will greatly affect her life, and not in a good way.

The book keeps you constantly on the edge and I was totally immersed in the story and found it very hard to put down. A cast of characters that are immensely unlikeable but suit the story and brings out the best in this fast-moving plot. All of these people have secrets which they are hiding, and soon when these are revealed, this may be enough that someone may not survive the trip.

Thank you to Netgalley, the author and publisher for an advanced copy of the book, all opinions expressed are my own.

This is clever thriller, well written by one of my favourite authors. Valerie has a knack for writing good characters and those that slowly get under your skin! This was a great read and I eagerly await her next one!

I just got this book yesterday and finished it today!!!!! Absolutely positively will be looking to buy books from this author. I LOVED this book! I have been in a book slump so to finally get a book I didn't want to put down was amazing!!! So proud of this author and this book! You could relate to characters, you didn't always know what was happening. Absolutely amazing!

Just wow! Valerie Keogh knocks another one out of the park! I literally felt like I was a part of this story. The characters were fantastic and kept me flipping pages long into the night. This one grabbed me early on and just never let go. Captivating!
Thank you NetGalley, Valerie Keogh and Boldwood Books for the opportunity to read and review this book.

First of all thank you for approving my request!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book! The authors writing style had me hooked throughout this book.

I didn't want it to end, a book I really couldn't put down.

All in all, I did like this book and the twist. I feel like it took a while to get to the inevitable. We knew what was coming but it took ages to get there. One of my peeves with this book was that each chapter was titled after one of the wives names and was in their POV, however, the chapters that were titled with the main characters name, were in the third person! It just wasn’t consistent, I can see why it was maybe done on purpose so we didn’t get an insight into her thought process BUT it annoyed me.

A bit slow to start. What was good was that it you know what's going to happen but not how, who, why. It's written backwards and that was appealing.

One woman finally finds the man of her dreams until she realizes he's not the person she thought he was. Her close-knit core group of friends have secrets too; all revolving around him. I could see this as a soapy made-for-TV drama! The right casting could do it justice!

Love a thriller and love cruise ships so this sounded like a perfect read.

Natasha has married her dream man, or so she thinks. Her friends can't seem to take to him, but they are willing to put that aside for an all expenses paid cruise.

That's when the secrets begin to see the light of day. A bit of a slow burner, but well paced enough to keep me invested and see 'whodunnit'.

Was slightly disappointed about what happened to Natasha at the end. Felt she deserved better than that (no spoilers)

Thanks to netgalley for the opportunity to review this book, this is my honest opinion.

Whilst I didn’t particularly like any of the characters, I was completely invested in the plot from the start. If you’re after a book full of secrets, lies and deadly decisions then this will be perfect. It’s fast paced, explosive and has a great ending. Thank you to NetGalley, Boldwood Books and the author for the chance to review.

I enjoyed the plot to this story and felt like it had a lot of potential. I docked some stars because I didn't relate to any of the characters and didn't find them very likeable. The ending left a lot to be desired too. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC!

Thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for this Advanced Reader’s Copy of The Wives by Valerie Keogh due to be published November 6, 2025.
Natasha and Daniel seem like the perfect couple – rich, both beautiful people, and charming. When Daniel suggests an all-expenses paid cruise for Natasha, her friends, and their husbands, it seems like a perfect idea. She knows Daniel has some secrets that may be revealed, but what she doesn’t know is that her friends also have a secret reason for wanting Daniel dead.
This was definitely a page turner, but not many of the characters were likeable. For “friends”, the women all seemed to be tacky and snarky towards each other. There wasn’t too much information about the husbands to know their characters. It was very entertaining to see what happened on the cruise to each of the families – it had lots of twists that kept me interested until the end!
#NetGalley #ValerieKeogh #BoldwoodBooks #TheWives