Review: The Second Wife

The Second Wife by Sheryl Browne
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is the first book of Sheryl Browne that I have read, and find her writing to be very good. If you like suspense novels, this is a great book to read – it has an interesting story, is fast paced and keeps the suspense well into the story.

Rebecca and Nicole are good friends and constantly keep in touch. Nicole has been in an abusive first marriage, and is happy to find Richard who in contrast comes across as extremely caring and very much in love with her. While Richard is considerate with her at all times, her relation with her step daughter Olivia is strained.

Rebecca is shocked when she hears that Nicole has committed suicide. As she attends the funeral and meets with Richard, she hears that Nicole had slipped into a major depression. Nicole had been communicating with Rebecca over text and email, and while she clearly had been unhappy about many things, Rebecca cannot understand how she came to take her own life. Rebecca is keen to understand more of why Nicole got to this point, and over time develops a close relation with Richard. Richard is extremely sensitive and considerate, and both he and Olivia welcome Rebecca into their lives.

While I did have a faint inkling of some aspects of the plot, the suspense breaks at just about the right time in the later part of the book. The story is told in two timelines from the perspectives of the four principal characters – Rebecca, Nicole, Richard & Olivia. It shuffles between the past and present, progressing to convergence very well near the end. The story could have been crisper though, and the last sections could have been better.

I certainly recommended reading this book if you like suspense – a very well written story!

My rating: 4.25 / 5.

Thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for providing a free ebook for an honest review.


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