First Wife’s Shadow by Adele Parks
Harlequin Trade Publishing/MIRA (March 18, 2025)
Domestic Psychological Suspense Crime Thriller
Emma, a wealthy, independent, sensible CEO, has long put her chaotic childhood at the hands of alcoholic parents behind her. When she meets Matthew, a widower, gentle, interested and full of admiration for her success, they quickly fall into a serious relationship.
Her best friends, Heidi and Gina, are initially delighted, but when Emma gets engaged after just three months, they panic. Matthew says the death of his first wife means he believes in seizing the day. And Emma says she’s in love and that’s all that matters.
And yet, Emma can’t shake the feeling that she is second best. Matthew would not be with her if his first wife was still alive. And so, she becomes obsessed, haunted by the memory of a woman she never met. Strange things start to happen. Emma feels watched. Objects are broken or disappear. And then an incident reveals Emma’s very life is in danger.
Matthew thinks she’s drinking too much, like her father did.
Heidi and Gina think Matthew is gaslighting her.
Emma thinks she’s being haunted…or is she being hunted?
REVIEW
This domestic psychological thriller is so twisted! It’s hard to talk about without spoilers. It was interesting to follow how Emma, a wealthy and independent CEO meet Matthew, a widower, and they quickly fall into a serious relationship. The things done to Emma, both the emotional mind tricks and the physical things, were done so that one would think you’re losing it or you’re being haunted. There were a lot of twists I did not see coming. The first half of book was a good read, but once you hit the halfway mark, twists really start coming. The twists were random, mind trickery, and fascinating. I absolutely loved the ending – I would not have seen this relationship happening at all. Great read!
“I had rules and routines for a reason. When they are abandoned, things start to fall apart.”
Reviewed by Comfy Chair Books (January 29, 2025)
ARC provided by publisher via Netgalley
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Adele Parks MBE is the author of twenty-three bestselling novels including the recent Sunday Times hit Just Between Us and the audible Number One sensation One Last Secret. Over 5 million English editions of her work have been sold and she is translated into 31 different languages.
Her number one bestsellers Lies Lies Lies and Just My Luck were both shortlisted for the British Book Awards and have been optioned for development for film & TV.
She is an ambassador of the National Literacy Trust and the Reading Agency: two charities that promote literacy in the UK.
Adele was born in North Yorkshire and has lived in Botswana, Italy and London and is now settled in Guildford, Surrey.
In 2022 she was awarded an MBE by King Charles III for services to literature.
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