The Perfect Marriage: a completely gripping psychological suspense

Wow! Just finished my first Jeneva Rose book The (Perfect) Marriage. Great read, hooked me in fast. It was a fast paced read with several short chapters making it easy to finish. I will be recommending to friends.

—— Edit: In addition to all I say below, & despite it… After writing my review I had the sudden realization that The Perfect Marriage would make …..** A FABULOUS BOOK CLUB TITLE! **There’s A LOT which can be discussed, picked apart, have differing opinions regarding, etc., etc.My sort of slight “negatives,” gone over in detail below, would be perfect talking/debate points.—— Ok! Now on to my review! :) …..I think The Perfect Marriage was a fairly enjoyable read, start to finish - the beginning & very end being the best parts.The middle, well- there were many times I asked myself if I really wanted to keep reading? If this story was truly entertaining me enough?I realized after completing the book that you can have too many ongoing (& continually cropping up, new) questions & mysteries in a story - without ANY resolution going on whatsoever.It gets a bit mentally/emotionally tiring … chapter after a chapter. And tiring leads to a feeling that’s akin to boredom. No matter how invested you are in the storyline or characters. Or how exciting the mystery started out being, or where it looks like it all may go in the end.Like, perhaps, throw in a couple resolutions here & there. A few solutions to mini-mysteries would be a relief & refresher (even if they wind up being red herrings in the end lol!).Having to hang in there throughout an entire twisty-turny type murder mystery - from beginning all the way until the end, with zero relief in between, begins to feel like a too long clothesline. How it begins to droop from the weight of all the clothes (or “story details/loose ends”) toward the center. In a heavy, distinct shape & color blurring, pace slowing, manner.And just like looking at that over-burdened clothesline, when a story is feeling like that, your motivation to read dips & comes into question.No matter how great the overall plot is.I’m not often, & I mean hardly EVER, taken out of the story to then have to consciously, forcibly suspend disbelief.This happened more than a few times when reading this book.(And my primary genre(s) include a lot of SciFi, apocalyptic topics, etc. And I hang in there just fine. Happily 100% immersed, disbelief easily & naturally suspended for the duration….)But here, within The Perfect Marriage, I encountered THE MOST unrealistic situations & occurrences. Which yanked me firmly from the immersion I had been enjoying, to question the author’s decision to include such a turn of events.There are also a couple of “implied situations” in the story, which are fairly significant events. I guess we are supposed to be able to read between the lines, or ~in some other manner~ know what the heck she meant in those occurrences. (Jeneva Rose truly offers no hints for us, her readers.)In truth, nothing would have been lost- & the story would have been improved actually, from a bit more detail in these situations.I’ve since completed the book & I now *think* I understand what happened. ….Maybe? But I’ll never truly know if what I’m supposing matches up with what the author meant for those scenes.So, overall, it’s an ok book.This is my 1st experience with Jeneva Rose’s work. I MIGHT read something by her again, but with so many greats out there, unfortunately Rose’s stories won’t be the ones I immediately gravitate toward in the future when I swing over to this genre for a read. (Give Freida McFadden or Susi Holliday a try! Amazing!!)Anyway…. The Perfect Marriage might be a perfect book for diehard fans of this author, Jeneva Rose.For the rest of us … It may be worth a read.But if you find that part way through you’re really not feeling it — & are asking yourself if the end is worth hanging in there?Well. This is my experience….I’m glad I did finish the book, despite my middle of the story self-reflection, as I know I would wonder what happened, how it all turned out eventually. And it would drive me a little crazy! LolBut with that said, the conclusion feels sort of rushed. Isn’t really satisfying (to me). And is a bit of a stretch; or contrived.Perhaps lengthening the ending just a bit would have helped? I don’t know.It just doesn’t ~connect~ well to the whole of the rest of the story in general. Like, there were many private moments between the characters throughout the entirety of the story.Yet between then … & the end … the relationships are 1000% different, & the author is asking us to believe it. Sure. Maybe. If we the readers hadn’t been fly’s on the walls / privy to so many PRIVATE moments throughout.Anyway - more I could say on that, but I don’t believe in spoilers! No one likes a spoiler! LolSo, it’s up to you, my fellow reading lover!To give this one a whirl … or a pass!? …..

Adam and Sarah Morgan had a perfect marriage and life. Adam, a struggling writer, and Sarah, the most prominent defense attorney in the Washington D.C. area, have a beautiful home in the city, are wealthy, and can escape life to their picturesque lake home. That is until Kelly, Adam’s mistress, is discovered dead in their lake house bedroom. Kelly has been stabbed to death and Adam is the prime suspect. Now Sarah finds herself having to defend her husband from being accused of murder, but can she win this case, too?Honestly, I devoured this book in 24 hours. The Perfect Marriage was well-written. I really liked the chapters being written from different character perspectives, and the story kept me on the edge of my seat. The novel was a fast pace, and it did not lose my attention when reading the book. The ending took me by surprise with how she built the story. I did not expect her to end it the way she did, but I appreciated how the novel ended. I typically am great at discovering who the murderer is, but there were twists and turns that threw me off a bit.I loved Sarah as a main character. She represented a powerhouse of a woman, and the author really made you feel for her situation. My feelings toward Adam kept changing through the book. The author did a wonderful job of helping me understand Adam’s frustrations, but then I would find myself so annoyed with him for his actions. Jeneva Rose wrote well-developed secondary characters that really helped the reader feel connected to the main characters’ past. The dialogue was just right, and the author expressed the characters’ feelings through well-written plot building. Overall, I would highly recommend this psychological thriller!

Great book! Love this author! 10/10 would recommend. I liked how it changed from each characters perspective. It really sucks you in.

The story was interesting. Lots of bread crumbs to follow in different directions, and I *almost* really enjoyed it. 3 stars for me personally but still HIGHLY recommend reading!*possible spoilers but trying to be vague*I think writing an unreliable narrator is tricky. If you are reading as if it’s their stream of consciousness, it has to be *just* right so that you don’t suspect during the book and yet at the end, you can look back and say “oh, I see it now, that makes sense, wow.”I don’t think this book managed that feeling for me personally. An unreliable narrator, sure. But the ending just didn’t fit well with the entire stream of consciousness prior to that. It was too dissonant for my taste.Still, a gripping story for the most part and I was definitely considering several different directions.

Putting it lightly this was an interesting read. However, the reason I only gave it 4 stars is because the main character is never suspected. She is described as being a workaholic from the first introduction and someone that really cares about her husband but just can’t seem to make time for him. The issue though is that she’s never suspected because of her being thought of as a dedicated wife who would stick beside her husband. Ding ding ding! She would’ve been the second suspect next to Adam because being his lawyer is definitely a ploy to keep the attention off of her. It is fiction though so it not exactly emulating real life is acceptable and thus four stars are called for.

This book is very addicting , lots of twists and turns , well written such a good book

The book has a suspenseful storytelling and well crafted characters. When I thought I had this book figured out, there was an unexpected twist I never thought of. If you enjoy thrilling, character driven stories with a touch of romance, I would 100% recommend this book.

Muy sencilla y rápido de leer, te mantiene muy entretenida, 10/10!!!

Plot didnt work when you factor in mindworkings of the characters

The story hooks you till the end and no one could guess the ending. However, it does leave a bad taste in your mouth...as the innocent didn't get what he deserved (spoiler).It's easy to read without beating around the bush. If you enjoy Frieda stories (like me), this is a must read.

Unpredictable from the first page. The author did an amazing job with the characters and the plot, it kept my attention completely and I simply couldn’t stop reading it. When you think you are getting into the right direction of the story, everything changes and you are led to an incredible end.