My Husband’s Wife by Jane Corry
First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes murder…
My Husband’s Wife by Jane Corry is outside of this book barista’s usual genres, but for some reason grabbed my attention. Call it a palette cleanser after tons of historical fiction. Call it the recommendation of a few of my library colleagues. The premise: the slippery slope of the white lie. The result: a clever psychological thriller.
“Two lies. Small white ones. Designed to make the other feel better. But that’s how some lies start. Small. Well-meaning. Until they get too big to handle.”
The plot has two related stories: There is young Carla and her mother. Carla is somewhat of an outcast at school, bullied for being Italian, poor, and from a single parent home. Her mother works at a department store perfume counter, and is having an affair with a married man. When he visits on Sundays, Carla begins staying with the newly married young couple in the apartment upstairs. That couple is Ed and Lily. Ed is a struggling, yet to be discovered artist who loves to sketch and paint Carla. His wife Lily is an attorney. She is defending Joe Thomas, accused of murdering his girlfriend. This is her first big name case, and a win will secure her place in the firm, help bring in more business, and help with a future class action suit.
12 years later, Carla is grown up and reconnects with Ed and Lily. 12 years of holding onto secrets is a long time, and it is here that the dark twists and turns began to take hold of this reader. Told from alternating points of view – Carla’s and Lily’s- My Husband’s Wife is a good debut novel. It isn’t grisly or graphic, and packs a few surprises. The tension builds steadily. Put a copy on reserve at the library, even if this isn’t the kind of book you typically read. And if it is, get ready to discover a great new author!
Sounds like a good read. I think I will put a reserve on “My Husbands Wife”.
Thanks for the review.