Book Review: My Lovely Wife by Samatha Downing

 “Sometimes it's just easier to go along with things. It's easier than breaking it all up and starting from scratch.”

― Samantha Downing, My Lovely Wife

Samantha Downing's thriller My Lovely Wife was published in 2019. Her  first book, My Lovely Wife, was a winner of the Prix des Lectrices in France, the CWA in the UK, and the Edgar, ITW, and Macavity awards in the US.  Downing is the author of a novella and three more best-selling books.

Synopsis from Goodreads...

Our love story is simple. I met a gorgeous woman. We fell in love. We had kids. We moved to the suburbs. We told each other our biggest dreams, and our darkest secrets. And then we got bored.

We look like a normal couple. We're your neighbors, the parents of your kid's friend, the acquaintances you keep meaning to get dinner with.

We all have secrets to keeping a marriage alive.

Ours just happens to be getting away with murder.

My reaction to this novel...

When I picked up My Lovely Wife by Samantha Downing, I honestly didn’t know what to expect. At first glance, it looked like another domestic thriller with a “perfect marriage, dark secret” kind of trope. But as soon as I started reading, one thing immediately stood out for me: the story is told from the husband’s point of view.

That, for me, already gave it a fresh edge. We don’t often see thrillers where the male perspective takes the lead in this way, especially when it comes to stories that explore marriage, secrets, and obsession. It instantly reminded me of the show You, so much so that as I was reading, I kept picturing Penn Badgley’s portrayal of Joe Goldberg in my mind. The narrative voice had that same mix of charm, obsession, and self-justification. That alone made it a gripping read for me.

As the story unfolded, I found myself constantly guessing and second-guessing what was going to happen. Sometimes, I even predicted parts of the twist correctly, which gave me that little thrill of being “one step ahead.” But then Downing would flip something in a way that still caught me off guard. That’s what kept me hooked, that dance between familiarity and shock.

That said, I have to admit there were moments where the pacing dragged a bit, especially in the middle part. There were times I just couldn’t wait to get to the next reveal because certain sections felt like they stretched longer than they needed to. The setup was great, the ending was strong, but the middle tested my patience here and there.

What really unsettled me and at the same time fascinated me was the dynamic between the husband and wife. From the husband’s perspective, you could really feel how much he admired his wife. He painted her as smart, elegant, beautiful, and almost untouchable. It’s the kind of admiration that felt so deep, so genuine, that it became shocking to slowly realize what she truly was capable of. At first, I didn’t see her as “crazy” either. I thought she was the strong, grounding force of the story until the mask slipped, and suddenly it hit me how dangerous she actually was. That creeping realization was one of the most effective aspects of the book.

Still, a part of me really wished we had Millicent’s point of view. Reading only through the husband’s lens gave us a limited, one-sided understanding of her. Yes, the mystery of her character is part of what makes the story shocking, but I can’t help but feel that hearing her inner voice would have added even more depth. Was she always manipulative? Was jealousy really the root of her betrayal? Or was there something darker buried in her past? Her POV could have opened a whole new layer to the novel.

Overall, I’d say My Lovely Wife is a strong debut thriller. It’s fresh because of the male POV, unsettling because of the twisted marriage dynamic, and shocking in how it makes you question how much you really know the person you sleep beside every night. While it wasn’t flawless, the pacing lagged a bit, and I longed for Millicent’s inner voice. It still delivered a chilling, suspenseful ride that stuck with me after I turned the last page. Not perfect, but definitely memorable, gripping, and worth the read if you’re into dark domestic thrillers with a You-like vibe.

My Overall Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐(4/5)