The Perfect Marriage: A Completely Gripping Psychological Suspense

First of all, I thought this was a brilliantly written novel which has helped elevate Jeneva Rose to my list of favorite authors. The ending struck me as somewhat brutal, without giving away any spoilers. Definitely worth the read. The extent of deceit and treachery in these pages pushes human empathy (or lack thereof) to the limit. It's one of those literary works that strikes a chord in the soul and leaves you shaking your head and thinking long after the book ends. Don't fret over characterizations and other minor critical details. The devil's in the details. I was not disappointed.⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

This is my first Jeneva Rose novel and it’s fabulous! The story is told by two points of view- husband Adam Morgan and wife Sarah Morgan. I both read and listened to it while on vacation because I couldn’t put it down! The story grabs you from the beginning and doesn’t let you go. It has numerous characters and subplots that all tie together, after a few twists and turns. I can usually figure out who the murderer is but this one surprised me. It.Was.Awesome! 5 stars and highly recommend! I’m going to read the other novels by Ms Rose and look forward to seeing if they are as great as this one is.

Wow, “The Perfect Marriage” by Jeneva Rose is an absolute page-turner! From the very first chapter, I was hooked by the gripping plot and the masterful storytelling. This book has everything I love in a thriller: complex characters, unexpected twists, and a suspenseful narrative that kept me guessing until the very end.

Sarah Morgan, a brilliant and successful defense attorney, finds herself in the unimaginable position of defending her husband, Adam, who is accused of murdering his mistress. The plot unfolds with a series of shocking revelations, making it nearly impossible to put the book down. Rose expertly weaves together multiple perspectives and timelines, which adds depth to the story and keeps the tension high throughout.

One of the standout elements of this book is its character development. Sarah is a strong, intelligent, and relatable protagonist, and her emotional journey is both compelling and believable. Adam, on the other hand, is complex and enigmatic, and the dynamic between the two is fraught with tension and intrigue.

The twists in this novel are incredibly well done. Just when I thought I had everything figured out, Rose threw in another curveball that left me reeling. The ending, in particular, was both satisfying and utterly surprising—exactly what I want from a thriller.

Overall, “The Perfect Marriage” is a must-read for fans of psychological thrillers and legal dramas. Jeneva Rose has crafted a story that is not only entertaining but also thought-provoking, with themes of trust, betrayal, and justice. I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a thrilling and engaging read.

This was my first book by Jeneva Rose. I happened upon her on social media and found her dry sarcastic wit amusing so I sought out her books. I read Perfect Marriage in a matter of days. I was hooked and couldn'tput it down. The back and forth chapters between the husband and wife's perspectives was really interesting. I thought I knew how it would end but I was surprised and it came out of left field. I thought it was very well written and left me wanting more of her works. FYI there are some very detailed "spicy" encounters. It's not a story written for the purpose of spicy content, & the situations do tie into the plot to some extent, so I wasn't offended by it being included. (In other words, her writing is interesting enough she doesn't need to write a plot around the spice like some of the very popular books these days.) It is important to know in case you don't want to read those types of situations, and for that reason I would NOT pass this to my teens to read. I will however recommend this book to mature adult friends to read(with that warning) because I really enjoyed the story!

Overall great book truly, the writing and the flow of everything, but I have given it four stars because I am not a fan of the ending. I feel as if it's a little too twisted for me to the sense there is no accountability on the wife's part. The suspects are pretty obvious in the beginning but how each one is presented and dissected through is magnificent

Truly great psychological twist.

—— 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! Lol But 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! Lol So, it’s up to you, my fellow reading lover! To give this one a whirl … or a pass!? …..

I will start by saying I do not feel bad for Adam. So many things he did wrong. In the grand scheme of things, to be as indecisive as he was about his relationships with both his wife and his mistress was a red flag from the jump. He didn't know what he wanted. He resented his wife's success because his dreams didn't pan out how he imagined them in college; his wife's however did and her work and work ethic got them to where they were today financially. But she wasn't there when he needed her and quite often canceled on him when they would try to make time for them as a couple. As a woman (and a lawyer at that) that would give me concern about my relationship if I'm not spending the necessary time with him but he's always spending time at the second home "to write". No other books at the time were in the works. Of course, he's cheating. He was unsure of himself and needed the reassurance from somewhere and he found that in his mistress. In my opinion, he was seeking an emotional connection just with an additional affair.

For Sarah to have to defend her cheating husband over a murder case of his mistress in their home already seems like a loss cause for him. Having his faint in the hands of the person he betrayed is a hard pill to swallow but he believes if anyone could prove his innocence it would be Sarah.

I predicted about 50% and the other 50% took me by surprise. I can say I didn't think it would end the way it did.

Pros It took me three days to read but I could of read it in one day. In books like this, I love to talk out my thoughts analyze what I think is going on, and take in info that I've just read. It did keep my mind occupied the more information began to be unveiled but never any “for sure” leads made it hard to put down. I just kept wanting to know more.

Cons: Very sloppy police work on multiple accounts. Sarah as a lawyer was handing in clues and evidence the police somehow didn't find or overlooked. It got me thinking about how this easily happens in real cases when it comes the investigative work. She was working hard on this case while it was clear the police wanted it to be an open-and-shut case because it was the easy choice to accuse her husband.

I've never experienced nor do I like a narrator withholding info from the reader. It doesn't bode well with readers when the narrator is the person expressing how much she feels people around her, including her husband is keeping things her in this case but fails to add certain details to our knowledge as a reader. There were a lot of loose ends not tied up even at the end for me. I don't understand the ending and how that came to be but I accept it.

Overall, I liked this book. Good read.

Soooo, it was good but not GREAT! Like, it had all the components to be great but it just didn’t hit that mark. Which sucks because the ending was PERFECT! I just wish the written words were more descriptive while showing her profession. Like, this put me in the mind of Mea Culpa. She was a lawyer in the movie but there was no court scene showing us why this rich man was like no I need HER as my defense attorney. Same here. I was looking for there to be more effort put into it. When you read it you’ll see. I definitely still think it’s a good read again just not great.