The Other Woman by Laura Wilson

The Other Woman by Laura Wilson
Buy The Other Woman by Laura Wilson at Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com
Category: Thrillers
Reviewer: Zoe Morris
Summary: A comedy of errors make this domestic thriller a little different
Buy? Yes	Borrow? Yes
Pages: 384	Date: October 2017
Publisher: Quercus
External links: Author's website
ISBN: 978-1786485212
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Based on the blurb on the back, Sophie might not be the most likable heroine. She's a quote-unquote 'perfect woman', with the house, the husband, the children and the dog. Careers may be a little unnecessary in this scenario (the husband is successful, but her own achievements seem more linked to having bagged herself a catch), though there's a sort of part time hobby running her own shop, because, well, yes. So Sophie is the sort of woman, one imagines, who might rub other people up the wrong way, especially those who find their own lives lacking.

As we meet her, however, she seems ok, likeable enough, not too smug. She goes to great lengths, for example, to draft round robin Christmas letters that update the world on the family's accomplishments for the year, but with a dash of humour to accompany these, poking fun at herself and the situations. It's a nice tradition that pre-dates the social media world where you can crow about your triumphs in real time, and there's something reflective about putting pen to paper and recollecting the past year.

Those letters, though, will be Sophie's downfall. One of the recipients, it seems, is not a fan of Sophie and her life, and wants to let her know this in no uncertain terms. As allegations about her family are made, Sophie has to decide how to handle them. One option is to confront her husband, but rather than rock the marital boat, Sophie decides to try a different tack, and track down the other woman in the process. It's an unhelpful choice, which ultimately will lead to some dangerous consequences for Sophie and those around her.

In the world of Psychological Thrillers, we have those where the crime agencies are leading the investigation, and those where ordinary people are trying to have a go at it. This is the latter, and as keeping-up-appearances Sophie merges with fish-out-of-water sleuth Sophie, we start to learn exactly what lengths she will go to to protect what is hers. It was surprisingly funny in places – something not often said about books marketed as thrillers – and this comes almost entirely from Sophie and her lifestyle. It's an unusual way to style a book, but I rather liked it. It was certainly easy to read with lots of detail to take in, and numerous twists I didn't feel coming. It's not really destination fiction (I'm in no rush to move to Norfolk after reading this!) but for a small pocket of time it did transport me into that world, and the daft situations Sophie finds herself in certainly kept me entertained as well as intrigued.

I'd like to thank the publishers for sending us a copy to review. If this is your genre, you may also like The Breakdown by B A Paris.

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You can read more book reviews or buy The Other Woman by Laura Wilson at Amazon.co.uk Amazon currently charges £2.99 for standard delivery for orders under £20, over which delivery is free.
You can read more book reviews or buy The Other Woman by Laura Wilson at Amazon.com.

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