The Last Wife: A Novel

by Karen Hamilton

Overview

From the internationally bestselling author of The Perfect Girlfriend.

Two women. A dying wish. And a web of lies that will bring their world crashing down.

Two women. A dying wish. And a web of lies that will bring their world crashing down.

Nina and Marie were best friends—until Nina was diagnosed with a terminal illness. Before she died, Nina asked Marie to fulfill her final wishes.

But her mistake was in thinking Marie was someone she could trust.

What Nina didn’t know was that Marie always wanted her beautiful life, and that Marie has an agenda of her own. She’ll do anything to get what she wants.

Marie thinks she can keep her promise to her friend’s family on her own terms. But what she doesn’t know is that Nina was hiding explosive secrets of her own…

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781488034978
Publisher:	Graydon House Books
Publication date:	07/07/2020
Sold by:	HARLEQUIN
Format:	NOOK Book
Pages:	384
Sales rank:	146,918
File size:	733 KB

About the Author

Karen Hamilton spent her childhood in Angola, Zimbabwe, Belgium and Italy and worked as a flight attendant for many years. Karen is a recent graduate of the Faber Academy and, having now put down roots in Hampshire to raise her young family with her husband, she satisfies her wanderlust by exploring the world through her writing. The Perfect Girlfriend is her first novel.

Editorial Reviews

02/01/2020

Following the LJ-starred Our House, which was Candlish's U.S. debut, The Other Couple features middle-aged Clare and Jamie and the young couple they befriend, the upwardly aspiring Melia and Kit, until one day Kit vanishes after being seen arguing with Jamie on their regular ferryboat commute. Giller Prize winner Coady's Watching You Without Me opens with Karen back home in Novia Scotia after her mother's unexpected death, tending to her sister full-time and depending on her mother's old caregiver, Trevor, of whom she becomes increasingly suspicious. In JP Delaney's Playing Nice, the Riley and Lambert families are devastated to learn that their two-year-olds were switched at birth—and it gets worse. A prize finalist in Australia, Downes brings us disappointed thespian Emily Proudman, who thinks she's found The Safe Place she needs when she agrees to become housekeeper/nanny at the French estate of the Dennys—but her employers' dark secrets will out. In debuter Glass's Someone's Listening, scandal-ridden psychologist and radio star Faith Finley attends the launch of her new book with her husband, but when her car crashes afterward, the police claim he was not with her (70,000-copy first printing). In Hamilton's The Last Wife, Marie promises to watch over terminally ill friend Nina's family, but after Nina's death she starts uncovering uncomfortable intimations about what happened on a long-ago vacation they took in Ibiza that left Marie's boyfriend dead (200,000-copy paperback and 10,000-copy hardcover first printing). Finally, in Harriet Tyce's The Lies You Told, anxious mom Sadie Roper, newly single and newly reemployed as a barrister, is thrilled to win the attention of Liza, queen-bee mother at her children's school—but at what cost? From the author of Blood Orange; with a 40,000-copy first printing.

Library Journal

05/11/2020

Marie Langham, the unreliable narrator of this gripping thriller from Hamilton (The Perfect Girlfriend) set somewhere in England, wants to honor the last request of her best—and possibly only—friend, Nina Thompson, who has recently died of melanoma: to protect Nina’s family. Marie immediately offers to help Nina’s husband with the children. From there it’s a short hop to moving into the Thompson family home and making herself indispensable. After years of regarding Nina’s life with envy, Maria at last can play the role she has always dreamed of, though not everyone is pleased with this new reality. “The speed at which you gleefully took over has left a few of us a bit shell-shocked,” a good friend of Nina remarks. As unwelcome people from Marie’s past pop up on her doorstep, and as she realizes that her view of Nina was colored by her own longing, she comes to a terrifying decision that leads to murder. Everybody has a nasty side, but that’s just one of the pleasures of this cunning whodunit. A devious plot is another. Hamilton knows how to keep the pages turning. Agent: Hillary Jacobson, ICM. (July)

Publishers Weekly

[A] gripping thriller… Everybody has a nasty side, but that’s just one of the pleasures of this cunning whodunit. A devious plot is another. Hamilton knows how to keep the pages turning.” —Publishers Weekly

"If there ever was a story about being careful what you wish for, this is it. A phenomenal read!” — Hannah Mary McKinnon, international bestselling author of Sister Dear


"I could not tear myself away as Marie claimed the life of her dead friend Nina with devastating consequences. This is a five-star, one-sitting read." Fiona Cummins, bestselling author of Rattle


"The Last Wife is a deliciously dark and gripping psychological thriller with a fascinating central character that will keep you hooked until the last page." Olivia Kiernan, author of Too Close to Breathe


"What a twisty ride! You are going to love this book." Lesley Kara, bestselling author of The Rumour

"The Last Wife is a clever, addictive psychological thriller with a twisting, page-turning plot and a compelling and complicated central character...Fans of The Perfect Girlfriend will love this second book by Karen Hamilton’ Jenny Quintana, author of The Missing Girl


"Fast-moving and fun, with an obsessive, machiavellian, yet enjoyably self-aware narrator."—The Observer



"Fans of The Perfect Girlfriend will love Hamilton's latest, and The Last Wife is an utterly compelling, addictive read...it is the kind of book you finish in one sitting, with enough twists to keep you guessing until the final page."—Press Association

A “twisted page-turner that should appeal to fans of You”.—Entertainment Weekly.com on The Perfect Girlfriend


“Funny, creepy, surprising, scary, and exhilarating.”—Publishers Weekly on The Perfect Girlfriend


"Original, surprising, and addictive all the way to the very last page." -Kimberly Belle, bestselling author, on The Perfect Girlfriend

"A terrifying and addictive tale of misguided love and laser-focused revenge. I loved it!" -Kaira Rouda, USA TODAY bestselling author on The Perfect Girfriend



"A brilliant example of how to master voice, and a protagonist, Juliette, who is terrifying!" - Ali Land on The Perfect Girlfriend

"So addictive it should come with a warning" - Alice Feeney, NYT bestselling author, on The Perfect Girlfriend

"One of the best twisted narrators I've ever read. Perfect indeed!" - C.J. Tudor on The Perfect Girlfriend

"I genuinely couldn't put it down - Juliette is such a compelling character. Totally gripping and thrillingly different. I loved it" - Laura Marshall on The Perfect Girlfriend

"The perfect holiday read... Just watch out for the cabin crew!" - Holly Cave, author of The Memory Chamber, on The Perfect Girlfriend

"Beautifully written, a compulsive read. Compelling from start to finish" - Amanda Robson, author of Obsession, on The Perfect Girlfriend

"Grabbed me and wouldn't let me go... Taut, funny and outrageous" - Isabel Costello, author of Paris Mon Amour, on The Perfect Girlfriend

"A dramatic and intense psychological read."—Woman and Home

From the Publisher