The Wife Who Knew Too Much (Michele Campbell)

I started reading Michele Campbell back in 2018 when I picked up It's Always the Husband. I found that one very addictive and so I couldn't wait to read her other books as they came out -- She Was the Quiet One and A Stranger on the Beach. I can't say that her thrillers have much of anything new in them, but they are very difficult to put down. This continues in her latest, The Wife Who Knew Too Much.

Long ago, Tabitha Girard and Connor Ford were an item. She worked at the pool at his country club, and he was just rich and handsome. They go their separate ways until, one day, Connor comes back into Tabitha's life as she is waiting tables. He is now unhappily married to filthy rich Nina but wants to stay in the marriage so he can get some of her money. Tabitha and Connor hook up, of course, and when Nina takes her own life, they seem to be free to be together....until the police begin to suspect Nina's death was the result of foul play.

The Wife Who Knew Too Much begins with Nina's diary account of right before she died. This hooks the reader right away. The ending fizzles out a bit, but as is usually the case with books by Michele Campbell, it is awfully fun to get there.

MY RATING - 3.5

Available July 28, 2020

A Stranger on the Beach (Michele Campbell)

I've reviewed and enjoyed Michele Campbell's It's Always the Husband and She Was the Quiet One in the past. What I like about her books is that they are original mysteries and are just as great for reading on vacation as they are next to the fireplace in the dead of winter. Her latest, A Stranger on the Beach, is no exception.

We begin with Caroline, who just bought a beautiful new beach home with her husband. After suspecting her husband of cheating on her, Caroline begins an affair with Aiden, a stranger she has spotted staring at her house a few times. As readers, we start off believing everything that is told to us, but then begin to suspect that we are in the hands of unreliable narrators. In my opinion, this is the best type of novel -- when we aren't 100% sure what is going on until later in the book.

As has happened before with Campbell's novels, the ending fell flat for me. But the process of getting there was a pulse-pounding ride! I love this author's writing and always look forward to seeing what she has in the pipeline next.

MY RATING - 3.5

She Was the Quiet One (Michele Campbell)

I reviewed Michele Campbell's It's Always the Husband back in March and said that it is a top-notch mystery. In fact, it has quickly become one of my favorites to recommend as it definitely keeps you guessing throughout. I was excited to pick up Campbell's latest, She Was the Quiet One, and while I like her previous book slightly better, it is still a worthy read.

Twin sisters Rose and Bel Enright are as different as can be. Rose is studious and quiet, while Bel is much more extroverted. When they are sent by their grandmother to Odell, a prestigious boarding school, Rose takes to it immediately. Bel, on the other hand, gets in with the wrong crowd, and finds herself in increasingly dangerous situations. As we understand from the beginning, one of those situations is murder, but which side is Bel exactly on?

Campbell writes a pulse-pounding thriller here, and she kept me up long past my bedtime turning the pages. The ending was predictable and flat for me, but the ride was certainly a fun one to get to that point.

MY RATING - 3

It's Always the Husband (Michele Campbell)

What's interesting about Michele Campbell's thrilling whodunit It's Always the Husband is that she gives you a huge hint about who the culprit is right on the cover.  Now whether to believe her or not -- that's an entirely different story.

Kate, Jenny, and Aubrey are three college roommates who, as roommates often do, go constantly back and forth between being friends and frenemies.  Kate has more money than she knows what to do with but is very troubled, taking drugs and sleeping around.  Aubrey is just the opposite financially -- she cannot afford much of anything. Jenny is the no-nonsense type.  A dangerous incident their freshman year threatens to derail not only their college careers but also their entire lives if anyone finds out.  The story effortlessly goes back and forth between that time and present day (when they are in their 40s).  Will that long-ago event come back to haunt them as they grapple with something even worse?

To me, many of the characters in this book are hard to care about.  Kate, in particular, is a prima donna and impossible to root for.  However, Campbell writes in such a way that she makes it very difficult to put this book down.  It's Always the Husband (or is it?) is a top-notch mystery.

MY RATING - 3.5