The Third Wife

A Novel

By: Lisa Jewell

Narrated by: Joe Jameson

In the early hours of a summer morning, a young woman steps into the path of an oncoming bus. A tragic accident? Or suicide? At the center of this puzzle is Adrian Wolfe, a successful architect and grief-stricken widower, who, a year after his third wife's death, begins to investigate the cause. As Adrian looks back on their brief but seemingly happy marriage, disturbing secrets begin to surface.

The divorces from his two previous wives had been amicable, or so it seemed; his children, all five of them, were resilient as ever, or so he thought. But something, or someone, must have pushed Maya over the edge.

Fans of Liane Moriarty and Jojo Moyes will be captivated by this riveting family drama with a dark mystery at its core.

©2015 Lisa Jewell (P)2018 Dreamscape Media, LLC

What was that?

This book was not as much about the title I just was about unrealistic combination of two family. There was no real mystery or suspense in this story. When this book ended, all I myself was what just happened? The answer is: nothing!!!!!

There's more..

While this story is about the events surrounding the death of Adrian's 3rd wife, it goes deeper. Adrian finally realizes how the selfish choices he has made has effected those he loves more than he first thought.

This was my first read/listen by Lisa Jewell, but it won't be my last.

Very engrossing character study

This book was not what I expected, but I really enjoyed it. The narrator was excellent in his portrayal of all the characters.

Uncommon Story

This is a very different type of story. It kept me interested. I especially liked the narrator. because of his incredible voice changes I had to stop and make sure there wasn't a second or third narrator. With the exception of his English accent saying pole and pool for Paul and Pearl he was amazing.

Not my cup of tea

Attention: some mild spoilers. Be warned.
This is definitely not my genre. It’s a character study of two families with the same husband/father and his third wife. It’s about cruelty, social expectations, and traditional female values.

Full disclosure I’m a woman, but I don’t buy this thinly veiled indictment of men who divorce and remarry. A kind of validation of the idea that “this is the damage that you (a man) cause.”
Women fall out of love, even when they have children. And women remarry, many of them multiple times. And let’s not forget the women who have several children with different fathers. This is just a story about human people and all the flaws and mess that comes with us.

Perhaps this is designed to appeal to the religious crowd who believe that marriage should always be for life, especially if children are involved, no matter how unhappy the parents are.
The quote “a sociopath or misguided fool,” totally sums up the viewpoint of the author in conveying the condemnation of the choices made by the male protagonist.

The most striking thing I found in the story was that none of the people in this “family” ever honestly communicated their feelings, and the mothers (former wives) were just as oblivious to the feelings of their children as the father. These are people so caught up in their “perfectness” that there is no room for honesty. Unfortunately, as is true of many families and relationships no one really listens to what the others say or mean.

The mystery stalker seems to hold the third wife as a kind of villain. Alternately, we are shown her as also a victim on two fronts. There is a suggestion that all the wives save the first one are villains/ victims. That’s a contradictory premise. The spouse that cheats is the responsible party, the other person is just a bystander. I know, not the traditional thought just fact. The other woman or man has absolutely no obligation to anyone’s spouse, marriage, or children…period.

The narration was wonderful as always from Mr Jameson. I always enjoy his range of character voices. I did finish the book, and that says something. However, I don’t think I’ll try this author again.