In "The Perfect Marriage" by Jeneva Rose, the story unfolds around Sarah, a successful defense attorney, and her struggling writer husband, Adam, who is involved in a passionate affair with Kelly. When Kelly is found brutally murdered, Sarah takes on the challenge of defending her husband, accused of the crime. The book delves into themes of betrayal, secrets, and high-stakes murder trials, with a plot full of twists and turns that keep readers on edge. However, some readers found the writing style to be clichéd and poorly executed, with discrepancies in character descriptions and unrealistic elements that detracted from the believability of the story.
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Sensitive Topics/Content Warnings
Triggers include themes of infidelity, murder, graphic violence, and bad language.
From The Publisher:
The bestselling thriller with "a tantalizing premise and twists at every turn . . . a sizzling, masterful debut about betrayal and justice" (Samantha M. Bailey, #1 national bestselling author).
Optioned by Picture Perfect Federation for development as a film or TV series
Sarah Morgan is a successful and powerful defense attorney in Washington D.C. As a named partner at her firm, life is going exactly how she planned. The same cannot be said for her husband, Adam. He's a struggling writer who has had little success in his career and he tires of his and Sarah's relationship as she is constantly working.
Out in the secluded woods, at the couple's lake house, Adam engages in a passionate affair with Kelly Summers. But one morning everything changes. Kelly is found brutally stabbed to death and now, Sarah must take on her hardest case yet, defending her own husband, a man accused of murdering his mistress.
The Perfect Marriage is a juicy, twisty, and utterly addictive thriller that will keep you turning pages. You won't see the ending coming . . . guaranteed!
"A twisty, compulsive book that will keep you reading all night! Fast-paced with crisp writing and an intriguing plot. Jeneva Rose is one to watch." -Samantha Downing, #1 international bestselling author of My Lovely Wife
"A book to be read in one gulp-this dastardly debut flies to a shocking reveal. I couldn't put it down; I had to see what happened. Twists galore." -J.T. Ellison, New York Times -bestselling author of Her Dark Lies
Ratings (69)
Incredible (7) | |
Loved It (27) | |
Liked It (19) | |
It Was OK (10) | |
Did Not Like (1) | |
Hated It (5) |
Reader Stats (123):
Read It (76) | |
Currently Reading (1) | |
Want To Read (40) | |
Not Interested (6) |
3 comment(s)
3.7 stars. I finished about two days ago but haven't got around reviewing it. While reading it i very much enjoyed it and liked the twist at the end. I actually guessed it which is a rarity but still enjoyed it. While sitting down to do the review I had forgotten most of it and had to refresh my memory but didn't take long so that's why it didn't get full 4 stars
SYNOPSIS:
Adam Morgan is cheating on his wife, Sarah Morgan, with a woman named Kelly.
The Morgans live in DC, but they also have a lake house in Virginia.
Kelly is brutally murdered, and she is found stabbed to death at the Morgans’ lake house. Adam is charged with murder.
Sarah is *conveniently* a powerful, criminal defense attorney at a firm in Washington DC, who represents him at trial.
MY THOUGHTS: THE LEGAL PARTS OF THE PLOT
Usually, I can overlook some minor legal plot holes, but these were appalling:
1) The trial takes place in Virginia, which is a state that has voted to abolish the death penalty in 2021. I’ll let that slide since the book was published in 2020. However, even prior to the ban, NO juries had imposed the death penalty on a single case in Virginia since 2011!!!!
2) Sarah could NEVER represent her husband in a murder trial, where said husband is facing the death penalty, for murdering his mistress!!!?! The crime scene is quite literally Sarah’s marital bed 😂the author apparently did not attempt to google the rules of professional conduct for attorneys
3) There’s an absolutely 0% chance that a MURDER TRIAL INVOLVING THE DEATH PENALTY would take place TWO WEEKS from the date of the murder/arrest???? This is legit the length of time for the preliminary hearing. This type of trial would take years before it’s set. A judge would never allow the wife of an accused murderer facing death penalty to represent him & rush a capital case to trial in 2 weeks..?? She didn’t even conduct discovery or file motions, etc. She would’ve been reported to the local Board of Professional Responsibility, removed from the case, and so on. Again, it’s like author didn’t even attempt to make this realistic.
4) Let’s assume we somehow can overlook all the above. Adam would’ve won an appeal easily for ineffective assistance of counsel. His wife brought his death penalty case to trial in 2 weeks!!!???!! BANANAS!
MY THOUGHTS: THE WRITING
The author appears to have neither read many books in the genre nor learned some basics about writing and structure. Let’s break this down. Shall we?
Unreliable narrator + twists: It is very obvious the author doesn’t know what these are. The book is told from present day perspectives of Sarah and Adam. In other words, Sarah tells the readers her thoughts and interactions, as they are occurring. It isn’t a “twist” or a “big reveal” to represent Sara’s thoughts and conversations as one way, then do a 180 in the last couple pages?? Such a cheap writing tactic, and makes for a terrible book. So, was the entire book just BS? It makes no sense? We are reading her active, present thoughts. Her interactions with Bob? Her thoughts about Bob? Why would they argue when no one else was around??? Her saying she was “trying” to get pregnant with Adam to folks at the office? Like, wtf?
Plot holes: Who are we supposed to think came to Sarah’s room & slept with her?? Was Kelly being abused by her husband? Why would the police leave someone facing the death penalty in a room with the door open??
The writing style: It felt incredibly childish. I was so bored. I can’t believe a publishing house & an editor “okay’ed” this book. The author over explains constantly to the readers, and she doesn’t grasp when readers should simply infer things. Rather, she prefers to “show, not tell”
OTHER THOUGHTS
OMGGGGG. The way the author describes women & their bodies is disturbing. I am honestly shocked a woman wrote this book because it’s so bad.
The author relies on stereotypes, and I’m curious if the author has ever befriended gay folks or BIPOC folks? There’s one gay character, Matthew, and he’s written like a stereotype & doesn’t feel real. Also, I think there was only 1-2 BIPOC in the book, who were side characters. One was a housekeeper, who Sarah couldn’t remember the name of.
TL;DR: ⭐️
my first one star review EVER. yikes. shouldn’t have believed the hype on this one.
perfect marriage
The plot twist had me disheveled. I enjoyed it though. I liked reading the story different perspectives though. It keeps it interesting
What can you read after
The Perfect Marriage?
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