GP Jen is back at work, trying to get her world back on track after her husband disappeared in an avalanche & is presumed dead. Coping with her teenage son's grief & coming to terms with the fact she is pregnant after an ill-advised one night stand. She is not even sure how to grieve as she suspects her husband was having an affair. However little does she know that things are going to get a whole lot worse!

Along with Jen's story, told from her point of view & from her friend Rhonda's perspective, there is the story of a strange little boy & his friend Mac who form 'The Kill Club'

Anyone who has read any of Samantha Hayes books knows that she doesn't make things easy for her readers & this is no exception. For an intelligent, supposedly responsible person Jen really seemed to have lost the plot & I wanted to give her a good shake! Eventually the dots were joined- perhaps a few more than were strictly necessary & you wondered what would happen next. The fact you are left wanting the answers is part of the skill of Samantha Hayes! Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher for letting me read & review this book.

I really wanted to enjoy this as inhVe enjoyed Samantha Hayes past books. Unfortunately this one was not for me. I got about 100 pages in and I could just not get into the story.

Unfortunately I wasn’t able to finish this book, I got to 30% and realised it was becoming a chore and I wasn’t really enjoying it.

I’m not sure if it was me or the book!

It’s not terrible and is split into two timelines (then and now) I got on with one of the timelines better than the other - just not for me but somebody else might love it!

All actions have consequences and that could not be more true than the complicated life of THE TRAPPED WIFE. Samantha Hayes has done an excellent job of weaving many twisted threads into a heck of a story.
Past meets present as we see the story through two sets of eyes, Jennifer, a small town GP who has just lost her husband in an avalance and Rhonda, Jennifer's long time best friend. There are several large reveals throughout the story but it's the small ones you want to watch for. And.....we've got a creepy stalker who is somehow controlling Jennifer's actions. This was a great thriller, Ms Hayes demonstrates how to put the thrill in thriller.

Your life has been turned upside down, your husband is missing and presumed dead, you have a new patient who seems to know you better then he should and is invading your life and you find out you are going to have a baby from a drunken one night stand. How did the Dr. of a small village end up this way and how will she prevent her world from unravelling.
I read this book in a day because i couldn't put it down. The story was intense and I needed to know what was going to happen next. This book is full of twists and turns until the very last page. Be prepared to read way past bedtime. This is my first book by this author but will not be my last.

This book had me. I started off shouting at the character Jen to just go to the police. As the book developed clues are thrown in which gets you thinking you know what’s going off. Then bam. The ending hits you like a speeding train. So good. This is certainly my kind of book..
Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to see an arc.

This book didn’t turn out the way that I thought that it would and I actually really enjoyed it. I found Jen to be a very interesting character and she definitely wasn’t what I was expecting whatsoever. I enjoyed the past POV involving the two boys and I found myself wanting to know more about them as the story progressed. Oh boy was there ever some twists in this book and I never saw them coming.

I'm in the vast minority here, but I just could not find my way into this one in anything approaching an enjoyable way... From the beginning, frankly I found Jen to be an irritating protagonist. Bad choices, foolish actions, and a general lack of likability made it tough for me to connect with her - and therefore the novel. She just didn't feel very believable or very three-dimensional to me.

The supporting cast and the misdirection and the red herrings and all the rest of it just felt like I had read them before. I yes I have just read too many domestic thrillers by now, but I didn't find the twists all that twisty or all that surprising, and the whole thing just felt underwhelming to me...

Wowza, a twisted story indeed. A few characters, two to begin with, Jen and Rhonda, and their friendship started off this book, when the plotline steadily moved in such convoluted ways that I was left unsure about what I knew and what I would come to know ahead.

A trickle of adrenaline started flowing as author Samantha Hayes used all her wily ways to keep me confused. That was not fair. I like knowing I am right. Well, that didn’t happen here. I tell ya, these authors of Bookouture are a cunning lot.

The book started with recently widowed Jen not knowing the truth about a dark night. And her best friend Rhonda too was hiding something. Then came the dark tendrils of past winding into the present. And the book turned over itself, right about halfway through..

The writing was slow to begin with, but slowly the atmosphere became dark as the sense of impending danger increased. And continued on till the last page. Layered, well-written with many twists, the book was quite entertaining.

😊 The Trapped Wife is Samantha Hayes's latest psychological thriller and an exceptional, taut mystery, fraught with tension.

The novel features GP, Dr Jen Miller, now a widow, with a son, Kieran who is 16 years old. Jen learns she is pregnant, two months after attending a conference in Oxford. She can't recall much detail from the nighttime events there. The story is told through the viewpoints of both Jen and her best friend, Rhonda - a teacher with a daughter called Caitlin. There are also some flashbacks to a time many years ago regarding the actions of two 12-year-olds.

Having come across author Samantha Hayes before I know that she excels at throwing her readers off the scent. Extremely compelling, I was hooked from the start, and I loved the curve balls that kept on popping up. The author has crafted a wonderfully tangled plot, executed perfectly with just the right amount of pace. You won't find any boring chapters here! Samantha Hayes’s writing style was flawless and everything just flowed, allowing for an undemanding and enjoyable read. The characters were well-drawn and believable and Samantha Hayes has done a grand job at bringing them to life on the page. The tense and twisty plot went down a treat as it snaked along and Samantha Hayes was able to create tones of apprehension and unease that continued until the very last page.

The Trapped Wife was very hard to put down and it was one of those books that had me guessing all the way through and I had my own suspicions as to where things might go next, only to discover that I was way off the mark. A cracking read with chunks of doubtful behaviour that helped to nudge the story along, as well as an unpredictable, shocking finale, I hope it won't be long before there is another offering by this outstanding author. 😊

I received a complimentary digital copy of this novel at my request from Bookouture via NetGalley and this review is my unbiased opinion.

Jen is a doctor living with her 16-year-old son, Kieran. Her husband was recently killed in an avalanche while on a skiing trip while Jen is still struggling to piece together a night while she was out of town on a medical conference. Then the man from the conference shows up and basically inserts himself into Jen's life, with a creep factor like none that I have read recently. Are you irritated with her already for allowing him to bully his way into her life? I was. 

This novel is told from 2 present tense points of view: Jen and Rhonda, Jen's best friend. Jen is returning to work after her husband's death, dealing with her grieving teenage son, and dealing with all kinds of issues in her head about a night away at a medical conference. Rhonda is Jen's best friend and understandably worried and concerned. Rhonda almost seems like too perfect of a best friend, going above and beyond to help out. There is also a past point of view told by a young boy named Evan. Evan lives in an abusive home with a violent stepfather, an emotionally absent mother, and his young sister. Evan is also bullied at school until one day he makes friends with Mac, and they become thick as thieves. Scott is also a prominent character but we are told about Scott from either Jen or Rhonda. 

The Trapped Wife is very creepy and probably one of the best examples of a psychological thriller that I have read. Every chapter revealed more about each character, which planted not seeds of doubt, but an entire garden of doubt in my mind concerning almost every character in the book. I was confused by their motivations, confused by their behaviors, and absolutely never saw anything coming that was revealed towards the end. Most of my theories and suspicions were completely off-base making me want to go back and start the book completely over to see if I can pick up on any hints. Do you remember watching The Sixth Sense with Bruce Willis and once you realized he was dead you were like, "oh my God?"  That was my reaction to the end of this book. I was staring at my iPad thinking, "where the hell did that come from" with mixed emotions of horror and delight because of what I learned, yet it was such a satisfying twist. 

Never in my life did I imagine how this would all end. 

My main criticism of the novel is Jen herself. I found myself completely baffled as to why a mature, grown woman, a doctor, a reasonable person would allow Scott to invade her life the way he did. But it all made sense in the end. I highly, highly recommend this be your next read if you are a fan of psychological thrillers, especially if you are already a fan of Samantha Hayes - this one will not disappoint!

*Thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for providing this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion!

OMG! I’m totally gobsmacked after reading this gem. Stayed up late in the night to finish it One of my tip top favorites of the year. Story was gritty and compelling with shocking twists and turns I never saw coming. Deliciously dark with each character tugging me into the rabbit hole.
Can’t say enough great things about this book. Huge 5 stars from me.
Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book

Three and a half stars for this twisty psychological thriller. Although I had guessed at most of the plot, the ending tied up all the ends in a nice bow. Dr. Jen is living a perfect life with her husband and son until doubts about her husband’s fidelity begin to creep in. He dies in an avalanche while skiing in Switzerland… or does he? There are many red herrings along the plot path of this “can’t put it down” read. One twist after another keeps you guessing right til the surprising revelations at the end.
The characters were engaging, although I am still struggling with the status of the relationship between Jen and Caitlin. Samantha Hayes writing style creates tension and she definitely knows how to keep it taut throughout this thriller.
The babies at the end made me think of the famous fly scene from Psycho. Many thanks to Samantha Hayes, Bookouture, and NetGalley for providing me with an arc of this thriller, just recently published.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for this copy!

Jennifer’s husband Jeremy is killed in an accident. She had suspected he was having an affair. Weeks after his death she finds herself pregnant from a one night stand she had while away at a conference.

I absolutely loved Until You’re Mine by this author so I was excited to receive this copy. Unfortunately this was a miss for me. So very slow moving and I really hated the characters. Scott was just unbelievable and Jennifer’s reaction to him was even worse. I can’t see anyone allowing someone to move into their house weeks after their husband dies when you have a child…..pregnant with their baby or not.

I really wanted to like this book but I think the characters just didn’t seem that realistic to me.

This was actually pretty intense and pretty creepy at the same time. Author kept me guessing until the end. Great title and cover!

What did I like? I like suspense you can’t figure out. This one really held me until the last chapter. I imagine I felt the intense kept the book from being creepy since it involves taboo stuff like murder and other stuff.

Would I recommend or buy? The book has a ton of taboo triggers so just a warning to my fellow readers. It’s an outlandish suspense thriller. I’d read more by this author! Four stars!

I received a complimentary copy to read and voluntarily left a review!

This is my first book by Samantha Hayes but based on this novel it certainly won't be my last. A suspenseful psychological thriller with a fab twist at the end.
Jennifer's husband Jeremy is killed in an avalanche and she's just discovered she's pregnant with a strangers baby after a one night stand during a Dr's conference before her husband was killed. A new patient registers at her surgery and is vaguely familiar to her. Soon her life falls apart as he integrates himself into her life.
Added to this is a past story with two youngsters, what link does the past have with the present.
Many thanks to Netgalley and publishers for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review

BLOG TOUR REVIEW

Review for 'The Trapped Wife' by Samantha Hayes.

Read and reviewed via NetGalley for Samantha Hayes, Bookouture publishers and Bookouture anonymous

Publication date 8th September 2021.

This is the first book I have read by this author.

I was originally drawn to this book by its stunning eye catching cover and intriguing sounding synopsis and title. The synopsis stated that this book is 'Perfect for anyone totally gripped by The Wife Between Us, Gone Girl or The Girl In The Train. ' I am a huge fan of 'Gone Girl' so am looking forward to seeing if this lives up to this statement. I must admit I was also biased due to the publisher being Bookouture. I have yet to read a book published by Bookouture that I haven't enjoyed. Hopefully this won't be the first... Watch this space! (Written before I started reading the book).

This novel consists of a prologue, 44 chapters and an epilogue. The chapters are short to medium in length so possible to read 'just one more chapter' before bed...OK, I know yeah right, but still just in case!

This book is based in England 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿, UK 🇬🇧. I always enjoy when books are set in the UK as I'm from Wales and have sometimes visited areas mentioned in the book. This makes it easier to picture where the scenes are set at times.

This book is written in a mix of third and first person perspective and the protagonists are Jess and Rhonda. The benefits of books written in first person perspective are as long as they are well written it makes you feel that you are being spoken to by the protagonist and it can create more of a bond between yourselves and them. If there are several protagonists you also get to see more of what is going on. The benefits of third person perspective with multiple protagonists are that it let's you see the bigger picture of what's going on and you get to know more characters more, what they are thinking and what they are doing. It feels like you get to see the whole picture and not miss out in anything. To have the benefit of both first and third person perspective ensures you don't miss out on anything.

'The Trapped Wife' discusses some topics that may trigger some readers or may not be suitable for others. I like to point this out ahead of time in my reviews so you can judge if this book is for you or not. In this book Samantha discusses/includes death of a child.

OMG!?!?!? WHAT DID I JUST READ??? MIND BLOWN!! SAMANTHA WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN ALL MY LIFE?!?!?!

This book is extremely well written and with the first and third person perspective it feels that while Jen is speaking directly to you, you also don't miss out on anything. The descriptions are vivid and the cover, title and synopsis suit the storyline perfectly.

The storyline itself is a must read!!! It is packed with suspense, lies, mystery, sadness, blackmail and red herrings!!! It is very fast paced and I was absolutely hooked throughout. There is so much going on and it constantly leaves you guessing, thinking you've worked it all out and then BOOK an ending you would never have guessed!!! I was absolutely addicted and it left me on the edge of my seat with my heart racing biting my nails. The ending was absolutely explosive and one I did not consider at all. A huge well done Samantha on this as it is getting harder and harder to shock me with all the books I read but you managed to completely blow my mind!!! I am looking forward to reading more of your books past and future!!! If you are planning on reading this then clear your schedules as it is completely unputdownable!!

It is set over/includes multiple time lines. When books show what has happened in the past and what is happening in the present I find it really helps the reader (if it is well done) understand why things are happening and what has lead to the present activities and decisions. It also shows the bigger picture.

The characters are all strong and realistic. All of the main characters were well developed with alot of history. I really liked both Jess and Rhonda but couldn't stand Scott from the start and got a feeling something wasn't right with him.

Congratulations Samantha on absolutely addictive read!!! Welcome to my favourite author list and here's to your next book!!! 🍻


Overall an absolutely unputdownable psychological thriller with an explosive ending!!


Genres covered in this book include Thriller, Suspense, Psychological Fiction and Crime Fiction amongst others.


I would recommend this book to the fans of the above as well as fans of 'Gone Girl', Shari Lapena, Rachel Abbot and anyone who loves an explosive ending!!!


273 pages.

This book is just £1.99 to purchase on kindle via Amazon which I think is an absolute bargain for this book!!!

Rated 5 /5 (I LOVED it ) on Goodreads, Instagram, Amazon UK and Amazon US and on over 30 Facebook pages plus my blog on Facebook.

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This book was a good read- my first by this author. Jens husband recently passed away and the story follows her and her son. She is a doctor and has a patient named Scott that she feels like she has met before but not in a good way. The chapters alternate between characters, snd it makes the story go quick! You will not guess the ending!

Samantha Hay is the queen of misdirection, red herrings and curveballs. And her latest book, The Trapped Wife, is just as tense and twisty as her others. And that ending? I did NOT see it coming. Not one bit. After being so sure I had it figured out she totally blindsided, leaving me with my jaw on the floor trying to figure out how on earth she’d done it yet again.

Jennifer Miller is trying to piece her life back together after the recent death of her husband in a tragic accident. The golden couple seemed to have it all. But behind closed doors was a different story, one that Jen is still trying to conceal after Jeremy’s death. She hasn’t even confided these secrets in her best friend, especially the dark secret about the night she can’t really remember; the night that echoes in her memory through fleeting flashbacks. But then one of those secrets comes back to haunt her in person and Jen finds herself in a living nightmare.

In a second timeline we meet a young, troubled boy full of dark thoughts. He forms a bond with a kindred spirit, creating a club where they fantasise about revenge on those who have hurt them. It’s all harmless fun, until one day when he decided to make the fantasies a reality. But just how are the two timelines connected? What could this troubled boy have to do with the respectable widow? I had so many suspicions and predictions, but were they right?

Ms. Hayes is one of my auto-read thriller authors. When you pick up one of her books you know you’re getting a gripping thriller and, once again, she did not disappoint. Cleverly plotted, intricately woven, and full of crazy twists, the author has filled this book with emotion, yet there is a coldness that lingers over the pages. An emptiness that doesn’t only surround the loss of Jeremy, whose presence is always felt despite his death happening before the story begins. There is a pervading atmosphere of malice and foreboding; a powder keg just waiting for a spark. And when it did, it exploded many lives in the process. I tore through the pages, not wanting to put it down or even sleep. Though I eventually forced myself to sleep at 2am and finished it the next day.

The characters are brilliantly written and compelling. There’s an increasing sense of claustrophobia as Jen’s world closes in around her, her stress and anxiety rising as she tries to stop it from crumbling even more. Scott is such a fantastic villain that he sent shivers down my spine each time he was on the page, the feelings he gave Jen radiating from the pages into my own body. He oozes malevolence and I had no doubt he’d stop at nothing to get what he’d set his sights on. I really liked Rhonda, Jen’s best friend. She was a great character who went out of her way to help her friend, and I was shouting at the book for Jen to just confide the truth to her so they could work together to figure things out and escape his clutches.

But nothing, and no-one, is what they seem in this twisty story. There are secrets much darker than you imagine lurking in the shadows. Revelations that will make your head spin. I was on the edge of my seat from beginning to end, and I’m still reeling from that final twist that hit out of the blue.

Fiendishly dark, surprising and suspenseful, The Trapped Wife is a must read for any thriller lover.

We are thrown straight into Jennifer’s misery at the beginning of this book. She has lost her husband and is trying to rebuild her life and move on for the sake of her son.
She is a well-respected doctor in a small community where everyone knows each other’s business. This small fact is definitely her downfall in trying to keep everything together when someone from her past turns up, and consequently, she is trying to keep the biggest secret hidden from everyone around.
The story is told from differing viewpoints but mainly from Jennifer and her best friend Rhonda’s points of views. There are interspersing chapters where we see two young children becoming friends and forming a very sinister club. It becomes clear where this part of the story is going but not who the children are and their relevance to Jennifer.
There are lots of elements in this book to keep track of. It is not just about Jennifer, her blank memory and the loss of her husband. So much else is going on. It’s not over-complicated, though and keeps you gripped throughout.
The twists and turns at the end just keep on coming. I was expecting them based on previous books by this author, but they still side-swipe you. I had to sit for a moment a few times just to digest what I had just read. It was all cleverly written, and all the storylines come together and make sense at the end.
A fantastic five-star read and another one that has helped me get out of the reading rut I was finding myself in.