The main idea of this book got immediately my attention and started to read right away. It's the story of a trial for crimes against humanity; the people of a small imaginary republic against Marija Popa, the dictator's wife. It's told from Laura's point of view, the youngest member of the lawyers team that will represent Marija. She will come back to her home country, after running away from it with her parents, when she was a kid.

The first chapter was a bit confusing but in line with the story, so I continued reading, hoping to find more details in the next pages.

The problem arrived with the following chapters. The present plot is mixed with a ton of memories from different times of Laura's life; insomuch, that differentiating between a memory and current action became a task. I had to re-read some pages several times to understand them, until I realized that there was no transition between those flashbacks.

I kept the rythm, waiting for the main character to appear. And the meeting with Marija Popa was disappointing. I expected an overly sweet cover for a tyrant lady; someone knowing that gaining her lawyers to her cause, will help her to show a maternal figure, incompatible with being the monster everyone thinks she is. But seeing an arrogant person, already playing the VIP to the team that can buy her freedom, broke the magic. So, I couldn't believe Laura's observation of being almost sad for someone like Marija, that had everything and lost it all.

I couldn't finish it

Set in the fictional country of Yanussia, Marija Popa, wife of the dead former leader, is set to stand trial. She is accused of being complicit in her husband’s actions but declares herself to be innocent of all the charges that are piling up against her. She seeks out a defence team from England comprised of two of her fellow Yanussians. Laura has not stepped foot in her native country since she was a child; her parents never speak of their time in Yanussia and Laura is desperate to find out what happened to them, and specifically to her mother, to make their relationship so strained when she became a teenager. Is Marija telling the truth? Is she as innocent as she proclaims to be?

The premise for The Dictator’s Wife immediately grabbed my attention so I was excited to see how Berry would bring this story to life on the page. I instantly thought of Eva Braun, Imelda Marcos and a more current comparison with Melania Trump. The idea of looking at the wife of a dictator rather than focusing a story on the leader himself was fascinating. Although the book is written beautifully and Berry clearly has a way with creating a very visceral reaction to a situation/event through her words, I found the book to be so slow-paced that it detracted from my enjoyment of the unfolding story. There are plenty of moments that deeply disturb both the characters and readers alike, but I felt that the pace just seemed to strangle the flow of the story. Berry loves to create stunning visual metaphors in this story which, although beautiful, went on at times for pages and again interrupted the flow and pace of the book.

I loved the main character of Marija. She is stunning; a glamorous woman who stands out among her peers and everything about her exudes confidence. Her dark side, which comes out more and more as the story progresses, will leave the reader feeling chilled to the bone. The dynamics of Marija and Laura’s relationship and its development throughout the book are fascinating and equally disturbing. All the other characters, with the exception of Marija’s sister, fall away in comparison and are really insignificant to the story when compared to the two female protagonists.

It’s a dark and chilling story with plenty of moments where you are left reeling from the revelations unfolding on the page. Putting yourself in the shoes of the wife of a sadistic and deranged dictator isn’t an easy thing to do, but Berry managed to reel her readers into the story.

The Dictator’s Wife is out now! Thank you to NetGalley and to Headline for the arc in exchange for my honest review.

When you're looking at the world news (and there's been a lot of it!) its so easy to focus on the people at the top without stopping to think about who is by their side emotionally and loyally.
'The Dictator's Wife is a fascinating chance to stop and see what life is like from their viewpoint. The Dictator's Wife starts with Laura a solicitor, who grew up in the former communist state run by the Dictator, but who escaped with her family. She comes back as part of the legal team to defend the Wife - whilst the prosecution seek the death penalty. Laura also gets flashbacks of her childhood life in the state, with unknown eyes watching you and not knowing who to trust.
There is also the mysterious Wife of course, what did she know, who is she and how complicit was she in the horrendous actions of her former husband?
The state in question is fictional in the story but widely based on Romania so the scenes acted out in the book are very realistic and terrifying.
Well worth a read - thanks for the chance

The Dictator’s Wife is the stunning debut novel by author Freya Berry. And it’s easily one of the best releases of 2022, so far.

It’s a read that pulls you in and before you know it you’ve reached the last page and you’ve read the entire thing in one sitting.

It’s a book that oozes charm, lures you in plays with your mind and then when you think you’ve got a read on Marija, you realise you really haven’t. Marija and Laura’s relationship is full of many layers and is intriguing to read.

Much like Abigail Dean’s Girl A, The Dictator’s Wife is a book that is so original that it will live in your consciousness for a long long time after you’ve read it. It is one that you will find yourself recommending to everyone and will stay on your bookshelf for many years.

Set in a fictional former communist Eastern European country, Marija Popa the former dictator’s wife (and former actress) is standing trial for her husbands crimes against the people of Yanussia and of financial impropriety.

Marija calls on a team from a Magic Circle London Law Firm to act as her defence team, of which two are Yansussian emigres - Pavel a senior partner and Laura a junior associate. Laura’s parents oppose her decision to return to her homeland and to represent Marija but won’t explain why.

Yanussia is a country divided. There are Yanussions who blindly support Marija as the “Mother of the Nation”, and those who who are baying for blood. The country is a tinderbox. For their own safety, the lawyers move into Marija’s house to undertake their investigation and build up their defence strategy. Marija is under house-arrest and by default so are they. Outside protesters gather. Inside the house the lawyers are being watched. The world is watching Yanussia.

It’s an intense read. It’s a suffocating atmosphere in the house where the lawyers always appear to be on the back foot, stuck in Marisa’s web. The book also deals with important themes - The importance of memory and the need to remember and conversely in some cases the need to forget. Identity - how the past defines you, the version of yourself that you present to the world. Truth - who is the telling the truth, what version of the truth are they telling?

Huge thanks to the publisher Headline and NetGalley for making the ARC of The DIctator’s Wife available to me to read in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Inspired by the likes of Imelda Marcos and Asma Al Assad, this novel is about the beautiful, glamorous wife of a former dictator in a fictitious Eastern European country, Yanussia. She now stands on trial for her dead (brutally lynched by a mob) husband’s crimes. The main character Laura is a lawyer on her defence team, using the trial as cover to return to Yanussia and uncover what her parents hid from her about their homeland. The book raises questions on the ambiguous power of First Women and their culpability or ignorance of their husbands’ sins. ⁣
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In theory it should have been a great book. Unfortunately the writing was tediously overdone - I skimmed entire pages of stream-of-consciousness fever dreams. The narrative initially drew me in, but bludgeoned the reader over the head with lack of subtlety and relied on a basketful of tropes (maligned sidelined wallpaper sister, dark family secret tied to a tragic past, the villain and the protagonist are two sides of the same coin…). Worst of all was the characterisation of the dictator’s wife which was a gross caricature and lacked any vaguely human nuance. ⁣
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#TheDictatorsWife

Thank you to Headline for the ARC. I got very strong Eva Peron vibes from this book from before I even started it, which if I'm being honest is what drew me in. This is a fascinating, inventive, and creative novel that I found genuinely gripping. It's a brilliant concept and a perspective that isn't frequently seen or discussed - both in fiction and in reality. As a History and English student, this was a perfect meeting of worlds and I will be recommending it to everyone. One of my favourite novels so far this year! When I can, I will absolutely be getting my own copy!

I was offered this book as an ARC by NetGalley. Full of intrigue regarding 'the dictator's wife', this novel also explores the relationship between mother and daughter and how it can be tainted by things left unsaid. The novel leaves the reader questioning what constitutes as 'the truth'. With the current situation in the Ukraine and the media war that is running alongside between the Western and Russian interpretations of events, this book feels highly relevant. When following the trial preparations, who will you trust and believe?

The beautiful, enigmatic wife of a feared dictator stands trial for her late husband's crimes against the people. The world will finally know the truth…. Truly could not put this down. Such a brilliant opening chapter.

Perfectly competent but somehow didn’t work for me. The characters and events felt too generic and nothing surprised me. The prose is writerly and the story needs more pace and fewer heavy hints. DNF

I feel like I need to apologist to this book for not reading it sooner! What a ride. I think what I enjoyed the most is the pace, it has a nice rhythm and once you get into, it's hard to want to pause.

Thank you to Netgalley, Headline and Freya Berry for this ARC. I thoroughly enjoyed this compelling read. Although the subject matter is at times dark, the story itself was an engaging and compelling read. It's a book that I'll definitely recommend.

I don’t know where to start with this book, it took my breath away and I feel bereft that it has finished.

The book follows Laura, a young lawyer, who is part of a team who go to the country of her exiled parents, to defend the wife of the dead former leader, accused of being complicit in his crimes. As her parents escaped the country, and do not want their daughter to go to defend Marija Popa, this leads to a fracture in their already fragile relationship, damaged by a lifetime of secrets.

The writing is beautiful, there is a grace and elegance to the prose that is stunning, and this alone made the book an absolute a joy to read. However, there is much, much more to this book than just incredible prose, the plot is compelling.

The book considers the nature of truth, the power of popularism and the devastating impact of a dictatorship on a nation’s people, which sadly seems all too relevant in today’s post-truth world. The plot is compelling, a genuine page turner, which left it virtually impossible for me to put the book down.

The characterisation is sublime, the depiction of Marija Popa in particular was fabulous. I found I couldn’t help falling in love with her in the same way as all of those around her, even though there was always the threat of her being an absolute monster. I couldn’t decide until the explosive final chapters whether she was guilty or innocent of the charges she faced, but I didn’t’ t really care, and I could completely understand why everyone wanted her attention.

The sense of place is fabulous, and the juxtaposition of the bleak streets of Yanussia where people are starving and freezing, with the opulence of the home of Marija Popa highlighted the stark difference between those in power and their people.

This is very different from most books around at the moment, which makes it a refreshing read. I would thoroughly recommend this book, it will make you really think about the structures of power and how it can, and is, abused.

Thank you to The author, Headline Publishing Group and Netgalley for an ARC in return for a honest review.

‘I had not prepared for the chance that I might like her.’

Evoking memories of Imelda Marcos and Elena Ceaușescu, here the Dictators wife of the title is Marija Popa. Set in fictional Yanussia, Laura returns to the land of her family as part of the defence team for the woman, wife and mother of a nation who was married to a toppled dictator and is now on trial for her life and his crimes.
She says she is not the person they say, she is not her husband, she is innocent but do we, the reader believe her and can Laura find out the truth?

‘How can it be that what terrifies us may also entrance us, despite, because of, our fear?’

Wow! I know this is fiction but this felt really real! The scenes at the press conference with rabid crowds surging, the violence, you could feel the rage. We’ve seen scenes this on the TV but I felt like I was in these places whilst reading, a really believable world has been created and I found myself half holding my breath at times, on tenterhooks to see what would happen next!

‘Strange how glamour enchants us, how it makes us forget. A fur coat insists on us ignoring the abattoir.’

I felt in thrall to Marija reading this, she is addictive. It’s an intoxicating read and deliciously good. Berry keeps you just off kilter enough to make you feel like you are the one being watched, it is outstanding!

‘The name conjured a glimmering swarm of contradictions. A sumptuous banquet crawling with maggots.’

I think because I knew that this has happened in some form in the real world made it all the more compelling. Laura is enticed into the spiders web of Marija; the little mother, groomed since childhood to believe in her power. I could feel the pressure that Laura felt, the risks she takes, giving me a dry mouth, my heart thumping as I read, it was so well done.

I found myself reading faster and faster to get to the end, to find out Laura and Marija’s fates, what happens? You will have to see, innocent or not, you won’t be able to look away! You will be held spellbound by The Dictators Wife.

✩✩✩✩

The Dictator’s Wife is a thoroughly enjoyable read, ensnaring the reader within a page. It perfectly blends the personal and the political when a former citizen of an (imaginary) ex-Eastern bloc dictatorship (think Ceausescu and/or Tito) returns to the country of her birth to defend the former ‘Mother’ of the nation (think Evita).

I loathe spoilers so I won’t say anything more about the story itself, other than it certainly had me turning pages.

What I can tell is that there are many other things to admire about this novel. The most obvious is the meticulous attention to detail that went into creating the imagined country itself. Although there is a wealth of historical detail and decor, never does it feel too much. While reading, I just assumed the author must be old enough to have remembered all of these old regimes, perhaps having visited them as a reporter or academic. But at the end of the novel, Ms Barry talks about how she did her research – spending a few months travelling through these post-revolution landscapes and hearing people’s stories. It’s an approach that has definitely paid off. Her research feels so light touch while also rendering her backdrop as a vibrant, living, breathing thing.

Personally, I’d have like to know more about how she approached creating her characters as well – endowing even relatively minor characters with complex/complicating private hinterlands.

As the novel’s cover suggests, this is a boldly visual novel. I won’t be surprised to see it turned into a film or Netflix series. I, for one, can easily imagine Cate Blanchett as the Dictator’s Wife.

Many thanks again to Netgalley and the publisher for letting me see an advance copy of this novel.

A dramatic and compulsive read, telling the story of a wife standing trials for her husband’s sins, showing just how difficult the truth can be.

"'Everybody has a choice.' He laughed. 'Spoken like somebody who's never truly had to make one. Two options are not the same as a choice.'"

The Dictator's Wife is an astounding piece of literature. The author's debut is a historical fiction focused on the small country of Yanussia going through a regime change and seeking to hold the previous leaders to account. I find it fascinating that the author found inspiration from Melania Trump.

"Strange how glamour enchants us, how it makes us forget. A fur coat insists on us ignoring the abattoir".

The book combined real world law terminology (and British law firms) to deliver an accurate and thought-provoking look into who society deems monsters and who we give free passes to. How we define history and how we allow it to shape our present and our future. How money and status enables access to creating an illusion of innocence. Are any of us innocent? How do we truly define innocence?

The plot twists were strong and the entire read felt like whirlwind. I can't lie, I did read in one sitting because I couldn't bare to put the book down. The emotional trauma of the protagonist, the manipulation of the accused and the deep-rooted betrayal could easily be taken out of the book and applied to so many external, real-world scenarios. I love a good historical fiction. I definitely recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley for the Arc.

“What do we have in the present if the past means nothing?”

🕷🕸🕷🕸🕷

Thank you @HeadlineBooks for my early copy of #TheDictatorsWife by @freyabbooks via @NetGalley.

______

I am not the person they say I am.

I am not my husband.

I am innocent.



Do you believe me?
______

I know the phrase “will have you reading long into the night” gets thrown about an awful lot, but it is completely true for this book.

The Dictator’s Wife, Marija Popa, faces the death penalty for the crimes of her husband, who can’t stand trial himself, as he was brutally murdered. Set in the fictional country Yanussia, Marija hires defence lawyers from London to help her fight her case. In comes Laura - who is a Yanussia born lawyer along with her boss to try and save Marija from the noose.

However, Laura’s parents who fled the countries dictatorship when she was a child are adamant that she refuses the case, and this is where the story really takes off. Laura’s parents won’t tell her why they fled nor will they explain why she shouldn’t defend Marija Popa - which means Laura must accept the case and go to Yanussia to find the truth for herself.

All is not what it seems, danger lurks everywhere, webs of lies and deceit unfold, information leaks, murder happens in the most unlikely places, a puppeteer holds all the strings but to what end and just how guilty is the wife of a Dictator?

Although this book kept me absolutely hooked, I do find my understanding of the wider political elements of this book lacking, purely to my own ignorance of history which causes the book to be a “difficult” read, I’m not a History or Politics nerd so I did struggle with some parts of the book, but on a whole I enjoyed this book.

It’s definitely a book that requires concentration, but the characters and atmosphere of the book is tremendously written which makes it addictive reading.

The Dictator’s Wife is released on the 17 February and FYI: Waterstones & Goldsboro Books both have exclusive editions!

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Blurb:

The beautiful, enigmatic wife of a feared dictator stands trial for her late husband's crimes against the people. The world will finally know the truth. But whose?

WOMAN

I learned early in life how to survive. A skill that became vital in my position.



WIFE

I was given no power, yet I was expected to hold my own with the most powerful man in the country.



MOTHER OF THE NATION

My people were my children. I stood between him and them.

I am not the person they say I am.
I am not my husband.
I am innocent.



Do you believe me?

A gripping story with the most amazing concept, when the title character stands trial for her husband's crimes, will the truth finally out?
This book got under my skin from start to finish, the characters were so real and believable, and I wasn't surprised to learn that the author got her inspiration for this novel while working as a reporter on the 2016 US presidential election.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for letting me read an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest feedback.

I've tried to write this post numerous times but in truth I don't quite know where to start. The premise of The Dictator's Wife piqued my interest and I was delighted to be granted access to an early copy via NetGalley.  

This is a wonderfully imagined, well written, atmospheric novel which centres around the fictional country of Yanussia and the trial of the dictator's widow. While the country may be fictional it echoes many of the Eastern Bloc, indeed some of the characters reflect historical figures. We follow the story through the eyes of one of the lawyers defending the Dictator's Wife.  Laura is a young lady born in Yanussia but who fled with her parents to England as a child. Through Laura we uncover Yanussia's past, her own family history, and see the manipulation and corruption of those in power.  What is real and who to trust? 

I found this a fascinating novel. Freya Berry's writing and descriptions are wonderful, she weaves an intricate tale that kept me speculating throughout. I didn't find it a particularly easy read, but it's one that I know I will think about for a long time.