I thought this book was a fun bit of escapism. Just the book for me to read on my latest beach vacation

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The blurb and the cover caught my attention and I was very excited to read The Runaway Wives.

The story is about two friends, Dee and Babs, who are being taken for granted in their marriages, and decide that enough is enough. To escape their current situations, they take a holiday let in Port Telwyn in Cornwall for a week. Here, they become involved with the local community, rediscover themselves and assess their futures.

I thought this was a lovely gentle read. A story of friendship, resillience, kindness to others and finally standing up for themselves.

I found the characters of Dee and Babs very likeable and relatable. Their husbands Nigel and Geoff come across as thoughtless and self-centred - but that's only the tip of the iceberg! And the community they find themselves amongst are open and welcoming, which gives the two friends pause for thought.

A delightful read that I would whole-heartedly recommend to anyone who enjoys uplifting women's fiction.

This is a humorous yet insightful story about two women, Dee and Babs, who feel overlooked in their long marriages. Dee’s excitement over a birthday retreat turns to disappointment when her husband, Giles, prioritizes a golf trip. Meanwhile, Babs returns from Dee’s birthday lunch to find her husband, Jeff, planning to sell their home and move to Spain—without consulting her. Frustrated, the two women embark on their own getaway, leading to self-discovery and unexpected changes in their marriages. With relatable themes of feeling invisible in relationships, this engaging novel balances humor with heartfelt truths.

Good idea but the execution leaves plenty to be desired. It got progressively worse and I had to force myself to finish it.

I loved this story of Dee and Babs aka the runaway wives.

Not happy with their current situation, Dee and Babs decide to run-away from their husbands and celebrate Dee’s 60th birthday.

However, they didn’t anticipate just how much they would be welcomed into the village life in Cornwall.

But you can’t runaway from your problems forever….

A great story, with some heart warming parts. A good escapism read

Absolutely fantastic plot! Could not put the book down once I began reading it. Cannot wait for it to be released. I will recommend it to everyone I know!

This book was such a fun read! It was lighthearted, full of laughs and ideas! How many of us want to runaway?! I loved this and will def be adding this to my collection.

A gentle drama about two old friends whose lives lead to a crossroads when they turn 60. I loved the Cornish setting and the characters, human and animal.

I liked the writing and how the story didn’t stale at all, just kept pushing through and intrigued me with the diverse cast of characters their interactions.
Loved it!

A light and very enjoyable story about two old friends with crisis points in their respective marriages . They escape to Cornwall to reassess their futures and find happiness .
Warming

This book is a lovely bit of escapism. Any book that leads us to a little village in Cornwall with the mixture of good and bad characters is fine by me!
Dee and Babs have been badly and inconsiderately treated by their husbands, so on a whim they book a last minute holiday cottage in Cornwall.
Rapidly integrating into the community - it's so easy in these books! - they are able to sort out where they want their lives to go next.
An enjoyable read

Whilst I enjoyed this read, I found it was lacking something in the storyline. There seemed to be a lot of phone calls, texts and partners turning up out of the blue. Plus the storyline with Babs and Geoff was a little boring, seeing as they’re meant to be 60, I found the chasing and running away a little childish.

However having said that, it was a nice easy read set in a lovely location. I did enjoy it overall.

3.5 stars

I loved this book, it is the perfect fun, escapist read for ladies of a “certain age.” Proving you don’t have to be in your twenties to have fun and maybe even find love!

I really enjoyed reading this book, both Dee and Babs are such a solid pair and have seen each other through some of the worst times of their lives. They are both having issues with their husbands so decide to go on a girls trip and make the men realised what they are missing. The girls head to Cornwall for a get away.

Babs is turning 60 and her husband instead of making a fuss of her goes off golfing with his mates. Dees husband has decided to put the house on the market and for them both to buy a property in Spain but all without her consent. It was a really funny, caring and delightful.

It is the first time I have read anything by Karen King but I will definitely look out for more of her books.

Thank you to Netgalley and Boldwood Books for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I've been looking for more light reads to read in between my thrillers and I always love a story with older main characters in the spotlight, so I couldn't resist adding The Runaway Wives to my shelves. The blurb sounded like so much fun and I was looking forward to that seaside setting and the focus on female friendship... The story definitely ended up delivering on those two counts, but there were also elements that didn't quite work as well for me personally. As a result, I ended up having mixed thoughts about The Runaway Wives in the end.

Don't get me wrong, I still love the premise of this story. The two wives and long-time friends finally having enough and deciding to go to Cornwall together, the small town community, the female friendship, the focus on older characters... There was a lot to love, and I especially loved the Cornwall setting. The seaside made for the perfect backdrop for this story, and it made me wish I could visit there myself... If there is one thing I miss, then that's not living close to the sea anymore. BUT. There were also elements that didn't work quite as well for me.

One is probably just a personal pet peeve, but I'm never a fan of a cheating element in my stories and while I wasn't surprised that it appeared with how horrible Nigel is in general, I still wasn't a fan to have this repeated more than once. On that note: Nigel was basically absolutely despicable and it made him feel too much like a caricature villain instead of an actual person. I can understand that this part of the story focuses on abusive relationships and gaslighting, but it was just too much and it made you wonder about Dee's judgment and just how credible it was for her to suddenly stand up to him after all those years. Geoff wasn't much better to be honest, but at least he had more of a reason behind his behavior and the communication with Babs was better (even if it took the story a long time to get there).

This is also one of the other issues: there is too much repetition going on and it made the story drag in parts. We don't need to be reminded over and over just what the husbands have done for the two friends to decide to go on vacation together, and some scenes seem to have been included just for the added drama. The plot twists themselves were mostly extremely predictable, but this is more easily forgiven as it works for this story and that whole 'happy ending' feeling. The portrayal of female friendship is very well done and I would have loved more focus on both Dee and Babs and their growing connection with the local community instead of all the relationship drama... Especially the whole situation between Babs and Geoff was way too drawn out.

All and all there were things that I enjoyed in The Runaway Wives, while there were other elements that didn't quite work as well for me personally. Most people do seem to love their time with this book though, so definitely don't give up on my account if you think you would enjoy this one!

With a beautiful writing style, this author show us the journey of self-discovery, love and live lessons. Because life doesn't end at certain age and it's never to late to learn something new and change.

This was such a sweet, fun book! I really loved this. Thank you Karen King, Netgalley, & boldwood books for this lovely e-arc.

This was a great story of two best friends trying to sort out their lives after retirement. Husband troubles and what their next step in life will be.

The Runaway Wives, by Karen King, D couldn’t be more excited she recently found an email about the retreat her husband booked for her birthday weekend and has even bought new clothes to wear on their vacation. The only problem is instead of surprising her with a trip he apologizes for forgetting to tell her he booked a golfing trip with his buddies And so instead of going off on the birthday weekend she is home feeling rejected by her husband Giles once again. After Babs comes home from her best friend Dee’s birthday luncheon she is shocked to see her husband has cleaned up their home only to find out he did it to show it to a realtor because he wants to sell it and move to Spain. As a matter of fact Jeff is going to Spain, because he has set up showings of farms in the area he wants to move to. Let down and dejected by their longtime spouses D and Babs decide to take a trip of their own. while on their trip one will see herself differently and the other’s Husband will rethink how he sees her. This is a funny well done story about a subject many women suffer from and that is being invisible in their marriage/family and although it is fiction and written for laughs there’s so much truth to it. I know starting over at such a late stage in life only goes this well in books but I feel so fortunate that I get to read about it I especially love the storyline with Tommy but that’s not to say I didn’t like the whole thing with Jeff I just love the whole book plain and simple. there’s nothing better than a book that leaves you with a great feeling and this one certainly does. #NetGalley, #BoldwoodBooks, #TheBlindReviewer, #HonestReview, #KarenKing, #TheRunawayWives,

Who hasn't just wanted to do what these ladies did? Just pack a bag and leave everything behind. If you can say yes to this you will love this book. It shows that you don't have to be in your first flush of youth to want a little adventure in your life and even, dare I say it, some romance in your life. I laughed from beginning to end.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book