On paper this should be right up my street but I struggled with this and kept stopping and coming back to it. It was okay but not brilliant

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC of The Pastor's Wife by LynDee Walker.

Even though the start was strong, it was hard to believe right off the bat. Cattiness to the extreme, and sainthood to the extreme. Unless we are located in Stepford, it's not happening. However, that doesn't mean that you don't want to keep reading to find out what's going on behind the scenes.

This is a pretty solid three stars. The plot got heavy starting in the middle, and downright overdone towards the end, so much so that it was hard to care as much. However, there is enough good to keep going.

Overall, a good murder mystery, but a bit slow, sometimes. I enjoyed the storytelling, narrator were really great, it's just that I wanted the pace to be a bit faster.
I would love to give it 3.5 stars. It took a little time for to got my ears on the voices of narrators. But, it is great holiday read.
Thank you

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for the chance to listen to this audiobook.

This follows two women Marta and Mary. Marta a young woman trying to run away from secrets she would rather forget. Mary the pastor’s wife. Who appears to be wholesome, but it anything but.

So many twists and turns and many I wasn’t expecting.

The narrators were great and gave a lot of life to this book! I wanted it to have more unexpected twists and less of the dialogue happening between characters. However, even with that small caveat the book was a great read. I love small town set books that have gossip and secrets in them and this fits the bill. I recommend the audiobook!

Audiobook Review - Stephanie Cannon and Patricia Rodriguez a chilling tale in a quiet sleepy town where secrets are the name of the game! The narrators kept those pages turning and leading you on a twisted and disturbed narrative that make you question the horrors of humanity.

“She let out a breath that she didn’t know she was holding….” Said the main character! I also had several of the same moments with this audiobook!

The Pastor’s Wife is a dark thriller - where the ugliness comes to light.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of this audiobook.

The Pastor’s Wife is a gripping psychological thriller that slowly builds momentum before delivering a satisfying payoff. While the beginning felt a bit slow, I’m glad I stuck with it—once the story picks up, it doesn’t let go.

The plot twist, though somewhat predictable midway through, was still cleverly executed and added depth to the story. LynDee Walker does a great job keeping the tension high and the pages turning.

If you’re a fan of twisty thrillers with dark secrets and steady suspense, this one is worth the read. I definitely recommend it!

For my first Arc listen, this was a good start. I’ll say the story was a bit slow from the beginning, but it picked up quite nicely. Loved the twists and turns, great work! Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced reader's copy.

OMG WTF was that ending. I was not expecting those twists at all. AT ALL. Usually I see stuff coming but not this time. This time it was nothing like I expected. The narration was perfect too.
YIKES.

Thank you!

This book was more then I could hope for. The characters appear one way but yet are they really how they appear. There are so many secrets that you never know who is "the villain" and who's not. The audio book was well narrated and I couldn't get enough of it. This is a must read if you like thrillers and mystery.

What a ride this one takes you on. It took me a bit to get into it and thought that at times it was slower than it needed to be but, in the end, it was well worth it. This story is mostly about a woman who moves to a new town after having some issues in the past. She finds herself being pulled in by the wife of the towns pastor. The pastor's wife takes a liking to her, and they become very close. As they are forging their friendship, she is learning quite a bit about her new friend and husband.
This book twists and turns in ways you would never guess. Well, that's not entirely true. It's easy to guess something right near the end but I can't tell you about that.
I had the chance to listen to the audio version of this book and really enjoyed it. The narrators are fantastic and so much fun to listen to as they bring the story and characters to life.

Oh my gosh, this was so good! I did not see the end coming. The twists in it were absolutely phenomenal. The audio reader was so dang good. I am so grateful to have been able to read this early, I think the characters were built up so well but you were always shocked when the truth came out.

This story wasn’t too hard to get into, it started off good and immediately had me wondering what exactly everyone’s secrets were. Halfway through I got a little antsy and was dying to find out what was going on. I was shocked to find out just what the pastor and his wife were really up to, and wow how sick!! I definitely would have liked to have more of an ending where the cop found the recording and the town finds out but it was good and I’m glad Martha got the ending she deserved 😉

This book was suspenseful suspenseful suspenseful. I couldn't stop reading and wanted to know what in the world was happening after each chapter! I honestly didn't expect some of the twists and turns and it was very well written. I enjoyed the audio of this and thought the narrator did a great job with voice portrayals. Overall was an excellent thriller that I would highly recommend!

ARC Review: The Pastor’s Wife by LynDee Walker

Characters: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Setting: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Plot: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Themes: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Emotional: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🌶️
Enjoyment: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley, LynDee Walker, and Bookouture for the advanced copy and audiobook!

This was hands-down my favorite read of the month so far. The Pastor’s Wife is a gripping, twisty small-town thriller that had me hooked from start to finish. Told in dual POVs—from the seemingly perfect pastor’s wife to the newest woman in town who takes the job as church secretary—the story unfolds in a close-knit community where everyone knows your name… and your business.

It’s one of those towns where everyone pretends to be perfect, especially in church, but behind closed doors? Secrets, lies, and plenty of gossip. You know something shady is going on, but you’re never quite sure what—addiction? affairs? theft? maybe something much darker.

The suspense builds with each chapter as you try to piece together what’s really happening and who can be trusted.

Fast-paced, intense, and packed with tension, I couldn’t stop listening/reading until I uncovered the final truth. If you enjoy thrillers full of secrets, small-town drama, and layered female characters, this one is for you.

I enjoyed the digital copy as well as the audiobook, but with the dual POV I think I preferred the audiobook with the different narrators voicing each character.

ALC Review
In this chilling mystery a woman named Martha Escapes her past and starts her new life in the sweet and calm town of Whitney Falls.
When one day the new pastors wife helps her from a accident and befriends her. As the two women get close to each other Martha starts to learn that the relation between Pastor and his wife doesn't seem to be what they pretend to show the town people. She also notices this black truck every time she visits their home with the start of her new life she fears does anyone now about her past and is spying on her.
One October morning martha is scooping through the couples house she see's something that makes her guess everything about the couple. She gets to know the pastors wife is not as sweet as she seemed to believe.
My review: I was absolutely intrigued and hooked from the start. It made me question everything and everyone. The only thing is that you have to give the book some time to develop the plot to actually start the thrilling sections but when they start they do not end till the last chapter of the book. I really enjoyed listening to it, both the narrators did very good job to show the emotions and personality of both Martha and Mary!
Thank you Netgally, Bookouture Audio and lyndee walker for this amazing Audiobook!!

I loved the different POVs between Mary & Martha! The timing of the switching between the two was spot on and flowed great throughout the story. The 2 narrators voiced this story perfectly as well! I enjoyed the twists and figuring out the darkness that surrounds Whitney Falls. I appreciated the ending for what it was, but I wish there had been answers to some of the bigger plot-lines that seemed to be overshadowed in the end.

Thank you to NetGalley & Bookouture Audio for the advanced copy!

Set in Whitney Falls we follow the mysterious story of Pastor Tim and his wife Mary, who befriends a young new girl called Martha, but the more time Martha spends with them the more she becomes suspicious that something isn’t quite right. Martha comes to town with bags of her own secrets so she is well attuned to recognising dark behaviour isn’t she?

I quite enjoyed this audiobook and felt the narration for Mary and Martha really added to their character building. I found myself really feeling for Martha by the end, I wanted to know more about her, a sequel would be great to find out more.
I felt the end was a little rushed and got a little confusing at times. I also feel like there were a few too many questions left unanswered.

I would recommend this to anyone who loves a slow burn, psychological mystery with a chick flick feel.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for offering this ARC in exchange for my personal thoughts.

Great audio book. Wow not what I was expecting, more twists than spaghetti. I was expecting adultery, jealousy and unhappiness. These I got but with so much more . Mary and Tim, the pastor and his beautiful wife, the book revolves around this couple and the new girl in town. This book touches an unsavoury topic with sensitivity and understanding.. A great story. The narrator did a great job .