The Silent Wife

This novel is not what it appears to be: it is not a standard mystery or juicy suburban thriller. If you are looking for a mainstream Ruth Ware/Liane Moriarty/etc., this novel is probably frustrate you.
This is a novel about secrets and choices and keeping your mouth shut when you should speak, and being passive aggressive when you should be assertive, and doing these things over and over until
It is too late and you can't take them back and violence occurs. The main characters both do this, and one of them has done this before as well, in their past—keeping silent and choosing the passive aggressive route of the silent treatment.
The intertwined milieu of therapy greatly interested me, both as a (retired—I am disabled) therapist, and as a therapy client. The author gets technical about therapeutical theories—Jung, Adler, for example—and in doing so really enhances the novel.

This novel was exquisite, it pulled me in entirely. It is a novel that can be read easily in one or two days. In fact, it is a novel that calls you. A relationship of twenty years, never a marriage, because neither felt it was necessary. Jodi Brett, a psychologist, with several degrees behind her name and Todd Gilbert, a developer, builder, with no degrees behind his name, met by accident. Jodi was moving and her moving truck struck Todd's truck in a blinding Chicago rain. Somehow in-between the yelling and accusations a relationship developed, and within a short time they moved in together. They had a perfect life, thought Jodi. A lovely apartment, expensive furnishings, good food, fast cars and good sex. The only issue was the never discussed liaisons that Todd had with other women. Jodi, ignored them, never addressed them, and lived in a perpetual state of denial.

This denial seemed to be a state for both of them. Each of them had a difficult, abusive childhood. OnlyTodd spoke of his. Jodi kept her issues covered, deep denial, that seems strange for a therapist. They lived an altered life,an altered existence. Todd got what he wanted, whenever he wanted, and, Jodi, got what she wanted, she thought. Jodi dressed in expensive beige pants and white shirt while at home,and this seems to be her existence, beige. Just right, no highs, no lows, until something occurs that brings everything crashing.

Couples who talk above the fray, but never really discussing their feelings. Too afraid to show what is really going on? On the surface, the perfect couple, below the surface, what has this alliance wrought? Love is apparent, but where is the love, really?

The author, I have read, died before her novel was published. Her first novel, exquisite writing. I could see and feel the characters, their surroundings, their emotions right there, but not shared with each other. This is the novel I would recommend, surprising in some sense, but so right, to the core!

I bought this book because of all of the comparisons to Gone Girl, a book that I loved, and there are some comparisons. This book has the alternating narratives, the general cynicism of life, and the murder. What it doesn't have is the mystery and intrigue that followed Gone Girl. That's not to say this book wasn't good, because it was. It was thought provoking in the sense of following two people who were so right for each other implode in the quietest way possible. The story telling had a detached and quiet way about it that was reminiscent of the main character Jodi, a counseling psychologist, who prided herself on being someone who bends, not breaks. As a psychology student myself I enjoyed the discussion of Adlerian theory and its application throughout the book to describe some of the reasoning behind the main characters actions. Overall, I enjoyed the book well enough.

I casually picked this book up at TLA, never really planning to read it. But last night I casually picked it up again and decided to read it. And I did. Cover to cover. All in a single evening.

That's all I'll say about it. I think I should be silent about Silent Wife. Except to say you should pick up a copy yourself. And see what happens.

Some people may call this 2013's version of Gone Girl but that's not true. In fact, I think I saw a couple of websites that told me that this was this year's model. But, the only thing that these two books have in common is that there is a man and a woman who are married and that they tell their story in alternating chapters. This book goes much deeper into the mind of the characters; the minds of all of us. The author really knows how to describe the mind and what goes on in it what people think its various points in their lives. She also, in my opinion, does a fine job talking about some tenets of psychiatry, which I really enjoyed. As I did the whole book. I recommend this highly, but if you're looking for this years Gone Girl, keep looking.