Dexter meets Mr. and Mrs. Smith in this wildly compulsive debut thriller about a couple whose fifteen-year marriage has finally gotten too interesting…
Our love story is simple. I met a gorgeous woman. We fell in love. We had kids. We moved to the suburbs. We told each other our biggest dreams, and our darkest secrets. And then we got bored.

We look like a normal couple. We're your neighbors, the parents of your kid's friend, the acquaintances you keep meaning to get dinner with.

We all have our secrets to keeping a marriage alive.

Ours just happens to be getting away with murder.

**

Review

#1 Library Reads, IndieNext, and Amazon Best of the Month in Thriller!
“The thriller we’re most excited to stay up with all night.”—*Entertainment Weekly

“Side effects of reading this include sleepless nights, and awkward looks from strangers on the subway due to your horrified expression.”—Cosmopolitan

“Will shock even the savviest suspense readers.”—Real Simple*

“A new twist on the genre.”—Refinery29

“If you read one book this year, make it My Lovely Wife.”—*Betches

“Wow! My Lovely Wife is a stunner—full of twists, well-drawn characters, and riveting suspense.”—Harlan Coben, #1 New York Times bestselling author

“Clever. Manipulative. Dark. Disturbing. What more can you ask for?”—Jane Corry, national bestselling author of *My Husband’s Wife*

“An assured and deliciously engrossing debut. You'll surely devour My Lovely Wife, but it will linger long after you've reached the last page.”—Sarah Pinborough, New York Times bestselling author of *Behind Her Eyes*

“You'll never look at your neighbors the same. I couldn't pull myself away from this story…Make sure you clear your schedule before you pick it up. Absolutely unputdownable.”—Liv Constantine, USA Today bestselling author of *The Last Mrs. Parrish

“[A] wicked, delicious tale of secrets, relationships, and the lengths to which some will go to keep the magic alive.”—*CrimeReads*

“[A] dark, disturbing exploration of family, marriage and murderous compulsions”—The Washington Post

“You might want to read this one during the daytime.”—Woman's Day***

“Mark our words: My Lovely Wife will be one of the most shocking and suspenseful thrillers you’ll read all year.”—Hello Giggles

“A knockout…an effortless page turner.”—*Publishers Weekly

*“It's a remarkable achievement, full stop.”—Shelf Awareness

“Do you hear me screaming and/or the sound of my hefty exhale? This novel is a JOURNEY. I was invested from the very first unsettling page.”—Elite Daily

“Truly horrifying in the most delicious way. Samantha Downing sucks you in with a great story, pitch-perfect prose and disturbingly dead-on insights into the dark side of human nature. I hope I never meet her in a dark alley…”—Nick Petrie, national bestselling author of *The Drifter*

“A fantastic foray into what we know—and what we do not—about those closest to us. Intricately plotted, fascinating characters—I loved it!”—Heather Graham, New York Times bestselling author of *Fade to Black*

“Dark, twisted--and impossible to put down. Samantha Downing has written a wickedly plotted and suspenseful psychological thriller.”—Meg Gardiner, Edgar award-winning author

“I loved this this brilliantly dark and twisted novel. One of the best books I've read this year! I have a sneaky feeling this is going to be big!”—C.J. Tudor, Sunday Times bestselling author of *The Chalk Man*

“Totally engrossing and I kept on thinking, one more chapter…an intelligent page-turner that makes you question everything.”—Araminta Hall, author of *Our Kind of Cruelty*

“It’s no mean feat to find something fresh in the crowded thriller field, but Downing pulls off an indisputable triumph with My Lovely Wife. Exemplary writing and outstanding pacing confirm Downing’s talent, but it’s her deliciously depraved characters that kept me flying through the pages. Couldn’t get enough of this subversive love-gone-sideways tale!”—Sophie Littlefield, national bestselling author of *That's What Frenemies Are For*

“Brilliant—I was enthralled by the premise and it totally delivered. Five star entertainment!”—Jill Mansell, New York Times bestselling author of *Fast Friends*

About the Author

Samantha Downing currently lives in New Orleans, where she is furiously typing away on her next thrilling standalone. My Lovely Wife is her first novel.

Books in the “Samantha downing” bookshelf created by Peter Wulff Jakobsen