What’s Ashley Reading?: The Dilemma

The Dilemma by B.A. Paris

First line: It’s the cooling bathwater that wakes me.

Summary: Livia has been planning her fortieth birthday party for twenty years. She wants it to be perfect. Everything is in place and it looks like it is going to be a beautiful day. She does not want anything to spoil it. But she has a secret she has been keeping from her husband. She knows she should tell him but she doesn’t want to ruin the day. So she decides to wait until after the party.

Adam, Livia’s husband, wants Livia to have a great birthday especially since she has been planning it for so long. He has a big surprise for her but when he learns something that may ruin her life he has a dilemma on whether to tell her or wait until after the party.

My Thoughts: This wasn’t a thriller in the traditional sense. No one is murdered. It is just lots of miscommunication and secrets that cause problems throughout the plot. I really enjoyed it. I was very anxious about how it would end. I made myself not look at the end so I didn’t find out what happened. It was hard not to. I needed to know. This is a book that I really had to put down so I could sleep. Even after that I kept thinking about it. So immediately I had to finish it in the morning.

I did get a little annoyed with the characters and their misunderstandings. So many secrets involved in this. Lots of messed up relationships. But it gave the book a lot of shock factors. I know I gasped a few times. B. A. Paris is a really good author for a fast paced thrill ride. Give her books a try if you haven’t already!

FYI: My favorite so far has been Behind Closed Doors.

What’s Ashley Reading?: The Wives

The Wives by Tarryn Fisher

First line: He comes over on Thursday every week.

Summary: One husband. Three wives. Sounds strange right? Well it is my life. I am Thursday. They are Monday and Tuesday. One is the wife before me. The other came after. But we have worked out a schedule. Until one day I see that he has the receipt from a doctor’s office with a woman’s name on it. Could this be one of them? I must find out.

My Thoughts: This book. Such a roller coaster! First off, I cannot even imagine living this woman’s life and being okay with the family situation. I would definitely be her trying to find out everything I could about these other women. How would it not eat at you and drive a person crazy?! When I got to the half way point it seemed like the book had hit its climax but I was wrong. Everything just got crazier from there.

I jumped back and forth between reading and listening but when it got to the last 50 pages I had to read it because I NEEDED to know how it was going to end. It was a book that I had to set down and breathe a little bit after. It took me on a crazy ride. I highly recommend this!

FYI: Perfect for fans of psychological thrillers like Gone Girl and The Girl on the Train.