Book Review: The Ex-Wife | Jess Ryder

A twisty novel of suspense that will make you question everyone!!

Wow, what a read!! The Ex-Wife was my first novel by Jess Ryder and as soon as I finished I added her previous two to my Amazon cart because I am so excited about this book. Jess has an incredible gift with story telling, and so I looked her up to learn a bit more about her. Jess Ryder the author is actually a pseudonym for Jan Page, a screenwriter, television producer, and novelist. I do think that explains her gift with crafting a good psychological thriller—it isn’t so different from how television producers and screenwriters create the elements that guide the viewer through the story they want to tell.

A book about marriage gone horribly, terribly wrong when a woman returns home to find her husband and their daughter have left with no explanation. Wickedly twisted and clever!

About the Book | The Ex-Wife

Natasha is a barista struggling to make ends meet, when she is struck by a car with a handsome businessman driving it while biking to work. After a whirlwind courtship, Natasha and Nick are married and have a beautiful daughter named Emily. Natasha is so happy being a mother. In fact, everything would be perfect if it weren’t for Nick’s ex-wife, Jen. Nick is patient with Jen, and Natasha lets him be because her and Nick’s relationship is strong and stable.

And then one day, Nick leaves to take Emily to daycare while Natasha has a lie-in. When Natasha goes to pick up Emily from daycare, she discovers that Emily never showed up. Frantically, Natasha runs home, calling local hospitals. But when she arrives home, she notices something unexpected—all of Nick and Emily’s things have been packed up and taken from the home.

Natasha is struck by confusion, grief, and anger. She doesn’t know how to reach Nick, but she has an idea. Swallowing her pride, Natasha reaches out to the one person she thought she’d never need anything from—Jen. After everything that has happened, can Natasha really trust Jen? And does she have a choice?

My Review | The Ex-Wife

Natasha is a woman who truly believed she had it all. A loving husband, a gorgeous home, and a daughter she loves with her full heart. Sure, she has to deal with her husband Nick’s ex-wife Jen, who can’t seem to leave them alone and who is still close with Nick’s family, but she still knows she is blessed.

Until the day that Natasha arrives home to discover that Nick and their daughter Emily are gone, and so are their belongings. Natasha was devastated. Frankly I was devastated just reading it! Can you imagine how crazy that would drive you??? To come home and realize your husband has disappeared with your daughter, and you had no idea it was going to happen. The lack of answers and closure alone (aside from missing your daughter and husband) would honestly drive me mad! I felt infuriated on Natasha’s behalf during this sequence. Natasha realizes she must put their differences aside and talk to Jen–the dreaded ex-wife–if she wants answers.

The story is told in alternating POV between Natasha, Jen, and a mysterious woman named Anna. Despite the origin of Natasha and Nick’s relationship (or should I say, affair), it was hard not to feel for Natasha. The gaping hole in her heart where her husband and daughter should be, the lack of closure or understanding of what could have happened. Meanwhile Jen was a character who inspired a variety of feelings. At times I really felt for Jen, and others I didn’t trust her at all. I thought Jen was expertly written because the reader doesn’t quite know what to make of her. Meanwhile, I loved the way Jess used the present story of “Anna” on the run to counterbalance where we were at in the main story. We know something happened that led to a life on the run, but getting there is the fun part.

I certainly didn’t know who to trust and I was desperate to know what happened. The tension built around the story of the disappearance. The fear in the chapters narrated by Anna was so tightly wound I felt it might snap. The story is filled with secrets, lies, and betrayals.

Jess Ryder has a gift with plot structures and twists. I was confused as to what was going on for about the first 30% of the book, but by 40% the book was just mind-blowing twist layered upon lies layered upon story developments. I was captivated! I was actually reading Jess’s blog and she has a fascinating piece about writing twists in psychological thrillers.

“I’d describe [twists] as the deliberate misleading of the reader, encouraging them to make false assumptions and draw wrong conclusions about the narrator/s, the plot, the identity of the characters, their motivations and ambition, or how they are connected to each other. As the book progresses, the reader creates a fictional world in their own imagination and then, at a time of their choosing, the writer brings it crashing down.”

I hadn’t really thought of twists in psychological thrillers as narrative devices intended not only to deceive the characters, but the reader as well. I absolutely loved this insight into how Ryder crafts her novels, and you can see it used to expert effect in The Ex-Wife. What an interesting way of manipulating our imaginations! The writing helps the reader create a richer backstory through subtle clues, only to then tear that apart with a simple shift in perspective or additional detail—one small missing piece of the puzzle with enormous implications. I loved this description!!!

I will be reading more from Jess Ryder, and I hope other readers find her book as captivating as I did!

Thank you to Bookouture and Jess Ryder for an opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Television Adaptation | The Ex-Wife

This book published in June of 2018, but a favorite author of mine, Catherine Steadman, has adapted it to a script and a television series was released in the UK in late 2022. I can’t wait to watch the series and perhaps update my review. Learn more about the series and watch it (even in the US!) on BritBox.