Psychological Thriller Review: Such a Good Wife | Seraphina Nova Glass

Seraphina Nova Glass writes psychological thrillers that are unafraid to feature a flawed and messy lead, and that is something I admire about her books. In Such a Good Wife, a wife and stay at home mother of two engages in an affair that turns her family’s life upside down. Twisted and gripping!

About the Book | Such a Good Wife

Betrayal was just the beginning…

Melanie Hale is a devoted mother to her two children, a diligent caregiver to her ailing mother-in-law and a trusted neighbor in their wealthy Louisiana community. Above all, she’s a loving partner to her wonderful husband, Collin.

Then there are the parts of herself that Mel keeps hidden. She’s exhausted, worried and unfulfilled. So much so that one night, after a writers’ group meeting, Mel begins an affair with a successful local author named Luke. Suddenly she’s transformed into a role she doesn’t recognize—a woman who deceives with unseemly ease. A woman who might be capable of just about anything.

When Mel finds Luke’s dead body in his lavish rented house, she realizes just how high the stakes have become. Not only does she have to keep her affair a secret in order to preserve her marriage, but she desperately needs to avoid being implicated in Luke’s death. But who would want to kill him? Who else in her life is keeping secrets? And most terrifying of all, how far will they—and she—go to keep those secrets hidden? (Synopsis from Goodreads)

Review | Such a Good Wife

Melanie Hale is a highly flawed character. In fact, many times in the book, I not only didn’t agree with her actions, I didn’t like her. However, I think that’s what makes a great psychological thriller. Melanie made more than one mistake, but the mess she got herself into is one that became a labyrinth to try and get back out of.

As the book opens, Melanie is feeling unfulfilled in her life. She loves her husband and her two children, but her life is a never ending loop of being a housewife. Her adolescent daughter is hitting the age where she pulls away but still needs her mom. Her son is autistic and a lot of her time is devoted to helping him manage his emotions and fixations. In addition, she is the caregiver for her mother-in-law, who has early onset dementia and requires supervision and assistance.

It was easy to feel for Melanie, who regrets not having the career and experiences she could. Often, Melanie acknowledges how privileged she is. Particularly since we learn she grew up without a lot of money or options. Her husband Colin is kind and supportive. I liked that the author didn’t write Colin as a bad husband or one that was unsupportive. In fact, the times he seems a bit misguided are largely presented as a result of Mel not communicating properly rather than oversight by him.

Colin is the one who encourages Mel to attend a writing group that opened at a local bookstore. He seems to realize that she is missing her creative outlet that she had in university. Unfortunately, this suggestion leads Melanie to meet a famous and attractive romance writer named Luke. It starts with Mel being flattered by Luke’s attention, but quickly she engages in an affair. This isn’t a one-time fling, Mel spends enough time with Luke to get to know him, to become jealous when she learns he may have had a fling with another woman, and to consider leaving her life and family for him.

I loved that Seraphina Nova Glass went to those lengths with Mel and her affair. The story is narrated fully by Mel and the reader gets insight into her thoughts, feelings, and character each step of the way. Mel is consumed by Luke, and engages in a series of poor choices and mistakes. Through her narration, the reader also realizes that Mel knows this is a terrible betrayal she’s committing. She knows she is blowing up a good life and engaging in behaviors that would hurt her husband. She makes some attempts to pull herself out of it, but she doesn’t try very hard. It’s clear that Mel knows what she should do, but the more she gets away with her affair, the more she’s willing to test the limits.

The story kicks into a rapid pace when she discovers Luke’s dead body. Luke’s murder is that catalyst for the complete unraveling of her life and the lives of others in this small town. Mel is often so focused on covering up her affair that she makes poor decisions around the murder investigation and the police questioning her. To add complexity, Mel has a platonic relationship with the police officer investigating the case, and there is a whole related plot that centralizes around the two of them.

How far would you go to cover up the worst thing you’ve done? Mel grapples with this. Often it seems she’d rather risk being tried for murder than admit her affair. She gets herself into an increasingly twisted and tangled web of lies as she tries to avoid facing the consequences of her actions. Mel carries so many secrets and tells so many lies that I felt anxious on her behalf. I had no idea if and how she would find her way out of the mess she put herself in.

Such a Good Wife is the sort of book that will have you in a chokehold from start to finish. While some psychological thrillers ebb and flow, this book is on a straight incline from the first chapter to the last. The story has no room to breathe, as twists and turns crank the tension to the highest level. Dark and entertaining!

About the Author | Seraphina Nova Glass

Seraphina Nova Glass is an Edgar Award-nominated author published by HarperCollins and is represented by Folio Literary Management in New York. Her fifth book, The Vacancy in Room 10, will release in April 2024. 

Named a New York Times Book Review Summer Read and an Amazon Editor’s Pick in Mystery & Thrillers, her last book, On A Quiet Street, earned her #1 bestselling status in the Thriller category on Amazon. It was also hailed by Bustle as one of “10 Must-Read Books” and one of “10 Top Thrillers To Read On Your Summer Vacation” in the Boston Globe.

Publisher’s Weekly has named her “a writer to watch” and Emmy-nominated producer Michael Terence quoted her writing as “page-turning and cinematic.” Five-time Golden Globe-Winner Ed Asner starred in a short film she wrote, and called her an “exceedingly talented writer. Poignant, engrossing.”  
She recently sold the film rights for On A Quiet Street to Marvista Entertainment for a limited series. She is currently working on her sixth novel, The Oleanders, and is also an Assistant professor and Playwright-In-Residence at the University of Texas, Arlington.

Her most recent book, The Vanishing Hour, is a twisted psychological suspense novel about small towns with big secrets.