Best of Psychological Thrillers: The Wife Between Us | Greer Hendricks & Sarah Pekkanen (book review)

Over the years, I’ve gotten more requests for recommendations from people who are just discovering (or rediscovering) their love of reading. This can be a tricky exercise—if someone hasn’t read hundreds of psychological thrillers, but they’ve read one (maybe a Gone Girl type of heavy hitter)—I want to give them some of the best in the genre to help them find what they like. For instance, I prefer character-driven over plot-driven thrillers, but that is something I’ve realized after reading a lot of books.

In the spirit of this exercise, I’ve been revisiting some of the books that I think of as the best in the genre. Not only does this help me think through the top authors and books in the genre, but it’s fun to reread the books themselves! Will I still enjoy it as much as I did the first time? Does it hold up?

One of my go-to recommendations is always The Wife Between Us by the incredible duo—Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen. The two actually aren’t writing together anymore, but they produced five of the best psychological thrillers in the genre—ones that I would recommend to nearly any reader. Even though I remembered the big twist in this one, it was an amazing re-read and there was a lot I didn’t remember.

What is The Wife Between Us about?

Vanessa is at the lowest point in her life. Her marriage ended recently—her husband left her for a younger woman. The new wife is shiny, perfect, beautiful, sweet—everything that Vanessa used to be. Now Vanessa is bitter, obsessed, and barely holding down a job while living with her Aunt in New York City. Vanessa is the most broken she’s been, and she knows who is to blame…Richard. Her ex-husband. He’s about to get married to the new wife and Vanessa will do anything she can to stop the wedding…

Nellie is a primary school teacher who has a dream life. She lives with her best friend Sam, she loves her job, and she has met a true prince charming…Richard. They met on an airplane when Richard gave up his first class seat for an active-duty soldier. Nellie is an anxious person, and flying is one of her triggers. Richard calmly helps her through the flight, and by the end of it the two are smitten. Their whirlwind romance included romantic dinners and playful activities like sledding in the park. Now they’re engaged, and Nellie couldn’t be happier. She knows he has an ex-wife, but that’s in the past. Until she starts to see signs that someone is following her. She keeps her doors locked, and looks behind her wherever she goes. Still, she can’t help but look forward to her wedding when she will truly feel safe.

It’s a tale as old as time. You may think you know these women–the bitter ex-wife, the innocent wife-to-be. But as they say—looks can be deceiving…

What did I think of The Wife Between Us?

I loved The Wife Between Us the first time and I loved it as much the second time! Since a lot of the tension in psychological thriller surround The Twist, they don’t always have the same magic on a reread. Those jaw-dropping moments are exhilarating on the first read, but when you already know what they are, you aren’t going to have that same “what?!?!?!” reaction on subsequent reads. The barometer for me is always how much I enjoyed the book on a second or third read. It’ll never replace the first time, but it does speak to depth of the story that in the absence of the jaw-dropping, unexpected moments, the book is still great.

For me The Wife Between Us fell into that category. I loved it the first time—enough that after 6+ years, it’s still one of my go-to recommendations. It doesn’t have the popcorn style that has become popular lately on TikTok with authors like Mary Kubica, Frieda MacFadden, and Kiersten Modglin—those writers rely on the twists to deliver a book and don’t work on a reread because the plots are more shallow and the characters lack development. Those are one-and-done fun reads that I don’t ever revisit. Here, I enjoyed it as much, if not more, knowing what direction it would head.

What were my initial thoughts on a first-read? (unedited from original review)

What a ride! There are several layers of twists in this book. It will start slow, and you’ll get a feel for the major players. But don’t let the pace fool you! The twists are dropped on you like bombshells, and you’ll find yourself paging backwards to make sure you read what you thought you just did. My jaw was on the floor at two twists in particular!

I love the way Greer and Sarah write–they don’t hit you in the face with the revelations. They drop them in, subtle in the delivery, but monumental in the impact. The novel is character-driven. I love a book that deals with shattered characters as well as this one. There is the strength that shows to the world, and the strength within. We should all know that what is projected–what we see–isn’t usually the full story. Things that seem perfect rarely are. And people that seem broken are often much stronger for what they went through than most will ever know.

I will happily read anything by these two awesome women. If by some chance you haven’t read this yet, go get a copy today!!!

What did I think on a re-read?

I loved it. I was surprised to agree with basically everything in my original review, but I felt like it captured what I loved about this book. The pacing was perfect in my opinion—it starts with a lot of character building and setting the scene, and then the authors turn it all on its head. Don’t assume you know these women, they have a lot more layers to peel back before the book is done.

The first twist is the big one I remembered, but knowing it was coming didn’t detract from reading it again. I was able to notice how cleverly the story was pieced together for the reader, so that all of the clues were there, but they hadn’t revealed themselves yet. In fact, I still had to pause reading and page back right after it drops and reread that part again to make sure I processed the subtle-yet-juicy reveal. Hendricks and Pekkanen never go over the top with their twists—the goal of this story isn’t the blindsides, it’s the nuance to the characters and their dynamics that the reader can never fully trust. Everyone in this book is unreliable in their own way, but who is the most unreliable? You’ll have to read to find out.

The other twists were ones I didn’t remember until I got into the story. As with the first read-through, I found them subtle yet powerful. Each twist packs a punch, and it doesn’t let up until the very final words of the epilogue. The characters in the book are so richly developed. You’ll wonder as you read the book what exactly happened between Vanessa and Richard. Whatever it was broke her—the Vanessa we meet is not the woman she was when she married Richard.

Woven throughout the book are stories from Vanessa and Nellie’s pasts. Some of these are before the women met Richard, and others chronicle the highlights of their courtship and in the case of Vanessa—her marriage. I had forgotten how compelling the backstories of the characters are, including Richard. No one in this book is who they seem. The side characters like Maureen (Richard’s sister), Sam (Nellie’s roommate and best friend), and Vanessa’s aunt have a depth to them that can be rare for supporting cast. As someone who really needs great, flawed characters to give a book top marks, this book delivered above and beyond.

Final thoughts on The Wife Between Us

This is one of those books that I am being as careful as possible not to spoil. It’s so intricate, I had to think through a few things I wanted to say because the twists and turns are woven throughout the story, taking on new meaning as more is revealed. Sometimes I’ll add spoilers in dropdowns or on a second page so that I can talk about those things, but here I don’t want to do that. I don’t want people to be tempted to learn the twists and turns before reading it, because they won’t have the same impact. The power of these twists lies in the context and expert storytelling.

As brilliant seven years later as the day I read it!

This review was originally posted in 2017. I reread the book and wrote an updated review in 2024.

If you liked The Wife Between Us, what should you read next?

About the Book (Goodreads)

When you read this book, you will make many assumptions.
You will assume you are reading about a jealous ex-wife.
You will assume she is obsessed with her replacement – a beautiful, younger woman who is about to marry the man they both love.
You will assume you know the anatomy of this tangled love triangle.
Assume nothing.

Twisted and deliciously chilling, Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen’s The Wife Between Us exposes the secret complexities of an enviable marriage – and the dangerous truths we ignore in the name of love.

Read between the lies.