The book opens with an interview chapter between Juanita Moore of Channel 7 Action News and Cam Lasky-Atlanta’s Steak King-the brains behind the Lasky Steak restaurant empire.🥩 Throughout the book, readers are teased with "the secret" that threatened to tear Stella's world apart should people, particularly Georgie, were to find out. Which has everyone guessing as to what it possibly was. I figured out fairly early on what I thought it was, and I was proved correct, but the manner in which it happened wasn't really any great drama I thought. As it was hinted as being something so terrible, I had envisioned a much darker playout. But I was hoodwinked by one aspect that I never saw coming...and that made everything else fall into place and why the family was so estranged. The blurb on this one sounded interesting, but I put off reading it...thinking it was a typical domestic thriller. Then I read “Dear Wife” and absolutely loved Belle’s writing, and an opportunity for a Buddy Read came up and I love those! I loved our main character, Iris, who wears her heart on her sleeve and I wanted to be her best friend. She is strong yet vulnerable and I enjoyed her character's growth. At times I wanted to yell at her and others I wanted to hug her. Thoughts: My Darling Husband kept me on the edge of my seat through the entire book. I loved the way Belle revealed layers of the story slowly, so the mystery always got more complex. This book took a common fear and explored what someone would do when put in that situation. The multiple points of view gave an interesting look at what the characters were thinking and skipped from the present to the past.

Overall this is more of a thriller than a mystery or suspense novel, but it also has some humanity and an intriguing look at wealth disparity and privilege. Kimberly Belle writes some very exciting books and I look forward to her next one.

Did you find yourself switching allegiances to characters as the novel progressed? Whom did you trust and then later begin to doubt? How does the author accomplish those shifting loyalties? The pain and intensity the character of Iris goes through - it’s palpable and yet I’m sorry to say that her personality bugged me. And I mean, bugged me. Her all consuming love for a man that lied to her for the entire course of their marriage, it made my eyes roll! If you’ve read this, I hope you’ll understand why and not think ill of me.. Stella is confused and scared about the past, present and future. Added to this is the emotional dimension of wanting to protect their daughter, her stepdad's cancer, and the tangled relationship with her sister and mother. There are clues throughout the first half of the book as Rob makes thinly veiled threats. I think it was pretty obvious what the big twist would be and I also guessed another secret.

Thank you to Park Row for providing me with a widget of the ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Expected Publication Date: 12/28/21. As the days pass, Iris still cannot belive that Will would lie about his travel plans. She decides to investigate herself to find out the truth. Iris begins to uncover inconsistencies in Will’s past and feels betrayed. Along the way, she meets a friend of his that he has never mentioned. As her journey continues, she learns much more about Will’s past and clues are revealed. As the story unravels, Jade begins to find out that her husband may not be exactly who she thinks he is. Cam is not as financially stable as he led Jade to believe and he may have put their family in danger. Is this just a home invasion? Or is there more to the intruder than they first believed?

A wealthy family's perfect life is about to come crashing down in one afternoon. Although, as wife Jade is about to find out, it really wasn't that perfect at all. Her husband, Cam Laskey is the steak king of Atlanta, with a chain of restaurants across the city that have a hefty price tag and a long waiting list. On arriving home with their children, Beatrix and Baxter, Jade discovers that somebody was waiting for them. Follow-up to Question 5: Supposedly, Will has changed by the time he marries Iris. Is it possible for people to change? Another case of things not always being as they seem from the outside. Jade and Cam Lasky on the outside are happily married with two wonderful children and quite well off. However when an intruder takes Jade hostage demanding a hefty ransom Cam has to scramble to obtain money he does not have with his celebrity chef image being just a mirage. This book is written in first person perspective and the main protagonist is Stella. The benefits of books written in first person perspective are as long as they are well written it makes you feel that you are being spoken to by the protagonist and it can create more of a bond between yourselves and them.