My Husband’s Lies - Liz Lawler

Reading Challenge Category: Free ARC from NetGalley

Official Blurb:

I love my husband. But should I trust him?
I watch the clock anxiously. My husband Mark should have been home hours ago. Where is he?
When at last I hear the noise at the door, I breathe a sigh of relief, but it’s the police – Mark is wanted in connection with a young woman’s death. My blood turns to ice.
Mark swears he had nothing to do with it, that the beautiful blonde woman was a colleague, nothing more. But he refuses to tell me where he really was that night. I believe that he’s not a killer – but I know he’s hiding something. It wouldn’t be the first time.
Then Mark is gravely hurt, lying in a coma. I’ll do anything to keep my husband here with me and our perfect, blue-eyed little boy. As I sit by his hospital bed, tears streaming down my face, I realise that if Mark can’t prove his innocence then I’ll have to.
But digging deeper into my husband’s life makes me question everything I thought I knew about us. If Mark ever wakes up, will we have a marriage left at all?
Or will my husband’s secrets tear my precious family apart for good?

My Thoughts:

"My Husband's Lies" by Liz Lawler is a book that started with great promise, but as I continued reading, I found myself wrestling with conflicting feelings. The novel introduces us to Kate, the central character, and from the outset, her actions and reactions raised some questions. For instance, the idea of someone entering your home and rearranging your furniture should naturally evoke a sense of intrusion and outrage unless, of course, it was a service you had requested. Kate's oddly muted response to this situation struck me as a bit unrealistic.
The story revolves around Kate's concern for her son's safety, which is a fundamental theme. Yet, her response to this concern was puzzling. Instead of immediately prioritising her son's well-being and ensuring his safety, she embarks on a curious journey of playing detective, leaving her child in a potentially hazardous situation. This choice seemed contrary to her maternal instincts, and it frustrated me as a reader.
What bothered me most was Kate's passivity throughout the story. She appeared to allow events to unfold around her rather than taking charge of her own life. This passiveness contributed to my growing impatience with her character. I found myself yearning for her to display more agency and take control of the circumstances.
As the story progressed, the plot took some rather implausible and far-fetched turns, which strained the boundaries of credibility. This departure from a more grounded and believable narrative left me feeling disconnected from the outcome. I found it challenging to invest emotionally in the story as it ventured into territory that seemed increasingly removed from reality.
In conclusion, "My Husband's Lies" was a book that held potential with its initial premise but fell short of my expectations due to the inconsistencies in character behaviour and the increasingly unbelievable plot. The two-star rating reflects my overall disappointment with the book, as I was left wanting more from a story that could have been more engaging and relatable had it adhered to a more logical and plausible narrative.