Kimberly McCreight

"When Amanda, the gorgeous wife of start-up millionaire Zach Grayson, is discovered dead at the bottom of the stairs in her stately Brooklyn brownstone, her husband is immediately fingered as the primary suspect. Zach calls Lizzie, his law school classmate, hoping their shared history will convince her to come to his aid ... As she works to exonerate Zach, Lizzie is drawn into the privilege, passion, and excess churning beneath Park Slope, Brooklyn's idyllic, virtuous streets. It's a world that's completely foreign to Lizzie, but, if she's honest, also unexpectedly intriguing--particularly in light of the increasingly steep cost of keeping her own troubled marriage afloat"--

A Good Marriage

armoni mayes

buny

took me SO long w me having to work around family troubles to read this but rn it feels like this (as in reading books) is all i have and im so deeply overcome by that comfort of always knowing i have something so.. whole to fall back onto god i always ALWAYS want to be curious abt and in love with books ㅜㅜㅜ this sucked very bad and i need to stop judging books by their covers

Alexa M

really kept me on the edge of my seat! i never had any idea where this was going. glad i picked this one up on a whim.

sophia n

this was a really solid domestic thriller! i'm surprised how much i liked it. normally for me the entertainment value for a book like this is to just sit back and be like "wow thank god i'm not married and/or straight" but i actually got really invested in the two characters who's povs we're reading from, and i think that's what tipped this over from a 3-star-average/solid thriller to a 4-star-very-good one for me. 

there were some good red herrings and twists throughout even up to the final reveal but overall i'd say it was just incredibly well plotted which was the main enjoyment factor. i think my biggest drawback is that it just felt a little too long (especially the beginning) and then the end felt almost a bit rushed in comparison. still super solid read though.

i'm realizing i'm not sure if i've ever rated a domestic thriller 5 stars. i'm not sure what it would take for me to give one 5 stars ... but i'll let you know when i find it lmao

tws: csa, rape, sexual assault, stalking, incest, self harm, blood, and murder ofc

Cheri McElroy

Lizzie goes to work in a law firm, doing a job she hates, because of issues with her husband, Sam. Then Zach, a former law school friend, asks her to defend him after he is thought to have killed his wife.

This book was a fast-paced, legal thriller, filled with unlikeable characters and lots of lies. My favorite character was Amanda, the victim. I had such sympathy for her as her story unfolded. While definitely a thriller, the book touched on themes of keeping secrets, abuse, and alcoholism. I enjoyed the depth this brought to the story.

Lauren Tabor

4.5 This had so many unexpected twists. It was such a ride, but I found the ending unsatisfactory.

Book Frisson

** spoiler alert **
           I don’t think I’ll reread this book, but boy did it get my heart PUMPIN.

I was shocked on so many levels as I turned corners in this book trying to uncover the truth, which I feel that every character was trying to do too: Maude, Sarah, Lizzie, Sam, Amanda, and even Zach (though he’s a turd).

I felt a little crazy when Lizzie uncovered Amanda’s delusions, but all in all, I was very satisfied with this read. ☺️


EDIT: Down to 3 stars. I liked this book, but it just doesn’t measure up to some of my all-time favorites and like I said, I won’t reread this book.

Lacey Feigl

SUMMER THRILLER ALERT!!

All Lizzie wanted to do growing up was to work in the US Attorney’s office. She knew she had the work ethic and the brains to boot. But when her husband who has a pretty heavy drinking problem gets into a costly accident, Lizzie must enter the world of corporate lawyers to financially support them both. She gets a call from one of her old law school friends, Zach, asking Lizzie to defend him for an assault charge against a police officer. Zach then tells her he was distraught because he had just found his wife’s battered and deceased body. She is hesitant to say the least and doesn’t want to get involved. She tells Zach she isn’t that kind of lawyer but when venting to her boss, her boss insists she takes the case. The more Lizzie digs, the less she wants to see of her former friend but now has to prove his innocence in a court of law.

A Good Marriage is 387 pages long and took me 5 days to read.

I’m giving this book a 4.5 out of 5! This story is nuts and has so many twists and turns I didn’t see coming. It would take me 10 paragraphs just to summarize this book so point-blank, READ THIS BOOK ASAP! This I the simmer thriller everyone will be talking about and you won’t regret jumping on board!

Thank you, Harper Books, for sending me this copy!

Here’s to the adventure of finding a novel novel!

Lacey

Bri Ozalas

Did not finish. VERY slow-moving, I lost interest.

Brian Walborn

If you like a good murder mystery that keeps you guessing until the final pages, then you'll like A Good Marriage by Kimberly McCreight. Intriguing story with a few plot holes, but nothing that detracts from the overarching story. A good marriage of both suspense and pacing. I really enjoyed this one.

**Soon to be an Amazon Prime series** The perfect life. The perfect neighbourhood. The perfect murder. Welcome to Park Slope, where everyone has something to hide... _____________ When young lawyer Lizzie gets a call for help from an old friend accused of murdering his wife, she reluctantly says yes. Zach is the chief suspect in his wife, Amanda’s, murder but there’s no way he could be guilty – is there? The further Lizzie dives into the glossy world of Brooklyn’s Park Slope, the more she realises that things don’t add up. Zach doesn’t know the most basic details of his wife’s past, and Amanda’s friends barely know he exists. And in uncovering the truth, Lizzie will be forced to confront dark secrets that lie at the heart of her own once perfect marriage... _____________ 'McCreight is a master of misdirection – even if you've already read a lot of domestic thrillers, you'll be shocked by her jaw-dropping twists. Clear a spot next to Big Little Lies and The Couple Next Door – A Good Marriage is just as edgy and just as good.' APPLE BOOKS 'Expertly blends domestic drama with a gripping murder mystery.... Filled with credible plot twists and realistically flawed characters, McCreight's page-turner presses readers to question everything they think makes a "good" marriage. This will stay with the reader long after the finish.' PUBLISHERS WEEKLY 'McCreight expertly weaves multiple plot threads with a few sly red herrings, paving the way to a series of surprising, and satisfying, reveals. A smartly plotted and altogether successful union of legal thriller and domestic suspense.' KIRKUS 'Filled with emotional urgency, sharp insights and profound revelations, Kimberly McCreight's newest novel is a marvel – both a compelling mystery and a discerning exploration of love and marriage.' JEAN KWOK, author of SEARCHING FOR SYLVIE LEE 'Part legal thriller, part domestic suspense, pure page turner, this is a novel that will have you questioning everything you thought you knew about marriage.' MARY KUBICA, author of THE OTHER MRS 'Absolutely, positively riveting. I could not put this down! Kimberly McCreight has crafted a captivating, thrilling story that bolts out of the gate at a breakneck speed and never misses a step.' TAYLOR JENKINS REID, author of DAISY JONES AND THE SIX 'Full of dark secrets and surprising twists, A Good Marriage explores what lies beneath the surface of friendships, families, and communities. A captivating psychological thriller that gripped me from beginning to end.' MEGAN MIRANDA, author of THE LAST HOUSE GUEST 'I loved A Good Marriage, a fast-paced page-turner that combines the complexity of a legal thriller with the emotional resonance of domestic suspense. You won't be able to put it down!' LISA SCOTTOLINE, author of SOMEONE KNOWS

Lauren Attaway

What makes a good marriage?
Lizzie is dealing with questions of her own marriage when she receives a call from an old law school friend asking for help as he's being implicated in his wife's murder. This book got a lot of early buzz, from the Nicole Kidman option, to the Book of the Month pick. I've enjoyed the author's work in the past so I was interested by the concept of a crime thriller/domestic thriller. I was so surprised by one particular twist that I sat up in my chair and told my husband I'd been had. I don't want to say too much about the book, but I really loved the two perspectives and the list of possible suspects were interesting and fun to speculate on. Another great quarantine read!

Juliette

Definitely a slow build to reveal who the killer is, which is why I rounded up to four stars. I prefer more fast-paced thrillers and there were twists throughout the book but the last 100 pages of so had one twist after another! I would definitely still recommend for those that like legal thrillers and are okay with it being a bit of a slower read.

Sam Pulliam

This is a high three for me. I was nervous because I thought this would be a typical courtroom thriller but it wasn't as slow as I anticipated. I found myself unable to put the book down because I just needed to know what would happen. Two seemingly unrelated mysteries start to come together and it was exciting to see how they would ultimately be connected. I really enjoyed jumping between Amanda's and Lizzie's POVs and slowly learning about both of their lives. I also really loved to hate one character in particular. 

There were some things that didn't work for me, though. I didn't really understand why most of the couples would have even married each other in the first place. I also found myself having to just accept some things without much development.

Overall, this is an exciting and entertaining read if you want a thriller if you just want to go along for the ride.

Dorian Avers

** spoiler alert **
           This was an okay thriller. I had half of the big twist figured out and was upset with myself for not figuring out the second part. And the ending was so-so. Being right wasn't satisfying to me, and solving a mystery should be. This book has good writing and I liked the richer setting, but it just missed the mark. I actually enjoyed the mundane parts of this book, like when Amanda would just be chatting with her friends. To the authors credit there were a lot of different aspects of this novel, but they didn't seem the most well developed. 
 BIG SPOLIER! It is ridiculous that she died because she fell down the stairs and then got up several times, falling down, and smacking her own head on the stairs, damaging her skull so badly that they couldn't tell whether the weapon was a golf club or the fall. Like, it almost sounds comical and that is the part of the novel that stuck with me the most.

Tayler Park

I'm not sure how "Book Of The Month" selects such amazing, breath taking, and addicting books. I really don't understand it. I've bought 9 books from that company and there has only been 1 book out of 9 I didn't like. Give this book to 30% then you'll be addicted just like I was. It was almost a DNF until I got to about 30%. You have to get in to the writing a little bit and the story line. I loved the ending and never would of guessed it. Writing this review about two weeks later I think I would of gave this book a 3 star, but I still enjoyed it.

Emily C Peterson

Hannah

Yuki Reads

I loved this one! 4.25 stars (ish)— definitely felt like a mix of Big Little Lies and a legal thriller. Everyone had something to hide, and I definitely thought I guessed the ending halfway through....but I was wrong, which was great because I love a good plot twist!

A Good Marriage

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