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3.47 AVERAGE
3.47 AVERAGE
funny
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
funny
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The Husbands is the story of Nora Spangler whose on track to become a partner in the law firm where she works. She’s behind after taking some time off for parental leave when their child was born. She’s pregnant with their second and worried that may stall her career. Meanwhile, she has the infamous “Second Shift.” She is the one who keeps track of events, organizes meals, repairs, and caring for their child. Hayden believes he is a supportive husband because he “helps.” She loves her husband, but inside she seethes with resentment.
They are looking for a new, larger home since they have a second child on the way. Nora is drawn to a house in an exurban community called Dynasty Ranch. It’s very exclusive but in a unique way. All the women work. And the men seem extraordinarily helpful. In fact, Nora is blown away by the high-powered jobs women have. When she is asked to represent one of the women in a wrongful death suit after the woman’s husband burned to death, she jumps at the chance, hoping that would persuade someone to sponsor them so they can move in.
The Husbands is another great book by Chandler Baker that explores the struggles of working women in modern society with humor and a dose of malice. There are breaks featuring social media discussions that sound like a day on Twitter. Baker effectively poses the question of what someone might do to get a helpful husband. Too many men think when they take care of their kids, they are babysitting, subbing in for the real parent. Baker explores one way to change that.
The Husbands will be released on August 3rd. I received an e-galley from the publisher through NetGalley
- The Husbands at Flatiron Books | Macmillan
- Chandler Baker author site
- My review of The Whisper Network.
https://tonstantweaderreviews.wordpress.com/2021/07/15/9781250319524/
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Y'all. This book. I think there are about to be a lot of opinions on this one floating around. Here's mine: I LOVED it. Recommended for anyone who loved A SPECIAL PLACE FOR WOMEN. Thank you for my advanced copy, @flatiron_books! Out 8/3.
Plot: Nora Spangler is trying to make partner at her law firm but is feeling overwhelmed by her domestic duties, despite her husband's claims that he does half the work. When the Spanglers go house hunting in an exclusive suburban neighborhood, Nora meets a group of high-powered women whose husbands happily help out at home. But as she spends more time in Dynasty Ranch, she realizes there may be more to the husbands' actions than what meets the eye.
I enjoyed every bit of this book: the writing was fantastic and the murder mystery had me guessing until the very end. The piece that makes it a five-star read for me, though, was how Chandler Baker perfectly captures a frustration that a lot of people don't talk about: the emotional, unseen labor of running a household. Throughout the book, Nora struggles to explain why she's mad at her husband. He helps take care of their child, but he isn't proactive about it, and he can't handle any household tasks without consulting her first. This reliance eventually drives Nora to an emotional peak that I think a lot of millennial women (moms and non-moms) will relate to.
TW: Death, conversations around conception and motherhood
Plot: Nora Spangler is trying to make partner at her law firm but is feeling overwhelmed by her domestic duties, despite her husband's claims that he does half the work. When the Spanglers go house hunting in an exclusive suburban neighborhood, Nora meets a group of high-powered women whose husbands happily help out at home. But as she spends more time in Dynasty Ranch, she realizes there may be more to the husbands' actions than what meets the eye.
I enjoyed every bit of this book: the writing was fantastic and the murder mystery had me guessing until the very end. The piece that makes it a five-star read for me, though, was how Chandler Baker perfectly captures a frustration that a lot of people don't talk about: the emotional, unseen labor of running a household. Throughout the book, Nora struggles to explain why she's mad at her husband. He helps take care of their child, but he isn't proactive about it, and he can't handle any household tasks without consulting her first. This reliance eventually drives Nora to an emotional peak that I think a lot of millennial women (moms and non-moms) will relate to.
TW: Death, conversations around conception and motherhood
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
The Husbands is a story fraught with material that psychologists would have a field day with. If you have a fascination with Stepford Wives, then let me introduce you to their counterpart... Stepford Husbands.
Nora Spangler is struggling. She is a super successful attorney, but it feels like she is also the sole executor of the domestic side of her life. All she wants is for her husband to help, but every time she asks, she feels like he ignores her. Her husband isn't a bad guy, but when they realize that Nora is pregnant with baby #2, she knows that it's time for her husband to step up or shut up.
When Nora and her husband start house hunting, they come across a house in the elusive and exclusive neighborhood, Dynasty Ranch. The residents of the neighborhood include a tight-knit group of friends consisting of a CEO, a neurosurgeon, a therapist, and an author -- all women with super supportive husbands (like... on the creepier end of supportive). Nora envies these women with their seemingly perfect lives and wonders what would happen if she were in the same boat. As she is sucked into their world, she begins to see the cracks in their facade.
I did enjoy this book a lot. Listening to it gave me the illusion of the creeps, just enough to make me feel uncomfortable, but I didn't want to stop. There were definitely moments where I felt like there was an overt amount of details and backstory that may not have been necessary. I found certain parts just dragged on, and it wasn't until about 60% of the way through that it seemed that anything major happened. I wish that the pacing of the last quarter of the book was consistent throughout the first 75%. I did enjoy the feminist message that Baker was trying to convey, but would have liked to see it executed just a bit tighter. Despite this, be sure to thank the moms in your life today... They probably need it.
Overall rating: 3.5/5 (rounded to 4)
The Husbands will be available for purchase on August 3rd. Be sure to add it to your Goodreads shelf and see where it's available to buy. Also, be sure to check out Chandler Baker's website!
I was lucky enough to be able to listen to this Advanced Reader's Copy through my partnership with NetGalley. All opinions are my own
Nora Spangler is struggling. She is a super successful attorney, but it feels like she is also the sole executor of the domestic side of her life. All she wants is for her husband to help, but every time she asks, she feels like he ignores her. Her husband isn't a bad guy, but when they realize that Nora is pregnant with baby #2, she knows that it's time for her husband to step up or shut up.
When Nora and her husband start house hunting, they come across a house in the elusive and exclusive neighborhood, Dynasty Ranch. The residents of the neighborhood include a tight-knit group of friends consisting of a CEO, a neurosurgeon, a therapist, and an author -- all women with super supportive husbands (like... on the creepier end of supportive). Nora envies these women with their seemingly perfect lives and wonders what would happen if she were in the same boat. As she is sucked into their world, she begins to see the cracks in their facade.
I did enjoy this book a lot. Listening to it gave me the illusion of the creeps, just enough to make me feel uncomfortable, but I didn't want to stop. There were definitely moments where I felt like there was an overt amount of details and backstory that may not have been necessary. I found certain parts just dragged on, and it wasn't until about 60% of the way through that it seemed that anything major happened. I wish that the pacing of the last quarter of the book was consistent throughout the first 75%. I did enjoy the feminist message that Baker was trying to convey, but would have liked to see it executed just a bit tighter. Despite this, be sure to thank the moms in your life today... They probably need it.
Overall rating: 3.5/5 (rounded to 4)
The Husbands will be available for purchase on August 3rd. Be sure to add it to your Goodreads shelf and see where it's available to buy. Also, be sure to check out Chandler Baker's website!
I was lucky enough to be able to listen to this Advanced Reader's Copy through my partnership with NetGalley. All opinions are my own
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Chandler Baker’s follow up to Whisper Network is the dark, intelligently witty thriller all women who’ve yearned for five minutes alone in the bathroom will devour.
No wife or mother (or even caregiver) has ever not at some point felt crushed under the pressure of demands life expects from them. If you know someone who says otherwise, they’re lying! And this book is a delicious, fantastical exploration of what could be. It’s about the often unequal responsibilities and expectations that fall on mothers—especially working mothers. It’s about a group of women in a suburban neighborhood that have somehow challenged the norm.
BUT, while the idea of fathers handling more of the domestic duties at home is tantalizingly appealing—and would be so easy to accept after centuries of women being the dominant caregiver in a family—Nora can’t help noticing that something isn’t right in Dynasty Ranch. While she longs for the friendship the women provide, her job is to seek answers. And seeking answers only leads to questions she can’t ignore.
While I was reading, I kept thinking surely this book has already been optioned to be adapted. Well, it has! And starring Kristen Wiig, which I think is perfect. There’s definitely a vein of dark comedy running throughout the book, and I’ll be excited to see it come to life.
The Husbands was pretty close to perfect for me. Well-written, well-paced, interesting characters, and enough mystery to keep me turning pages. Baker has only improved and this one gets five very entertaining stars from me!
Thank you to Flatiron Books and Netgalley for an advanced reader’s copy.
No wife or mother (or even caregiver) has ever not at some point felt crushed under the pressure of demands life expects from them. If you know someone who says otherwise, they’re lying! And this book is a delicious, fantastical exploration of what could be. It’s about the often unequal responsibilities and expectations that fall on mothers—especially working mothers. It’s about a group of women in a suburban neighborhood that have somehow challenged the norm.
BUT, while the idea of fathers handling more of the domestic duties at home is tantalizingly appealing—and would be so easy to accept after centuries of women being the dominant caregiver in a family—Nora can’t help noticing that something isn’t right in Dynasty Ranch. While she longs for the friendship the women provide, her job is to seek answers. And seeking answers only leads to questions she can’t ignore.
While I was reading, I kept thinking surely this book has already been optioned to be adapted. Well, it has! And starring Kristen Wiig, which I think is perfect. There’s definitely a vein of dark comedy running throughout the book, and I’ll be excited to see it come to life.
The Husbands was pretty close to perfect for me. Well-written, well-paced, interesting characters, and enough mystery to keep me turning pages. Baker has only improved and this one gets five very entertaining stars from me!
Thank you to Flatiron Books and Netgalley for an advanced reader’s copy.
funny
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
challenging
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Thank you Flatiron Books for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
So.
I hated some parts of it so much that I wanted to DNF it and throw it in the lake (I read it while I was on the boat).
However, the ending was I hated some parts of it so much that I wanted to DNF it and throw it in the lake - at least to me - and I will not spoil that for anyone unless you aren’t going to pick up this book. The ending seriously saved this from being a 1.5/2 star book for me.
Also, in my opinion, this is not a thriller. Much more of a domestic drama with SMALL suspenseful elements. However, I do agree this has Stepford Wives with the gender shift vibes.
In the end, I did enjoy The Whisper Network more than this one. I will definitely still pick up the next book Chandler Baker writes, I just hope I don’t feel like throwing that one in the lake.
So.
I hated some parts of it so much that I wanted to DNF it and throw it in the lake (I read it while I was on the boat).
However, the ending was I hated some parts of it so much that I wanted to DNF it and throw it in the lake - at least to me - and I will not spoil that for anyone unless you aren’t going to pick up this book. The ending seriously saved this from being a 1.5/2 star book for me.
Also, in my opinion, this is not a thriller. Much more of a domestic drama with SMALL suspenseful elements. However, I do agree this has Stepford Wives with the gender shift vibes.
In the end, I did enjoy The Whisper Network more than this one. I will definitely still pick up the next book Chandler Baker writes, I just hope I don’t feel like throwing that one in the lake.
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
medium-paced