Take a photo of a barcode or cover
thatcydney 's review for:
The Tradwife's Secret
by Liane Child
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The Tradwife's Secret started off really strong.
I am vey captivated by the tradwife trend in that I am repulsed by it, the women buying into it and the influencers who preach it, so I felt like this was going to be much sharper than it was. Instead, it gets lost in trying to do too many twists and turns and big reveals and is weighed down by constantly telling instead of showing. And the telling caused the narrative to suffer because the telling would take place in extremely disjointed and unnatural dialogue. For example—and to avoid spoilers, this is made up—say if a character stole something and proved that they didn't. At the end of the novel, there would be some kind of dialogue that's like "Remember how I said I didn't steal that thing? Well I did, and I got away with it because I am really good at stealing and everyone was dumb enough to believe that I didn't." Like…okay? Cartoon Network-esque villain. It made the characters feel like caricatures who tapped their fingertips together while they thought they were outsmarting us.
This could have been so much MORE. The storylines within would have been sad if they'd made more sense. There are also a lot of plot holes. We literally never learn the reason Madison ultimately wanted to be a wife and a mother from the very beginning because it never seemed like she genuinely believed in the tradwife content and simply wanted to be an influencer. She seemed very disconnected from both being a wife and a mother from the start. There is also a lack of clarity surrounding her husband's first wife and ultimately what happened to her. I don't understand the intention behind hiring the tutor. At first I thought that it was so the kids could actually be exposed to ideals the March family disagrees with, but it ultimately became unclear.
However, this was a lot of fun. If you suspend belief and try not to play too close attention to the fact that things go a little off the rails and stay there, you'll have fun. The narration was enjoyable, but I really struggled with the performance of the "male voices."
Thank you to HarperAudio Adult, HQ Digital, and NetGalley for providing me with an ALC!
3 ⭐️s
I am vey captivated by the tradwife trend in that I am repulsed by it, the women buying into it and the influencers who preach it, so I felt like this was going to be much sharper than it was. Instead, it gets lost in trying to do too many twists and turns and big reveals and is weighed down by constantly telling instead of showing. And the telling caused the narrative to suffer because the telling would take place in extremely disjointed and unnatural dialogue. For example—and to avoid spoilers, this is made up—say if a character stole something and proved that they didn't. At the end of the novel, there would be some kind of dialogue that's like "Remember how I said I didn't steal that thing? Well I did, and I got away with it because I am really good at stealing and everyone was dumb enough to believe that I didn't." Like…okay? Cartoon Network-esque villain. It made the characters feel like caricatures who tapped their fingertips together while they thought they were outsmarting us.
This could have been so much MORE. The storylines within would have been sad if they'd made more sense. There are also a lot of plot holes. We literally never learn the reason Madison ultimately wanted to be a wife and a mother from the very beginning because it never seemed like she genuinely believed in the tradwife content and simply wanted to be an influencer. She seemed very disconnected from both being a wife and a mother from the start. There is also a lack of clarity surrounding her husband's first wife and ultimately what happened to her. I don't understand the intention behind hiring the tutor. At first I thought that it was so the kids could actually be exposed to ideals the March family disagrees with, but it ultimately became unclear.
However, this was a lot of fun. If you suspend belief and try not to play too close attention to the fact that things go a little off the rails and stay there, you'll have fun. The narration was enjoyable, but I really struggled with the performance of the "male voices."
Thank you to HarperAudio Adult, HQ Digital, and NetGalley for providing me with an ALC!
3 ⭐️s