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A review by justinkhchen
My Lovely Wife by Samantha Downing
2.0
2.5 stars
An impulsive read with cheap thrills. While it certainly entertains, My Lovely Wife doesn't really deliver upon its 'Dexter meets Mr. and Mrs. Smith' promise. It's simply not as clever as it thinks.
I might have to reevaluate my perspective on modern thriller literature in general; as a lot of them seem to disregard basic logic and human behavior in favor of sensational drama, and the readership as a whole seem to be contempt with it (I don't see the issue being mentioned in reviews). There's always a time and place for taking creative license in order to generate an impactful narrative, but in My Lovely Wife, Downing disregarded some fundamental common sense in its setup, which resulted in absurdly convenient scenarios, and poor character development (the protagonist appeared more irrational than the author has intended).
**Light spoiler ahead**
- 'Tobias' pretends to be a mute to come in contact with potential candidates, within his own neighborhood and without any sort of physical disguise; unless we are pretending these bartenders/women are forever locked to a location, how can he guarantee he won't bump into people who previously recognize him as a mute? Sounds high risk, and the worst way to remain anonymous.
- 'Tobias' didn't even attempt to research the current whereabouts of the serial killer, before trying to frame the couple's act on him. (Even with the knowledge of him not being the 'best planner', and Millicent holding back the info for her own benefit), I can't foresee someone attempting an act of this scale not doing his due diligence on research.
- I can look pass a door/window lock not been updated in 10+ years, but you can't convince me a mansion won't be alarmed when the owner is away for an extended vacation.
- Hated how the character Holly is portrayed / utilized in the story; are we simply assuming she was completely at peace with being misdiagnosed/misunderstood all these years? And why would she proactively return to the proximity of Millicent, knowing exactly what her true character is? (I would've run far, far away).
- The book provided some explanation regarding how Millicent find the time to dispose Naomi, but how did she manage the 3 additional murders?
**Light spoiler ends**
The absurdity above definitely impacts my overall rating, as well as the lackluster resolution; which feels very 'thriller-cliché', betraying the intricacy the novel tries to construct up till then (So the mastermind Millicent simply became batshit crazy?! Would've wished she had kept her cool a little longer.) I do enjoy the family dynamic described in My Lovely Wife, particularly the inclusion of medias' influence on the kids' mental state. I thought the behavior they took on is a nice parallel to the parent.
All in all, with the amount of praise My Lovely Wife has received, I had high (perhaps misguided) expectation—the book met some, as in I was entertained, but missed the mark for me on some key factors.
An impulsive read with cheap thrills. While it certainly entertains, My Lovely Wife doesn't really deliver upon its 'Dexter meets Mr. and Mrs. Smith' promise. It's simply not as clever as it thinks.
I might have to reevaluate my perspective on modern thriller literature in general; as a lot of them seem to disregard basic logic and human behavior in favor of sensational drama, and the readership as a whole seem to be contempt with it (I don't see the issue being mentioned in reviews). There's always a time and place for taking creative license in order to generate an impactful narrative, but in My Lovely Wife, Downing disregarded some fundamental common sense in its setup, which resulted in absurdly convenient scenarios, and poor character development (the protagonist appeared more irrational than the author has intended).
**Light spoiler ahead**
- 'Tobias' pretends to be a mute to come in contact with potential candidates, within his own neighborhood and without any sort of physical disguise; unless we are pretending these bartenders/women are forever locked to a location, how can he guarantee he won't bump into people who previously recognize him as a mute? Sounds high risk, and the worst way to remain anonymous.
- 'Tobias' didn't even attempt to research the current whereabouts of the serial killer, before trying to frame the couple's act on him. (Even with the knowledge of him not being the 'best planner', and Millicent holding back the info for her own benefit), I can't foresee someone attempting an act of this scale not doing his due diligence on research.
- I can look pass a door/window lock not been updated in 10+ years, but you can't convince me a mansion won't be alarmed when the owner is away for an extended vacation.
- Hated how the character Holly is portrayed / utilized in the story; are we simply assuming she was completely at peace with being misdiagnosed/misunderstood all these years? And why would she proactively return to the proximity of Millicent, knowing exactly what her true character is? (I would've run far, far away).
- The book provided some explanation regarding how Millicent find the time to dispose Naomi, but how did she manage the 3 additional murders?
**Light spoiler ends**
The absurdity above definitely impacts my overall rating, as well as the lackluster resolution; which feels very 'thriller-cliché', betraying the intricacy the novel tries to construct up till then (So the mastermind Millicent simply became batshit crazy?! Would've wished she had kept her cool a little longer.) I do enjoy the family dynamic described in My Lovely Wife, particularly the inclusion of medias' influence on the kids' mental state. I thought the behavior they took on is a nice parallel to the parent.
All in all, with the amount of praise My Lovely Wife has received, I had high (perhaps misguided) expectation—the book met some, as in I was entertained, but missed the mark for me on some key factors.