Book review #39 The Wrong Woman

The wrong woman

Author - Daniel Hurst

Genre - Psychological thriller

Language - English

Pages - 243

About the book

They messed with her. But they picked the wrong woman...

Simone used to be the woman that other women would use if they suspected that their partner was cheating. She would investigate, find out the truth, and if the men were guilty, exact revenge. But after things went wrong with one couple, Simone was forced to go into hiding to evade the law.

Having assumed a new identity, Simone is now Mary, a mild-mannered woman who doesn't raise her voice or get angry, meaning nobody would suspect her of being capable of the things she used to do for a living. But when she finds out that her new boyfriend is having an affair, it awakens in her the person she used to be.

That means Simone is back. It also means that her boyfriend and his mistress are in for the shock of their lives...

About the author

Daniel Hurst is the author of the number 1 bestselling psychological thriller 'The Passenger', as well as several other popular thrillers including 'Till Death Do Us Part' and 'The Wrong Woman'.

He is also the creator of The 20 Minute Series, the series of psychological books which readers have called “original” and “addictive” and 'like a soap opera in book form."

My take:

The wrong woman is the story of Simone, who finds love rats for a living, and helps the wronged spouses get revenge from their cheating partners as her passion. She loves her job and what risks come with it. But one fine day, things go wrong, and Simone is on the run from the police, as the prime suspect in a murder case.

Simone jumps cities, changes her appearance, changes her identity, and even her personality. Now she is the simpleton Mary, who does a boring 9 to 5 job that involves lots of printing and scanning, gets firings from her boss Clarissa without giving her back, is friends with the cute girl Kathy who bakes cakes and stays with her boyfriend James. She is unadventureous and boring. The complete opposite of what Simone used to be.

But that is necessary if she has to maintain a low profile and not get caught. But one fine day, everything changes. Mary finds out that James is cheating on her. And not just with any woman. And when she gets to know this, the Simone inside her awakens again, swearing revenge. What happens next?

The story is told from the POV of Mary alias Simone. It is fast paced and full of twists. The character of Mary is nicely depicted. The various incidents about how Simone helped her clients get revenge are equally interesting. The narrative shuttles between present and past and adds to the charisma of the story.

The language is simple, lucid and the flow of the narration is smooth. I am already a fan of Daniel's writings, and this one doesn't disappoint. As expected, the ending is twisted. I had a hint while reading, but still I was surprised by the way the story concluded.

The cover page is alluring and intriguing, and that is what made me want to read this book.

I rate it four stars.