Reviews with content warning for Gaslighting - My Husband

ʙᴏᴏᴋꜱ ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴍᴏʀᴀʟʟʏ ɢʀᴀʏ ᴄʜᴀʀᴀᴄᴛᴇʀꜱ ᴀʀᴇ ᴀʟᴡᴀʏꜱ ᴀ ᴘʟᴇᴀꜱᴜʀᴇ ᴛᴏ ʀᴇᴀᴅ.

𝙼𝚢 𝙷𝚞𝚜𝚋𝚊𝚗𝚍 by Maud Ventura (translated by Emma Ramadan) is a fresh novel about a 40-year-old woman who is obsessed with her husband. She loves him, the idea of him, and would die without him.

Stunning looks, a beautiful house, two children, and 15 years of marriage with an ideal man are a dream for many. No matter how perfect life can get, sometimes our unnamed protagonist doubts whether her husband is truly in love with her, like she is madly in love with him.

So in order to spark their romance, she does things above and beyond for her husband. She plans every encounter she will have with him. And do things one may think are already beyond the line. 𝘽𝙪𝙩 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙬𝙚 𝙙𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚, 𝙞𝙨 𝙞𝙩 𝙩𝙧𝙪𝙡𝙮 𝙬𝙧𝙤𝙣𝙜?

I enjoyed the short novel. I loved how our main character was unreliable. I also really liked seeing her thoughts and how she processed everyday situations. She analyzes a certain encounter over and over again. She overthinks that she is on the verge of panicking, then reassures herself a little while later. I found it fascinating to know her thoughts, reassurances, and doubts.

Over the span of a week, I could see how the dynamics worked in their family. And many reviews say the ending was unexpected. For me, it was predictable, but it was still okay.

Overall, the book was okay. A read that is fast, analytical, pathetic, and, of course, obsessive. I'd only half-recommend this since I didn't love it. But still, it is a novel that many should try to read. Especially those who loved 𝙲𝚘𝚖𝚏𝚘𝚛𝚝 𝙼𝚎 𝚆𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝙰𝚙𝚙𝚕𝚎𝚜.

📚 | 44
⭐ | 3.5

•••

My Rating System

5 🌟 - Life changing, a new favorite read
4 ⭐ - I loved it
3 ⭐ - I liked it
2 ⭐ - It was okay
1 ⭐ - I hated it but decided to not dnf

Content Warnings

todelisus's review against another edition

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dark mysterious reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

I knew the ending would be “wild,” so I was expecting something “wild,” but dear god it still took me by surprise

they deserve each other

Content Warnings

jtpgdavey's review against another edition

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dark slow-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

3.0

Content Warnings

zoebreading's review against another edition

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dark funny reflective tense medium-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

5.0

Content Warnings

mlovesbooks's review against another edition

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funny tense medium-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

2.75

The extra .75th of a star is because of the "twist" in the epilogue.

Content Warnings

abbie_'s review against another edition

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dark tense fast-paced

4.0

Thanks to the publisher and netgalley for my free digital ARC in exchange for a review!

Alternate title idea: gaslight, gaslight, gaslight. Unhinged and I loved it.

My Husband by Maud Ventura was twisted, tense, messed up and I had a grand old time reading it!

Right from the get go, you notice something is a little off with the narrator - she creates new personas to get her hair done, the smallest faux pas will send her into a dizzying spiral of intense inner monologue, she spends her days meticulously creating a perfect scene for her husband to come home to each night. This unnamed woman is completely, head-over-heels obsessed with her husband, but her problem is that her cup is already full. They’re married, have two children, the perfect house, but she doesn’t want the comforting quotidian - she wants pure, unadulterated passion, and she had some unusual ways of clawing back some of it from their marriage 👀

I love books that explore love and passion and relationships, because everyone is so different. In one of the most recent books I read, the MC said he loved his boyfriend a little more than yesterday and a little less than tomorrow (adorable), but when the husband of THIS MC expresses a similar sentiment, she’s devastated. Why is he not giving her the fullest version of his love right now? The translation here by Emma Ramadan is absolutely flawless, so smooth that you’re sucked right into her head - her fixations become your fixations, it’s overwhelming at times but I was here for it.

At one point the narrator is thrown for a loop because she sees her husband with his work colleagues and he seems different. It made me think about the various roles we all play according to who we’re with. What happens to those facets of your identity when they’re put together? Which one is the ‘real’ you? Are they both? Neither? I can’t say too much about the ending but I was torn about it. I liked the idea I’d built up in my head - but at the same time, I do think it’s an accurate representation of gender roles.

Overall this book is an extremely snappy exploration of obsession, marriage, and the roles we all play - if you’re looking for a quick, intense read this summer, I’d more than recommend it! Out 27th July in the UK 🦀

Content Warnings

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