A review by madreadings
The Perfect Marriage by Jeneva Rose

dark mysterious tense 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

2.0

this book reminded me of gone girl in both the best and worst possible ways.  in both this book and gone girl, i didn’t trust either of the narrators but found the male lead to be too arrogant and stupid to actually pull anything off.  the pacing, writing style, and dialogue all felt very gone girl to me.  however, the biggest difference lies in the characters.  in gone girl, i didn’t like anyone but i found them enjoyable to read; in the perfect marriage, i didn’t like anyone and found them insufferable.  sarah is a very arrogant character, shown by her belief she can do whatever she wants whenever she wants; adam is a coddled momma’s boy who is whiny, jealous of his wife’s success, and an overall annoying narrator.  the side characters feel cartoonish and stereotypical — the gay best friend, the sleazy sheriff, the slutty mistress, the overly dependable assistant (who, of course, is not really an assistant but a friend).  

i also guessed the killers half way through the novel.  the actions aren’t hard to tell if you’ve read any halfway decent suspense novel.

if you separate realism from the book, it would be more enjoyable.  however if you look from a realistic viewpoint, the book falls apart.  sarah’s actions are completely inappropriate and unethical, the sheriff would never let her do half the things she does, and the way the lawyers act in this novel is unrealistic.  

it’s not the worst book i’ve ever read, but as a “completely gripping psychological suspense” it falls flat.
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