In the wake of a domestic tragedy, fate has seemingly brought D.C. philanthropist Sloan Chase and Senator Whit Montgomery together. After the jarring loss of both of their spouses, the Montgomerys are desperate for a fresh start in the capital and ready to put the unnerving past behind them.
But as she settles into the solace of her new marriage, Sloan begins to succumb to the ceaseless grip of her chronic illness, something she very much hoped to leave in the past. As her health rapidly deteriorates, the Senator enlists the help of in-home health aide Athena Karras, who may have more than the Senator's wife's recovery on her mind.
"The Senator's Wife," as many reviewers have remarked, is a full-throttle, can't-really-believe it soap opera. While the premise and backdrop of Washington D.C. are compelling enough, the plot lacked even a nuance of profundity. Once again, I found myself thinking that Liv Constantine--dare I say it--writes like someone who's never actually encountered a real person. The characters are either painfully-exaggerated or completely one-dimensional with no in between, and the dialogue is riddled with unrealistic exchanges that had me thinking over and over again, "People don't talk like this."
If anything saved this story, it was the multiple punch-packing twists that come toward the end. For anyone looking for a truly mindless, escapist thriller, "The Senator's Wife" is fine at best, but this one marks the end of reading Liv Constantine for me--and likely other readers looking for a profoundly-crafted story.
Rating: 3 Stars
Publication Details: Out 5/23/2023, Random House Publishing
*Huge thank you to NetGalley & the publisher for providing my review copy!*
