Girl meets boy. Boy woos girl. Girl falls for boy. Boy seems perfect and too good to be true. Then girl meets boys mother and all hell ensues. The Other Woman by Sandie Jones is a thriller book version of The Monster-In-Law movie. Emily is J.Lo and her future mother-in-law from hell is Jane Fonda. Except add some extra shady business, like a potential murder.
It is no secret that Adam's mother, Pammie, dislikes Emily. Atleast, it is no secret to Emily. From the day she met Pammie, it seems like the woman has it out for her. Emily tries whatever she can to make Adam see how horrible his mother is to her, but Adam cannot see through his rosy glasses.
I really enjoyed Sandie Jones' recent book, The First Mistake. I had hopes that this book would be similar, but it essentially fell flat for me. I was intrigued to keep reading because I wanted to see what happened with Emily and Pammie, and to see if Adam and Emily ever make it down the wedding aisle.
To say these characters are unlikeable is an understatement. I honestly hated Adam from the get go, Emily seemed annoying and was easily influenced, and Pammie was beyond oppressive. Adam was demeaning and controlling with Emily from the early onset of their relationship. Even if it wasn't for Pammie being an overbearing mother-in-law, I would have told Emily to run. Run far away. But it wouldn't be a book if Emily didn't stick it out with Adam, in spite of it all. I honestly could not get past that, but stuck it out to see how the story ended.
To be completely honest, I would not recommend this book. It is one of those where I do not think you will be missing out on much if you skip this one. The Other Woman is marketed as a psychological thriller and I would put it more in the suspenseful thriller category. The "twist" is far from mind-blowing and one that I saw miles away. The Other Woman falls in the 3-3.5/5 category for me. You can't win them all, especially in a genre that I frequent often.
Disclaimer: I have an amazing mother-in-law, who is nothing like Pammie :)
Happy reading!
Mel
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