Title: Her Three Lives
Author: Cate Holahan
Narrator: Chris Ciulla, Kylah Williams
Published: April 2021, Hachette Audio / Grand Central Publishing
Length: 9 hours 47 minutes / 339 pages
Source: Audio: ALC via Libro.fm / Print - Paperback via Publisher
Summary:
Gaslight goes high-tech in USA Today best-selling author Cate Holahan's new stand-alone thriller in which a family must determine who the real enemy is after a brutal home invasion breaks their trust in each other.
Her public life Jade Thompson has it all. She’s an up-and-coming social media influencer, and she has a beautiful new home and a successful architect for a fiancé. But there’s trouble behind the scenes. To Greg’s children, his divorce from their mother and his new life can only mean a big mid-life crisis. To Jade, his suburban Connecticut upbringing isn’t an easy match with her Caribbean roots.
Her private life A savage home invasion leaves Greg house-bound with a traumatic brain injury and glued to the live feeds from his ubiquitous security cameras. As the police investigate the crime and Greg’s frustration and rage grows, Jade begins to wonder what he may know about their attackers. And whether they are coming back.
Her secret life As Greg watches Jade’s comings and goings, he becomes convinced that her behavior is suspicious and that she’s hiding a big secret. The more he sees, the more he wonders whether the break-in was really a random burglary. And whether he’s worth more to Jade if he were dead than alive.
My thoughts: I first discovered Cate Holahan when I read Lies She Told,
which I absolutely loved. I knew after reading that book that I would
be reading whatever else she read and so far I haven't been disappointed.
I loved how unsettling this book becomes after the brutal home invasion. Even though there aren't a lot of characters we meet, I found I was suspicious of everyone and kept changing my mind as to who was ultimately responsible. And that's a good thing...every time I thought I had it worked out, something new would pop up. And yet I was still a bit taken back by the ending...I hadn't quite worked it out. But that's all good - I like being surprised!
I love how paranoid the characters become, especially Greg. The break-in really makes him go into overdrive and at times, it seemed like he was taking it to the extreme. But never having been in his shoes, it's hard to judge. And of course, because he and Jade weren't really communicating, I can't really say I blame him because if they had only talked, some of his paranoia could have been alleviated.
I love a book where there are characters I don't necessary like and that is definitely true here. The characters in this book aren't really likeable but I found myself completely captivated by what was going on and I needed to see what the resolution would be.
This is a complex, twisted book filled with secrets and paranoia. It is definitely a fun, popcorn type of read where you can totally just binge it in a day. I definitely enjoy Cate Holahan's writing and will be eager to see what she brings us next!
Audio thoughts: I had the opportunity to listen to this book and I'm glad I did - it was a fun, binge-worthy listen. Both narrators were new-to-me and I thought they did a great job bringing this story to life. Their pacing and intonation were spot on and I thought they both were able to infuse just the right amount of emotion and tension into their voices as needed. I really enjoyed listening to this book!