The Missing Wife by Kerry Barrett
Genre: Dual timeline, Historical fiction, Contemporary fiction
Read: 28th December 2022
Published: 8th December 2022
★★★★★ 5 stars
DESCRIPTION:
1933. Hannah Snow is fleeing her unhappy marriage to an MP when she finds herself in a small hotel on the banks of Loch Ness. But when a monster is spotted in the depths of the waters, the press descends – and Hannah finds her hiding place is discovered. Someone has been looking for Hannah, and when they find her events will take a devastating turn…
Present day. True crime podcaster Scarlett finds herself intrigued by the mystery of Hannah Snow, wife of a promising government minister who disappeared in 1933 – just months before her husband also went missing, presumed dead. As Scarlett works to uncover the truth, she discovers a tragic family secret, and a story as murky as the depths of the loch where Hannah and her husband were last seen…
MY THOUGHTS:
Wow. Just wow. This is my first read by Kerry Barrett and if all her books are as engaging and as intriguing as this one, then I just have to add her to TBR list! THE MISSING WIFE is just phenomenal! I loved every minute, every page, everything about it! Every. Minute. Detail. Everything! And did I say I loved it?
Going into this story, I really had no idea what to expect but I just love dual timelines and it was set around the beautiful Loch Ness in Scotland. It was just perfect. I just had to delve into this story and boy, was I immersed?! From start to finish. It is undoubtedly one of those "just one more chapter" types of books. It is one of those books that you just never want to end whilst wanting it to see how it all ended. And now that I've turned the last page, I am still sitting here just thinking about it...reliving every moment and how it made me feel.
London, 1933: Nineteen year old Hannah Snow has just married Lawrence Wetherby with great expectations for her marriage, though she doesn't love him and is quite sure he doesn't love her. But she is fond of him and is willing to make the best of things, after all his inheritance will save her own family from ruin. Lawrie is sixteen years her senior and his reasons for marriage are rather more private that not even Hannah is privy. Aside from the fact that there was a clause in his father's will stipulating that if Lawrie doesn't marry by his 35th birthday his younger brother Simon will inherit. And Simon was all for that...until Lawrie married Hannah.
But on their wedding night, Hannah walks into the bridal suite expecting her new husband but instead walks in something far more shocking. Armed with the camera Lawrie had earlier gifted her, Hannah snapped several shots before her presence was clocked and in the furore a sudden accident causes Hannah to flee. Believing her husband to be dead, Hannah boards a sleeper train to Inverness in Scotland where a new life awaits her...and her past remains a secret.
Present day: True crime podcaster Scarlett Simpson, who is also a broadcast assistant with radio station Britain Live, has just won an award for one of the podcasts in which she exhonerated a woman previously believed to have defrauded her employers some 40 years ago. Her ex Charlie, with whom she podcasts, steps up to receive the award without giving Scarlett a thank you or even a mention...considering it was all her work. To make it up to her, Charlie has a proposition for her made to him by an MP who wants Scarlett and Charlie to investigate a missing persons case from 1933. He will pay them £10,000 upfront with another £50,000 upon a satisfactory result. But there is a stipulation.
Refusing to comply, Scarlett walks out of the meeting and decides, with the prompting of her producer friend Robyn, to head up to Loch Ness herself to see if she can solve the mystery herself. Before Charlie gets wind of it or begins his investigations.
Can Scarlett find out what really happened to Hannah Snow and her husband Lawrence, who apparently went missing around the same time she did? Did she kill him and flee? Or did he kill her and disappear? Either way, the family now wants answers as they believe Hannah made off with the inheritance that should have passed to the younger brother as well as stealing some precious treasure. Can Scarlett uncover the truth before Charlie hightails it to Scotland to steal her thunder?
What a wonderful enthralling story from start to finish! Not only was it an intriguing mystery, but it was also set against the backdrop of the first recorded sightings of "Nessie", the Loch Ness monster. And I love how Barrett incorporated this into her story. Not only was the Scotland setting exquisitely beautiful but the whole Loch Ness mystery added an atmosphere to it that was evocative and wholly absorbing.
I love the dual timeline and found myself captivated by both when usually it is one or the other that intrigues me more. In this case, both timelines were compelling and I loved both Hannah and Scarlett from the past and the present respectively. The transition between the timelines were seamless and woven together with ease. I loved how the transcripts Scarlett wrote were incorporated into the story but tailed off before revealing too much to the reader just yet. And the same with Hannah's columns, penned under the name Ann O'Shawn, which were also included gave the credence to the already compelling tale Barrett was weaving us with.
I have read many dual timeline tales over the years but this has to be hands down one of my favourites, of which there have been many but there is just something enthralling about this one. I loved every minute of it and found myself wanting to stay there - be it in 1933 with Hannah or the present day with Scarlett. Either way, I didn't want the story to end. By far, one of my most favourite dual timelines and one of my favourite reads this year. I've given many 5 star reviews this year but there is just something unforgettable about THE MISSING WIFE. I just hope Barrett's other works are as good but then, admittedly, this one will be a tough one to beat. However, I look forward to checking out some of her others in the future.
An easy 5 star read, I just loved everything about this book that ticked all the boxes for me. A perfect read that will remain a favourite for a long time to come.
Overall, THE MISSING WIFE is an intriguing mystery and a wonderful story that readers of historical fiction and dual timelines alike will not want to miss. If you love Lorna Cook and Kathleen McGurl, you will love THE MISSING WIFE!
I would like to thank #KerryBarrett, #NetGalley and #HQStories for an ARC of #TheMissingWife in exchange for an honest review.
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