The Husbands | 
pickBased on the title, I was expecting the husbands to be the main characters, but wait this is a Chandler Baker story, so how‘s that going to go down!? Suspending disbelief for several key elements, this was an entertaining read. September #DoubleSpin Category: Marriage
@TheAromaofBooks
so-soI really like the premise, and I identify with the working mom struggles. I didn't find the pacing of the story fast enough for my liking. I would have liked there to be better explained logic and psychology behind how the husbands' behavior was changed (or, to use a better word, controlled). The book was likened to being "reverse Stepford," but I didn't fully see it.
pickLoved this smart, feminist thriller. Are these husbands really so enlightened and helpful or is there something less going on here? I saw myself in these pages (uh oh), & with tight, fast paced writing, it was hard to put down. Always fun to read a book set where you live and, while I live in the suburbs, I know these women & their neighborhoods and this book feels quintessentially Austin. The perfect summer read! #BookspinBingo @TheAromaofBooks
pickThoroughly enjoyed this one!! Felt immediately endeared to somewhat snarky full-time working Mom, Nora. Caught myself laughing repeatedly and enjoyed the suspense and plot twist. In her note, Chandler Baker says her hope was that this book made mad women cackle everywhere…I may not be mad but it sure made this tired woman cackle!! Well done.
Cheated and read the intro before I bought it and it had me smiling. Here we go!!
Found this one at a little used bookstore. I got to say hello to Seamus, the cat, and now I am curled up by the lake ready to get reading.
pickI‘ve seen mixed reviews about this one, but I really liked it! It‘s a gender-swaped Stepford Wives, and frankly, I was here for it. Loved the ending!
#bookspinbingo
#awesomeapril
#pop23 - a book by an author with the same initials as me
panThis is a spin on the Stepford Wives, except all of the husbands are perfect... that being said, this book was NOT for me! I could tell that the author was trying to touch on topics like the differences between household role/ parenting styles. That being said, I found myself cringing through most of it. The last 25% ended up being really good and interesting, but couldn't make up for the first 75%
pickFinished the tagged book this week (excellent!) and started T. Kingfisher's take on The House of Usher yesterday! I'm already loving the creep factor. I don't have a ton of time to read this weekend, but am hopong to get through this short one at least and move onto Nettle & Bone next week. #20in4
so-soKind of a slog if I‘m being honest. I didn‘t dislike this but I love The Stepford Wives and this was clearly inspired by that one and that‘s really all you need to know. It‘s that but with a gender twist and the issue of course being the unsung and emotional labour of motherhood. I‘m a firm believer in that, don‘t get me wrong but this wasn‘t for me.
For Mother‘s Day I upgraded my phone and bought 5 new books. Well 4 books as one is for my husband. I‘ll have to try to get a picture tomorrow. Tonight though I am working on the tagged book.
Reading with my number one guy this morning, he is only allowed on the bed with mom on weekends 😀
I had taken out so many library books, I had to make some tough calls, and return a handful unread. This made room for the 4 new ones I got yesterday! I am glad that I gave the tagged a chance, I was a bit in the fence but I‘m about halfway through and enjoying it though it is slightly range inducing at times.
so-soI almost loved this book. Right up until the point where it is revealed that the ideal husband can only exist through hypnotism. And the idea that successful women always have a villainous side to them. Wtf Chandler Baker. This could have been a refreshing look at families who work on themselves and get better. Instead it had a schizophrenic plot twist and a surface burn to feminism.
so-soThis is literally the movie Stepford House Wives, but reversed. I was intrigued being a mother myself, I related to soo much of this. But it was soo predictable as to what was going on that it just took a lot away from it. I still did enjoy it, but there was some points in the book I was like get on with it! 3.5 stars
pickThis is a soft pick for me. It wasn't that I didn't like it. It just wasn't particularly memorable. I feel like it had definitely been done before. It's like a marriage of The Stepford Wives & The Collective, I think.
pickI kept thinking Nora has to be having a vivid pregnancy dream or something, she's too normal, smart for this. This being recruited into the Dynasty Ranch Community: where women are in charge, succeed in their careers and the men are home brainwashed? into domestic life. Fiction, yes, but if we have to add more labels: fantasy, cozy physiological thriller, fractured realities to name a few. Very reverse Stepford Wives that leaves me feeling like I
bailedMaybe it‘s me. Could not get into this book about a lawyer investigating an arson and murder. The characters have no life to them.
I feel like I‘ve been on the waiting list for this one forever … I hope it was worth it. I‘m cheating on two bookclubs to read this first 😭#badandbookish
My #teamread came in the mail! And I couldn't resist grabbing another domestic thriller for my stack; I flew through The Whisper Network. 📬📚
#scarathlon2021 #teamslaughter #bookmail
I adore my husband. He is perfect and helpful and lovely. HOW EVER. I totally nodded my head in agreement at this!
pick
so-soI enjoyed The Whisper Network, but this one fell a little short for me. I liked the concept, but the big reveal felt rushed and just a bit odd.
pickI don‘t want my husband to be a mindless automaton, but I can see the appeal of a partner who just does all the things without being asked, knowing how to sort laundry and planning meals for the week and getting the groceries ordered and picked up. I don‘t even have a high-stress job or kids, yet I‘m often exhausted by work and keeping a house going. How the heck do parents do it? ⬇️
pickI had super high expectations for this book, which it didn‘t quite deliver on, though I enjoyed it. I felt like it didn‘t quite know if it wanted to be straight or slightly dystopian and tried to ride between the two, when embracing one or the other would have been better for the story.
pickWhat is it worth to have a husband take more of the invisible household labor?
When attorney Nora and her husband Hayden go house hunting, she is drawn to Dynasty Ranch and its cadre of super accomplished women and their husbands who seem to shoulder a lot of household labor…certainly more than Hayden has recently. When the couple starts therapy with a doctor from the neighborhood, Nora begins noticing suspiciously good changes in Hayden… 🤔
WTF! The husband/father in this book (at least to this point) is ridiculously oblivious to how hard his wife works and how much he shoves off on her. Is this what it‘s like?? I‘m childfree.
A lot of you on litsy know how close I am with my dad. He did a lot of my evening care after work - bath time, bedtime, up in the night - every night, so maybe I have a skewed view??
so-soIf you can avoid reading the blurb about this book, I would recommend you do so. The less you know the better as the blurb practically gives the entire plot away.
A great, albeit not entirely original concept, the story examines the roles of husbands & wives, child rearing & gender inequality. It started off strong & then took forever to get to where it was going. In the end, because I read the blurb, there were little to no surprises for me.
pick4/5 for this one! I got such Stepford Wives vibes with this one. I was hooked with the idea that there was a suburb of perfect families. There was no way! The twists in this one were awesome. I didn‘t see them coming. Thank you to Macmillan Audio and Netgalley for this audio arc.
MASSIVE #NewReleaseTuesday for me with #audiobooks! Four from the library and two on audible! I‘m 30% into The Husbands (tagged), but I‘m also doing a reread of True Story with @BarbaraBB because #friendship, and I always enjoy discussions with her. 💜
Are any of these on your #ReadersRadar?
This is going to be a book everyone is talking about for sure!!!
pick"??? ???? ????? ?? ???? ??? ???? ????? ????? ???? ??? ?? ??????."
Being dubbed by many as the "Stepford Husbands." A bit creepy but also contemporary, I flew through this book. I found the main character extremely relatable, even though I am not a wife or a mother myself. The characters were all interesting & the story flows well. It all builds up well to the ending.
pickThis is listed as Women‘s Fiction, but I would say there is very much a thriller element as this story unfolds. The story builds through a wonderful crescendo, until we get to peak of this story, that will have you shaking your head in a wonderful way.
There is a lot to unpack with this story and would definitely make for great discussions. A fun ride of a book, that you will not want to put down.
pickThis one has mixed reviews but I loved it! The Stepford Wives meets the 21st century….and the setting is Dynasty (Ranch)—for those of you old enough to remember this crazy show!😳 Baker speaks to themes of motherhood, responsibilities, marriage issues, and a host of others that you will appreciate if you work/are a mother/have a spouse!
so-soIf you have a fascination with Stepford Wives, then let me introduce you to their counterpart... Stepford Husbands.
I did enjoy this book a lot. Certain parts just dragged on, and it wasn't until about 60% of the way through that it seemed that anything major happened.
3.5/5 (rounded to 4)
I was lucky enough to be able to listen to this Advanced Reader's Copy through my partnership with NetGalley.
so-so#NetGalley #AudioARC This one started out REALLY strong with excellent observations and witty writing. Unfortunately, it started to really drag in the middle and became a rather campy b-movie farcical tale. Overall a mixed bag of really good parts and really weak parts. Solid 3 stars but audio narration was excellent.
#NetGalley #AudioARC Loving this…a spin on Stepford Wives 😜
And I think if you‘re in the throes of raising littles, this book will be especially compelling.
This is a great summer read - I‘m thinking potential for August #BOTM?!?!
#AudioFolding
When a fictional husband is annoying me just as much as he‘s annoying his fictional wife? #TheHusbands #ChandlerBaker
