Author
Kaira Rouda was not finished with her narcissistic character Paul Strom from Best
Day Ever (2017) as she continues his story in The Second Mrs. Strom in
this twisty psychological thriller coming out August 16.
Paul has been the playboy since his first marriage blew up five years ago, finding favor with the rich, twice-married, twice-divorced Esther Wilmot in Palm Beach. Esther has been showering her lover and companion Paul with gifts including a Bentley, and in death, she has rewarded him with her entire estate.
At
Esther’s funeral, Paul, ever on the make, flirted with the lovely Cecelia
Babcock who had designed the funeral program, asking her to marry him after a
short courtship. They live in a mansion in Malibu as Paul is breaking into the whole
Hollywood producer scene. Now they are in Paris celebrating their first
anniversary, though both have a hidden agenda.
Cecelia
feigns love with Paul to carry out a master plan that has been in place long
before she met him at the funeral, not the coincidence he thought. Paul, while
seemingly doting on Cecelia, has already had an affair, securing his mistress
in her own bungalow in Brentwood.
How
far will each spouse go to secure a future that each believes is entitled to
them?
Kaira
Rouda is a writer of suspense novels that explore “beneath the surface of
seemingly perfect lives.” The Second Mrs. Strom is a standalone book but
pairing it with the Best Day Ever makes for a double-dip read. A master of the psychological thriller, Rouda lives in Southern California with her family and is always at work
on her next novel.
My review will be posted on GoodReads
starting July 10, 2024.
I would like to thank Bookouture and
NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in return for an objective review.
No comments:
Post a Comment