It's Always the Husband: A Novel

It’s Always the Husband is a great thriller about three girls who met when they become roommates in college.

The reunion doesn’t last long though when one of the girls is found dead.

It started off a bit slow and the character’s personalities are a bit dull and hard to relate with. It didn’t take much for the story to pick up and take off and you start to see a different side to the characters. There is the first half of the book describing the girls and college life. While the other half leads up to the murder.

I really enjoyed this book and was very surprised at how fast I finished it. It’s been a long time since I have read a good book this was much needed!

I received a free pre-release copy of It’s Always the Husband complimentary from SheSpeaks for reviewing purposes. All opinions shared are 100% my own.

I do hate it when I really didn't enjoy a book and I have to write a review for the people who supplied it to me, but sadly that was the case with 'It's Always the Husband.' Right from the start I found the jumping around between time and character perspective incredibly confusing - and it continued to be confusing!
Apart from the opening scene which doesn't really seem to fit anywhere, the book is divided into two parts; in the first part, we meet Aubrey, Jenny and Kate. I must be honest here, but there was very little going on in the way of story. I was on the point of giving up when I arrived at part two. Twenty two years later and the girls are together again; grown up and married, their secrets from their college years begin to catch up with them! Part two was slightly better, but only because I felt that the end, and resolution, was close.
All in all, in my entirely subjective opinion, I would describe this as a tedious read; it was hard going and took me far to long to get to the end.
I give 'It's Always the Husband' two stars.

Michele Campbell’s debut, IT’S ALWAYS THE HUSBAND —is a suspenseful and intriguing twisty "whodunit" and "howdunit" of dark secrets— a web of deceit, keeping you guessing to the final conclusion.

Three college roommates at Carlisle College in New Hampshire — Aubrey, Jenny, and Kate are linked by a tragedy. Each girl has their own desires, dreams, fears, and troubles. The complexities of friendship and acceptance. Love/hate relationships.

Kate is the wild rich girl with a father’s connections and a stepmother who gets in her way. Her family is connected to the college. Their name is on the buildings.

Aubrey is poor — on financial aid. No social friends (her family was white trash). She just wants to escape her home. Not sure how she will fit in. She is sure her life is about to change. She would make her roommates love her no matter what it took. Kate was the friend she had been waiting for her entire life.

Jenny—a townie. She grew up her in New Hampshire. Her parents own the local hardware store. She is ambitious. She soon uses Kate to move up the ladder.

Everyone is using someone.

The girls’ relationships become complex, as most do where there is a threesome. One is always left out or playing against one another. A third wheel. Each has their own agenda. Guys. One which dated the other girl years ago. Jealousy.

They say your freshman roommates become your best friends for life (or death).

“I no doubt deserved my enemies but I don’t believe I deserved my friends." – Walt Whitman

From booze, drugs, sex, jealousies, guys, lies, secrets, greed, and betrayal. If you play with fire, you eventually get burned.

Aubrey makes a decision to commit suicide with Kate, except Lucas dies instead. He had dated Jenny back in high school and Kate flaunts sleeping with him. Aubrey does everything Kate wants (her idol).

Aubrey’s mom dies and more drama here. All the while Jenny is sucking up to Kate’s father spying on Kate, yet using him for her own selfish needs. Kate has her own issues and manipulative behavior.

Of course, this tragedy links all three girls through their lifetime. A dark secret.

Then later they are all back in the same town, now married. Kate is married to a rich guy, Griff. She is using him until he loses his money. Aubrey is married to a doctor, but she is not happy and pines for Griff. Jenny, now the mayor and married to Tim (Lucas’ cousin). These people are acting as though they are back in college.

They each have their own reasons to keep their secret. Until greed gets in the way. Again, as adults, they are each still playing their sadistic games.

When one of them actually dies at the same bridge where Lucas fell to his death twenty years earlier, suspicions point to each of them. Each person and their spouse have their own individual motives. With many suspects, marriages are threatened, as well as friendships and families, crossing moral lines.

A twisty-page turner keeping you glued to the pages to determine the identity of the killer. These are some manipulative girls! With friends like these, who needs enemies? There were lovers, friends, enemies, and others who had a motive. Could it possibly be the husband?

When the book begins you feel sorry for and sympathized with Aubrey. By the end of the book, you despise her, along with the other two. Not a lot of likable characters here. Demonstrates how events and crimes from your younger years are carried into adulthood damaging future relationships, friendships, and marriages.

As other reviewers mentioned, I preferred the second half of the book, when the gals are older and the suspenseful fast-paced twisty turns. They are the same self-centered people; however, they have advanced to murder, bribery, infidelity, revenge, and cover-ups with the assistance of their husbands.

A clever ending. Looking forward to seeing what comes next from this newfound author.

“I can be on guard against my enemies, but God deliver me from my friends!” ― Charlotte Brontë

A special thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for an early reading copy. JDCMustReadBooks

Kate, Aubrey, and Jenny met in college when the three were paired together as roommates. The girls were as different as different can be but despite that they still formed a bond that has lasted into their adult lives. Bonded together all those years ago the trio could best be described as having a love hate relationship between them much of the time.

Now twenty years later the trio finds themselves back in the same town yet again with one of them standing on the edge of a bridge and someone else urging her to jump. Just how did things go this far and end up where it has? What secrets did the girls share that brought them to this place in there lives?

It's Always the Husband is told switching the timeline back and forth between Kate, Aubrey, and Jenny meeting back in college and how their friendship forms along with what the girls endured during those years and now in the present with them coming back together. The three of them couldn't be any more different from one another with one being the spoiled rich girl, one the local townie and then the other coming from a rough family background.

The story is one that I was on the fence throughout reading this book as to whether I was enjoying it or not. Quite honestly I never did really care for any of the three main characters at any point during the read, they've all got their issues and weren't really appealing to me at all. There's also some other issues like a sheriff that wasn't a bit realistic and a few other things here and there I didn't care for either. But that being said the story did rather engage me wanting to know was it the husband? Or even just what had happened in the past and present before it was revealed so I decided to rate this one right down the middle since I was still interested in answers while reading.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

It's Always The Husband is a good suspense that involved three girls Audrey, Kate and Jenny who met when they become roommate in collage. Fast forward twenty years later they reunited and their lives changed and one of the girl found dead mysteriously. The husband become the prime suspect. Do he do it or who done it? The pace of the novel is slow. At the beginning is excited, in the middle flat and pick up the pace at the end. And I do like the quick twist at the end. I do enjoy reading it and recommend to people who love suspense book.I received this book for free from SheSpeaks to reviews, but my opinion is 100 percent my own.

First off= no spoilers. Second- as others have noted, none of these women are someone you'd like to have as a friend. These are truly frenemies and they are just not nice to anyone, let alone themselves. I liked how the novel started on the edge and then went through Aubrey, Jenny, and Kate's stories. It's well written, if sometimes slower than I might have liked, but it's highly plot driven (since you won't like the characters!), which makes it a good travel read. THanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

I loved this book. It has so many twists and turns and keeps you guessing until the end. Meeting the main 3 ladies, Kate, Jenny, and Aubrey as they start off their college career, was intriguing. So many happenings and it was a great whodunit book. Reading it makes you wonder is it really ' Always the Husband.' As a member of SheSpeaks, I received this book for free from SheSpeaks.

"I received this book for free from SheSpeaks!!
I absolutely loved it a story about three women and their lives and how intertwined they become through college and into adult hood with many unexpected twists and turns. Keeps your interest and very surprising ending, very good read I loved it!!! Very interesting and quite the who done it!

Almost didn't read this one but I'm glad I did! I really enjoyed it! Lately I've been reading books based on their Goodreads reviews and hated them. this one wasn't rated very high so I most didn't read it but I'm glad I did. It was well written, kept my interest and I stayed up all night until it was finished. Great!

This whodunit book is a fast read and hooked me immediately. It's the perfect book for a vacation or the beach. It's well written and unpredictable - I thought I had it all figured out half way through but I was wrong! None of the characters are likeable however and that makes it harder to keep going sometimes since you don't really care sometimes what happens to any of them. I received this book for free from SheSpeaks.

Oh my goodness. You know that moment when you're anticipating all the good things the book description promises and you begin to think that they aren't going to happen? Yeah, I hit that moment rather early on.

To make this book work, many of the characters probably needed to be unlikeable, I think. Most were very shallow and one-note. I can deal with some of that when it's necessary for the plot, but these characters were so bad ~ so bad. I didn't like any of them. A few times I asked myself why I was still reading, but by that point, I just had to see where this was going.

Even the poor scholarship girl, Aubrey, fell immediately under the spell of the "poor little rich girl", Kate, and her gang of followers. Jenny, the townie, did also, but in a very different way. She wanted to learn from Kate and her father so as to move up in society.

It's interesting that none of these women appeared to change from college. They all continued in their pre-ordained roles of rich girl, fixer and clean up girl and the "wannabe". There was no growth, nothing to make me care.

I appreciate that I received this book from Netgalley, the publishers and the author, but it just didn't work for me.

The author is very gifted. Her characters appear very real and her descriptive passages draw you in but are not overwhelming. I loved the book and have it listed as one of my favourites. To pull everything together so smoothly is quite a talent. The ending was most unexpected yet well within the realm of the believable. 5 stars!

In the beginning, I wanted to know what is happening here? how did "she" get here? After a few chapters, it started a bit slow for me. Within a few more chapters, it picks up a bit more and has you intrigued once again. Throughout the book, you will question who you can and cannot trust. I'm going to re read this book and again. Unfortunately, during my reading a family member had personal issues (and passed away) and i couldn't concentrate as much but this is my honest review of the book. I'll be happy to come back and update my review again in a few weeks. I received this book complimentary of Shespeaks

#AlwaysTheHusband is a great book that's hard to put down always wondering what in the world is going to happen next? Many twists and turns in the life's of Three young woman from different walks of life. It begins with the three meeting at college and sharing a dorm become strange but interlocked BFF's . Good times, Bad times with a few twists and turns and the unthinkable #AlwaysTheHusband is a summer must read! Thanks to @SheSpeaks I got this book to enjoy & read & share for free!

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review. These three girls are a trainwreck and I enjoyed reading every minute of it. I thought the story was really well done and I liked having the multiple points of view throughout. I look forward to reading more books by this author.

I didn't have this book , but I didn't love it either. Inept was just ok. I felt the story was predictable and not really exciting. It felt like a lot of other stories. There was nothing really special about it. This book has a lot of potential, but I don't feel it was expected right. There was no excitement , or wow factor at all. I don't think I will ever read this book again.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press, Michele Campbell Books, and SheSpeaks.com for the opportunity to read #AlwaysTheHusband for an honest review!

While I do agree with other reviewers that the 3 main characters, and most of the secondary characters, were not very likable (I mean, Chief Rizzo? What a dick.), I very much enjoyed this book. True, these women (girls, really, when the story begins) are not likable, and maybe not even that relatable, but I still wanted to know what happened to them and why. More often than not, I found myself feeling pity for the men in their lives. And, honestly, Kate was SUCH a terrible person that I ended up feeling like she deserved what she got.

Yes, there were portions that made me literally roll my eyes, but in my opinion did not take away from the story. The second half of the story is more fast-paced, however that slower-paced first half is necessary so that the reader can more clearly understand the characters' motives and personalities, and how they all fit (or clash, as the case may be) together.

MAJOR SPOILER ALERT! DO NOT READ PAST THIS LINE UNLESS YOU WANT THE ENDING SPOILED FOR YOU. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.
I truly did not think it would end up being the husband, despite (or perhaps because of) the title. There were several points in the story where I was 100% convinced either Aubrey or Jenny had killed Kate. Well done, Ms. Campbell, you got me!

Aubrey, Jenny, and Kate meet at Carlisle College--an elite institution on par with the Ivies--when they are placed as roommates their freshman year. Aubrey is on financial aid and looking for a chance to restart her life. Jenny, a "townie," has lived in Belle River, New Hampshire, most of her life. And finally, there's the beautiful Kate, whose wealthy family has long ties to Carlisle. The three quickly form a fast friendship, but it's problematic as well. Aubrey is in awe of the enigmatic Kate, while Jenny often resents her lovely, popular roommate. And then, near the end of their freshman year, a tragic event changes their lives forever.

Be forewarned: this is a book populated by annoying, pathetic, self-involved characters. While it supposedly centers on a friendship that begins in college, that couldn't really be further from the truth. These three girls are not friends. The centerpiece is wealthy Kate Eastman, a daughter from a privileged family, who somehow attracts everyone into her orbit, despite being a real narcissistic jerk. Frankly, it's hard to read a book when you really don't care about anyone. This is exacerbated by some stilted and forced writing--backed up by cliches--that makes the novel hard to read at times.

I was amazed by Kate's power over everyone and frustrated by their devotion to her. We are probably supposed to feel sorry for her, due to her hateful family and deceased mother, and for the other characters and the power the Eastmans exert over them. But I just couldn't -- at least not continuously throughout the novel. In fact, it's impossible to root for either side, or anyone, in this book.

Now, the second half of the novel switches over to the present day and allows a bit more focus on a mystery. You're left guessing and there is at least less spotlight on the girls and their pettiness (though it's definitely still there). Unfortunately, I thought the second-half mystery was somwhat spoiled (not to spoil anything myself) by a main player in the puzzle plot who carried a ridiculous and biased torch for Kate, despite having spent a sum total of about three hours in her presence. That one plot point irked me so much that I enjoyed the second half of the novel less than I would have otherwise. And the second half is better: I read it straight through in an evening, and it kept me turning the pages, wondering how things would turn out.

Unfortunately, it was marred by the earlier half of the book, a cast of despicable characters, and some cliched writing that left a lot to be desired. Still, I have to hand it to Campbell: she kept me reading in spite of all of that. Because of that, I'm going with 3 stars: a combination of 2.5 for the first half of the novel and 3.5 for second.

This is a story of three freshmen roommates of differing economic backgrounds, Kate, Aubrey and Jenny, and a death that ties them together. I enjoyed learning about their early years, though this campus seemed to have more drinking and drugs than usual.

While the character of Kate was central to the book, it was hard to feel sympathy for her. She didn't treat people well in college or as an adult. We were told of tragic things that happened to her as a child, but it still wasn't enough. Jenny and Aubrey were a bit more likable.

I stuck with the book to find out who the main killer was. There were some twists and turns, and he or she wasn't revealed until the end of the book. I did go oh, because this person wasn't my top choice. However, I almost wish someone else had done it in the end.

This is a good summer read. I received this book for free from SheSpeaks.

Kate, Jenny & Aubrey, although coming from very different backgrounds, become friends when they room together at college. After all, as Kate says, “They say your freshman roommates become your best friends for life”. But it soon becomes apparent that their friendship has serious flaws.

The book starts out promising with a well-written scene of an unsuspecting woman being led to a bridge and then being encouraged to commit suicide there. Then it switches to 22 years before when the three young women arrive on campus and first meet each other. I at first liked the girls but that soon started to unravel. I wasn’t really interested in their daily activities but something certainly did keep me turning those pages. The first half of the book, which covers the college years, seemed to read as a young adult novel, which I don’t personally care for. I thought that I would become more involved in the story when the second half of the book starts with the present day occurrences, but unfortunately by that time I didn’t really care enough about which one of them ends up on the bridge or who had led them there. I didn’t find the ending to be surprising.

But as I said, something kept me turning those pages to find out what happens so I’ll give this one my “It was okay” rating of three stars.

This book was given to me by the publisher in return for an honest review.

A very interesting read! This book kept me guessing until the very end! A very good Who done it story line. The characters were a little annoying at times with their behaviours, but it was a well written story. I thoroughly enjoyed it and was surprised by the ending! I received this book for free from SheSpeaks!

"I received this book for free from SheSpeaks."

I love diving into a new book and feeling like I've made new friends. I've always said that a trait of a good book is feeling at the end you're invested in the characters and the story so much you forget it's a work of fiction. I went into reading 'It's Always the Husband' with an open mind. I'm not really into heavy suspense so I thought maybe it wouldn't be for me. I can, however, say that it wasn't as filled with suspense and I thought. There were times the book was very slow and that made me want to put it down a few times but I persisted and continued to read through to the end.

I'm sad to say really if I wasn't reviewing the book I probably would have put it down. I didn't like any of the lead characters. The whole love to hate thing was taken a bit too far in my opinion. I was irritated reading about the friendships because it just seemed off.

The book is written with flashbacks and present day switching between each other, which works great for some and for others not so well. I don't like that in movies much so I care for it less in books.

While the book does leave you guessing until the end, it was just an okay read to me. If I had any expectations I would have been sorely disappointed.

First I should mention that I received this book for free from SheSpeaks -- thanks! I liked the title and I really wondered if it would turn out to be true or not. (My daughter-in-law saw the book's title one day and admitted she liked it too!) The very beginning of the book was great -- "Go ahead and jump. You know you want to." I was anxious to find out more. However it seemed to take a very long time from that beginning to get to the more interesting point in the book. I felt that there was way too much background story about the three freshmen friends including what they did or where they went, their boyfriends and family problems etc. I became almost bored with them and really didn't care or like any one more than another. Also I was confused as to who was the main character. The last part of the book was more interesting and some things were explained then. Although I still didn't like any of the three women, I felt a little sorry for all of them. I loved the twist at the end though! That was really great. I thought that this book did have a great plot/idea but there was too much background story with a little mystery. It could have almost been another book about the three girls' college freshmen year and how their friendship evolved and changed then and through the years.

I did receive this book for free from SheSpeaks in exchange for my honest review. It was a good book, not a favorite but entertaining still. The book got better a few chapters or so into the story. I would still be interested to check out other books from this author. If you like a mystery, give it a try.

I received this book for free from SheSpeaks. I enjoyed this book for the most part. It seemed to keep my attention at first then towards the middle / end of it the thrill of it kinda waned. I really enjoyed the relationships between the 3 women. I like how it shows that no matter what kinda life you have anyone can make lasting friendships. The end does wrap up the story and for that I am grateful. I just wish it had more suspense, nail-biting, sitting on the edge of your seat. I would recommend that it you want to read it do go ahead and see for yourself what the book is about. I've learned when it comes to books and movies to take opinions, but ultimately see for yourself.

I Liked the book very much. I didn’t guess the ending until a handful of pages til the end of the book. I would have liked to see how the doctor and Aubrey’s situation played out or even see him thrown in jail or lose everything. He was a total douche bag.

I'm listening to this book and the narrator's voice is far too old. They are supposed to be college freshmen, and she makes them sound like very confident, authoritative middle-age women. Not to mention they are all totally unlikable.

**Disclaimer: I received this book for free from SheSpeaks. This does not effect my review whatsoever.**

Oh, what to say about this book.....it was not as fast-paced as I believe it would be. The first half was set at a pretty slow pace, granted it was probably done this way to lay out the groundwork as to how Aubry, Kate, and Jenny became acquainted and it's ties to the attention-grabbing prologue. But I hated having to wait till halfway through the book for the pace to pick up.

On another note, I have to give props to author Michele Campbell for her masterful character development. You automatically know who to hate as soon as their stories are introduced. All three of these women obviously put on fake masks around one another and as they get older, their masks begin to fade and their true feelings come roaring out.

I admired the book and it's ending, but the pacing was all too much for me. If it was truly fast-paced as claimed, then it probably would have had a five star rating. Regardless, I still recommend you add this to your TBR pile!

It's Always the Husband by Michele Campbell tells the story of unfaithful husband and the wife is always the last to know. Once I started reading a could not put it down. Highly recommend. I won an advance readers edition in a Goodreads Giveaway and chose to write a review.

I received this book for free from SheSpeaks and I enjoyed the book. It was a quick read for me, and it definitely kept my interest, and I really wanted to find out what happens in the end. I enjoyed the way the author developed the characters, but always kept me wondering about each of them.

This story is about friends who love and hate each other. It starts out setting up the mystery and then goes back in time to establish the characters. The shift in time throughout the story keeps you guessing by setting up each character to be the possible culprit. It was a good book that got better the further into it I got. By the end, I was truly into it and wanting to find out "whodunnit". I would recommend it as a summer read. I received this book for free from SheSpeaks.

There was a bit much character development & too many storylines, from college through middle aged adulthood. What am I, a mystery reader or Oxygen or Lifetime viewer?

However, "It's Always the Husband" was engaging and featured a surprise twist at the end.

I wanted to like this book than I did. The blurb for the book really caught my attention and had me wanting to know more about these characters. Once I started the book, I had a hard time getting into the story. The first part felt heavy handed in descriptions with seeming little to move the story along. It wasn't until around the half-way point where the story picked up for me.

Please, don't get me wrong, I thought the author wrote very well and provided well fleshed out characters. I tend to not care for books that are overly descriptive, I find I get bored; that's just me.

The author tells the story by switching back and forth between past and present. I thought this was done' very well and helped add suspense to the story.

This is the first book by this author that I have read and I would be interested in looking into other work by her.

I received a copy of this book by the publisher through NetGalley, my review has been voluntarily submitted.
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I have to admit, I have mixed feelings about this book. I couldn't quite relate to the characters and the story seemed to jump around a bit from beginning toward the middle. There was suspense, and yes it was interesting because I still could not put it down. I will call it predictable, but yet still a page turner. I received this book for free from SheSpeaks.

The first chapter of this book hooked me! Then I got confused. The first half drags on, was not what I expected, and did not need to be as long as it was. The second half mostly makes up for that. The pace picks up and the mystery comes out. I thought I figured it out twice and both times the author threw me a curveball. There were probably too many characters and the story didn’t seem to be hammered out as well as it could be, but it kept me entertained and that’s what matters. I received this book for free from SheSpeaks.

I received this book for FREE from SheSpeaks:)
Aubrey, Jenny, and Kate are college roommates that become best of friends. Fast forward 20 years later and one is ready to jump off a Bridge. Roommates and husbands are all suspects. With all the twists and turns all the way to the end as to who really did it. What a page turner. Couldn't wait till the end to find out who did it. You will love this summer read!

This book is definitely a page turner. There were many days I should have been working around my home, but I couldn't put this book down. It's a wonderful "who done it" suspenseful read. There were times when I thought just about every character in the book was suspect. This is a great summer read for the pool or the beach. You will not be disappointed. ***I received this book for free from SheSpeaks, but opinion is 100% my own***

This book is a quick summer read for anyone looking for a suspenseful plot. I could not put this book down! And you'll think you'll see the ending coming two or three times before you find out the truth. Great book about friendships, their pitfalls, and what happens when a relationship is pushed too far.

I was really looking forward to reading "it's always the husband". I received this book free from SheSpeaks. One of the main problems I had with the book was finding spelling and typographical errors. I'm a nerd when it comes to that....it's a pet peeve. Once I notice that there are these types of errors it's hard for me to get truly involved in the story, it loses credibility. Another issue I had was the characters....they just didn't seem to be too real to me. All that being said however, the book was okay. I didn't hate it. Also, I'm not too into preppy, college-aged young adult stories. However, some of the story line was engrossing....it was suspenseful in parts and made me want to keep on reading to find out what so-and-so did to so-and-so. That's always a juicy concept. I did find that the author really developed the characters so that you felt like you knew them or that they were interesting....but, like I said earlier, some of the characters' personalities were a little too "out there". Other reviewers wrote that the ending was a shock....unfortunately that was not the case for me...I pegged the "who-dun-it" early on. All and all, the book was an okay read, not bad, but not as good as I had expected.

I am saddened to see another novel using the exact same title also released this year by a different author. I fear this will create major confusion. I received this book for free from SheSpeaks.
The story is decent, but not as wildly inspiring as I had hoped for. Reliving the nightmarish freshman year of college left me wondering if I should read on or cut my losses. I'm certain others might feel vastly different about the book as a whole than I did. Past history has a major effect on reading choices for many of us. So kindly do a quick checkup for potential trouble spots which might negatively impact your reading experience.
The writing style is pleasant and shows diligent attention to her craft. The time shifts, though somewhat necessary, proved a bit daunting, forcing me to go back and re-read certain passages or even a whole chapter in order to ease confusion. All things considered, this is a first novel, which means her style should evolve with her next release.

I have read a lot of mystery books and when I first started to read this I was worried the story would be predictable. My favorite part about this book was that the way the story ended was not predictable. I only gave the book four stars because I think the pace was a little slow in certain parts and the way it jumped between time wasn't the most elegant and coherent. Overall it is an interesting story and I would recommend it! I received this book for free from SheSpeaks.

I loved this book it held my attention to the very end and I was able to finish it within a few days because I couldn't tout it down definitely a favorite of mine! I recieved this book complimentary from she speaks!

I received this book for free from SheSpeaks. I enjoyed reading this thriller! It was a page turner and kept me guessing til the end. I would recommend this for someone looking for a quick, thriller - this would be the perfect beach read.

Fairly good book! Intriguing and somewhat suspenseful. Michele Campbell does a good job letting you get to know the characters but the pace could have been a little faster. Definitely a must read if you enjoy mystery or thrillers. I received this book free from She Speaks for an honest review.

Disclaimer: I received this book for free from SheSpeaks. All opinions are my own.

I couldn't tell the entire time who actually did it. I couldn't put this book down. There were so many twists and turns in it. I would recommend this to anyone who wants to curl up with some coffee & read a good murder mystery.

I received this book for free from SheSpeaks. That being said I was really interested in the story line which is why involunteered to read it. It has great twists, suspense, and thrills. A great book to read with your book club/or girlfriends and compare notes as you read along.

While I enjoyed this book overall, it did start slow and was not so much of the mystery I thought it would be. I felt like a lot of the time I could tell what was going to happen so it was pretty predictable. Even still if you just let the book take you away and stop thinking about it so much it is worth the read. It is a well written and thought out book that does have mystery to it as long as you are not trying to be super detective. I did enjoy that the characters are well developed and they way you are introduced to each character was creative. Overall I would say that it is a middle of the road book worth the read but not like omg you have to read this kind of book. I did receive this book for my completely honest review via shespeaks. I was not paid or influenced for or in this review.

Okay, I have to admit that when I first started reading this book I didn't like it. I thought- "I have read this book before." I actually hadn't, it just felt that way because it reminded me of a dozen college movies and books from the 70's. It was so similar to those movies that I felt I had seen it/read many times before. It seemed to be rife with cliche- same characters, same plot and same setting as many other college movies.

The Characters: The Rich Girl, The Middle Class Girl and The Poor Girl, The rich male friend/Handsome Rich Guy.

The Setting: Fraternity life- Drunken frat parties, an excessive amount of partying, promiscuity and risk-taking behavior.

The Plot: Three (or more) women meet in college. Something tragic happens- someone dies and the girls are involved. We're never sure what actually happened- it's a secret until the end of the movie. The girls hide the truth and the ugly secret keeps them bound together. Fast forward to 15 or 20 or 30 years later when the girls meet again and the secret is revealed.

Yet, despite those things I eventually found myself interested in the story and I had to see how it ended. I have read many books and I usually know after the first few pages if I like the book and want to read the entire story. That didn't happen this time, I had to read 4-5 chapters before I became interested in the book. After that I couldn't put it down.

The story focuses on three women-Aubrey, Jenny, and Kate. They meet in Freshman year when they are assigned to room together at Carlisle College, a prestigious school in New Hampshire. Aubrey is a poverty-stricken scholarship kid counting on Carlisle to help her escape poverty. Jenny is a self-righteous, overachieving and ambitious townie - she grew up in Belle River but hopes Carlisle will help her rise above her middle-class upbringing. Even though she has wonderful parents and a loving family she is embarrassed because her parents are only shopkeepers. She's going places in life and she doesn't care what she has to do to get there. Kate is a beautiful, self-involved and spoiled rich girl whose wealthy family has long ties to Carlisle. She's the stereotypical rich girl- beautiful, blond and gorgeous. She's also a self-destructive narcissistic who doesn't care if she drags everyone down with her. Griff is a rich male friend of Kate's. Of course he's handsome, blond and wealthy by inheritance. He's hopelessly in love with Kate even though she's totally uninterested in him.

All of the characters are so completely different from each other that I wondered why they were ever friends to begin with. Even though the girls are completely different from one another, they soon become “best friends". However, they have very little in common and don't seem to actually like each other -but then again who WOULD like any of them?

Aubrey is a weak, pathetic doormat with no self-respect. Her (undeserved) hero worship of Kate is nauseating. Jenny is a pretentious social climber who thinks she's better than everyone else. And Kate is just a bitch- A selfish back-stabber with no respect for anyone- herself included. Usually there’s something likable about even the most unlikable characters. But not this time.
I despised every one of these women.

The book is told in two time frames (one when the girls are in college, and one in present day). The beginning of the book starts at the end. One of the girls is standing at the edge of a bridge and someone is urging her to jump.

It started out very slow but fortunately it picked up about half way through. And once it picked up it, it became a book I didn't want to put down. I had to keep reading it to find out how things would turn out. Even better, it left me guessing until the very end.

The first half of the novel is about the girls' freshman year; ending with a tragic event that changes all of their lives. The friends lie about the events of that night and that lie destroys their friendship. Every bad thing that happens in this book happens because of Kate. She is a selfish, entitled sociopath who is incapable of caring about anyone but herself. She doesn't care who she hurts and she shows no remorse for any of her selfish actions. I honestly couldn't see why everyone worshiped her. She has no redeeming qualities whatsoever.

After the tragic event-Fast forward 20 years and the three friends are all back in the same town. Aubrey thought she had achieved all of her goals. She has the family she always wanted, she owns her own business and she's married to a doctor. But she is secretly miserable because her marriage is a sham. Jenny is enjoying her ill-gotten power as the mayor. Kate is unhappily married to Griff. They lost everything and are forced to move back to Belle River to start over.

Then another tragedy occurs; one of the women is standing at the edge of a bridge, and someone is urging her to jump. She falls to her death and rumors spread throughout town that she killed herself. But did she jump or was she pushed? Questions surface regarding what happened and also regarding what REALLY happened 20 years ago. Will the truth come out?

There are many mysteries that you manage to figure out part-way through the book. "It's Always the Husband" is NOT one of them. You think you have it all figured out but you really don't. You're convinced that you know who did it, only to find that it was not who you suspected.

Overall, I think it was a decent debut book from the author and I am interested in seeing what she will come out with next. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys murder mysteries.

"I received this book for free from SheSpeaks."

This was such an amazingly good read! It definitely keeps you on your toes and wondering what's going to happen next... so many twists and turns and even parts I could relate to myself.. it's scary out there and this just shows it.. you never know who or what is going to come along and change everything...

I wanted to like this book than I did. The blurb for the book really caught my attention and had me wanting to know more about these characters. Once I started the book, I had a hard time getting into the story. The first part felt heavy handed in descriptions with seeming little to move the story along. It wasn't until around the half-way point where the story picked up for me.

Please, don't get me wrong, I thought the author wrote very well and provided well fleshed out characters. I tend to not care for books that are overly descriptive, I find I get bored; that's just me.

The author tells the story by switching back and forth between past and present. I thought this was done' very well and helped add suspense to the story.

This is the first book by this author that I have read and I would be interested in looking into other work by her.

I received a copy of this book by the publisher through NetGalley, my review has been voluntarily submitted.
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I have to admit, I have mixed feelings about this book. I couldn't quite relate to the characters and the story seemed to jump around a bit from beginning toward the middle. There was suspense, and yes it was interesting because I still could not put it down. I will call it predictable, but yet still a page turner. I received this book for free from SheSpeaks.

The first chapter of this book hooked me! Then I got confused. The first half drags on, was not what I expected, and did not need to be as long as it was. The second half mostly makes up for that. The pace picks up and the mystery comes out. I thought I figured it out twice and both times the author threw me a curveball. There were probably too many characters and the story didn’t seem to be hammered out as well as it could be, but it kept me entertained and that’s what matters. I received this book for free from SheSpeaks.

I received this book for FREE from SheSpeaks:)
Aubrey, Jenny, and Kate are college roommates that become best of friends. Fast forward 20 years later and one is ready to jump off a Bridge. Roommates and husbands are all suspects. With all the twists and turns all the way to the end as to who really did it. What a page turner. Couldn't wait till the end to find out who did it. You will love this summer read!

This book is definitely a page turner. There were many days I should have been working around my home, but I couldn't put this book down. It's a wonderful "who done it" suspenseful read. There were times when I thought just about every character in the book was suspect. This is a great summer read for the pool or the beach. You will not be disappointed. ***I received this book for free from SheSpeaks, but opinion is 100% my own***

This book is a quick summer read for anyone looking for a suspenseful plot. I could not put this book down! And you'll think you'll see the ending coming two or three times before you find out the truth. Great book about friendships, their pitfalls, and what happens when a relationship is pushed too far.

I was really looking forward to reading "it's always the husband". I received this book free from SheSpeaks. One of the main problems I had with the book was finding spelling and typographical errors. I'm a nerd when it comes to that....it's a pet peeve. Once I notice that there are these types of errors it's hard for me to get truly involved in the story, it loses credibility. Another issue I had was the characters....they just didn't seem to be too real to me. All that being said however, the book was okay. I didn't hate it. Also, I'm not too into preppy, college-aged young adult stories. However, some of the story line was engrossing....it was suspenseful in parts and made me want to keep on reading to find out what so-and-so did to so-and-so. That's always a juicy concept. I did find that the author really developed the characters so that you felt like you knew them or that they were interesting....but, like I said earlier, some of the characters' personalities were a little too "out there". Other reviewers wrote that the ending was a shock....unfortunately that was not the case for me...I pegged the "who-dun-it" early on. All and all, the book was an okay read, not bad, but not as good as I had expected.

I am saddened to see another novel using the exact same title also released this year by a different author. I fear this will create major confusion. I received this book for free from SheSpeaks.
The story is decent, but not as wildly inspiring as I had hoped for. Reliving the nightmarish freshman year of college left me wondering if I should read on or cut my losses. I'm certain others might feel vastly different about the book as a whole than I did. Past history has a major effect on reading choices for many of us. So kindly do a quick checkup for potential trouble spots which might negatively impact your reading experience.
The writing style is pleasant and shows diligent attention to her craft. The time shifts, though somewhat necessary, proved a bit daunting, forcing me to go back and re-read certain passages or even a whole chapter in order to ease confusion. All things considered, this is a first novel, which means her style should evolve with her next release.

I have read a lot of mystery books and when I first started to read this I was worried the story would be predictable. My favorite part about this book was that the way the story ended was not predictable. I only gave the book four stars because I think the pace was a little slow in certain parts and the way it jumped between time wasn't the most elegant and coherent. Overall it is an interesting story and I would recommend it! I received this book for free from SheSpeaks.

I loved this book it held my attention to the very end and I was able to finish it within a few days because I couldn't tout it down definitely a favorite of mine! I recieved this book complimentary from she speaks!

I received this book for free from SheSpeaks. I enjoyed reading this thriller! It was a page turner and kept me guessing til the end. I would recommend this for someone looking for a quick, thriller - this would be the perfect beach read.

Fairly good book! Intriguing and somewhat suspenseful. Michele Campbell does a good job letting you get to know the characters but the pace could have been a little faster. Definitely a must read if you enjoy mystery or thrillers. I received this book free from She Speaks for an honest review.

Disclaimer: I received this book for free from SheSpeaks. All opinions are my own.

I couldn't tell the entire time who actually did it. I couldn't put this book down. There were so many twists and turns in it. I would recommend this to anyone who wants to curl up with some coffee & read a good murder mystery.

I received this book for free from SheSpeaks. That being said I was really interested in the story line which is why involunteered to read it. It has great twists, suspense, and thrills. A great book to read with your book club/or girlfriends and compare notes as you read along.

While I enjoyed this book overall, it did start slow and was not so much of the mystery I thought it would be. I felt like a lot of the time I could tell what was going to happen so it was pretty predictable. Even still if you just let the book take you away and stop thinking about it so much it is worth the read. It is a well written and thought out book that does have mystery to it as long as you are not trying to be super detective. I did enjoy that the characters are well developed and they way you are introduced to each character was creative. Overall I would say that it is a middle of the road book worth the read but not like omg you have to read this kind of book. I did receive this book for my completely honest review via shespeaks. I was not paid or influenced for or in this review.

Okay, I have to admit that when I first started reading this book I didn't like it. I thought- "I have read this book before." I actually hadn't, it just felt that way because it reminded me of a dozen college movies and books from the 70's. It was so similar to those movies that I felt I had seen it/read many times before. It seemed to be rife with cliche- same characters, same plot and same setting as many other college movies.

The Characters: The Rich Girl, The Middle Class Girl and The Poor Girl, The rich male friend/Handsome Rich Guy.

The Setting: Fraternity life- Drunken frat parties, an excessive amount of partying, promiscuity and risk-taking behavior.

The Plot: Three (or more) women meet in college. Something tragic happens- someone dies and the girls are involved. We're never sure what actually happened- it's a secret until the end of the movie. The girls hide the truth and the ugly secret keeps them bound together. Fast forward to 15 or 20 or 30 years later when the girls meet again and the secret is revealed.

Yet, despite those things I eventually found myself interested in the story and I had to see how it ended. I have read many books and I usually know after the first few pages if I like the book and want to read the entire story. That didn't happen this time, I had to read 4-5 chapters before I became interested in the book. After that I couldn't put it down.

The story focuses on three women-Aubrey, Jenny, and Kate. They meet in Freshman year when they are assigned to room together at Carlisle College, a prestigious school in New Hampshire. Aubrey is a poverty-stricken scholarship kid counting on Carlisle to help her escape poverty. Jenny is a self-righteous, overachieving and ambitious townie - she grew up in Belle River but hopes Carlisle will help her rise above her middle-class upbringing. Even though she has wonderful parents and a loving family she is embarrassed because her parents are only shopkeepers. She's going places in life and she doesn't care what she has to do to get there. Kate is a beautiful, self-involved and spoiled rich girl whose wealthy family has long ties to Carlisle. She's the stereotypical rich girl- beautiful, blond and gorgeous. She's also a self-destructive narcissistic who doesn't care if she drags everyone down with her. Griff is a rich male friend of Kate's. Of course he's handsome, blond and wealthy by inheritance. He's hopelessly in love with Kate even though she's totally uninterested in him.

All of the characters are so completely different from each other that I wondered why they were ever friends to begin with. Even though the girls are completely different from one another, they soon become “best friends". However, they have very little in common and don't seem to actually like each other -but then again who WOULD like any of them?

Aubrey is a weak, pathetic doormat with no self-respect. Her (undeserved) hero worship of Kate is nauseating. Jenny is a pretentious social climber who thinks she's better than everyone else. And Kate is just a bitch- A selfish back-stabber with no respect for anyone- herself included. Usually there’s something likable about even the most unlikable characters. But not this time.
I despised every one of these women.

The book is told in two time frames (one when the girls are in college, and one in present day). The beginning of the book starts at the end. One of the girls is standing at the edge of a bridge and someone is urging her to jump.

It started out very slow but fortunately it picked up about half way through. And once it picked up it, it became a book I didn't want to put down. I had to keep reading it to find out how things would turn out. Even better, it left me guessing until the very end.

The first half of the novel is about the girls' freshman year; ending with a tragic event that changes all of their lives. The friends lie about the events of that night and that lie destroys their friendship. Every bad thing that happens in this book happens because of Kate. She is a selfish, entitled sociopath who is incapable of caring about anyone but herself. She doesn't care who she hurts and she shows no remorse for any of her selfish actions. I honestly couldn't see why everyone worshiped her. She has no redeeming qualities whatsoever.

After the tragic event-Fast forward 20 years and the three friends are all back in the same town. Aubrey thought she had achieved all of her goals. She has the family she always wanted, she owns her own business and she's married to a doctor. But she is secretly miserable because her marriage is a sham. Jenny is enjoying her ill-gotten power as the mayor. Kate is unhappily married to Griff. They lost everything and are forced to move back to Belle River to start over.

Then another tragedy occurs; one of the women is standing at the edge of a bridge, and someone is urging her to jump. She falls to her death and rumors spread throughout town that she killed herself. But did she jump or was she pushed? Questions surface regarding what happened and also regarding what REALLY happened 20 years ago. Will the truth come out?

There are many mysteries that you manage to figure out part-way through the book. "It's Always the Husband" is NOT one of them. You think you have it all figured out but you really don't. You're convinced that you know who did it, only to find that it was not who you suspected.

Overall, I think it was a decent debut book from the author and I am interested in seeing what she will come out with next. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys murder mysteries.

"I received this book for free from SheSpeaks."

This was such an amazingly good read! It definitely keeps you on your toes and wondering what's going to happen next... so many twists and turns and even parts I could relate to myself.. it's scary out there and this just shows it.. you never know who or what is going to come along and change everything...

This book has a great premise that is similar to other books that I have enjoyed but, unfortunately I found the characters lacking. Sometimes there are characters you love, sometimes there are characters you love to hate, with this book, however, I just hated them. I found them extremely annoying and honestly didn't care which one died. My curiosity did keep me turning the pages though and it is a pretty quick read.

I received this book for free from SheSpeaks

I received this book for free from SheSpeaks. This was an enjoyable "beach read" that sucked me in and kept me guessing. It does seem written for a younger audience - college-aged. The chapters set in college were the most in-depth and very detailed while the other years of the lead character's lives were much more surface-level.

This book was a page turner. It keeps you guessing until the end. Just when you think you have it figured out, there's a plot twist and you're left scratching your head again trying to solve the mystery.

I started this book with high hopes, but with a cast of extremely unlikeable characters and a story that wasn't a favorite, it was a disappointing read. With "best friends" like these who needs enemies. It was very hard to believe that their so called friendship would last for their ill fated first year of college, let alone for twenty additional years! There was something there since I kept turning the pages, just not enough. Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Full disclosure: I barely made it through half of this book. I used to finish every book I started, then realized that life is way too short and there are way too many good books. I couldn't bring myself to care about a single character in this book. The idea that Jenny and Aubrey could really consider Kate their "best friend" was ludicrous. Granted, I don't know how it ended, but sadly, I couldn't care less. Don't waste your time. Pick up a Jodie Picoult or Laura Moriarty.

This story has a lot of potential to be great! The backstory of the three main characters is interesting. How they meet, how they stay connected, and where they end up. I am not a huge fan of mysteries and suspense stories, so this was not my normal reading genre. However, it is well written and it s story line that draws you in and makes you want to keep reading. The premise is an interesting one, and a great spin on the "friends who see something bad and keep it a secret" trope. What makes it more interesting is that it also explores the privileged lives of women at Ivy league schools, of which the author has first hand knowledge having attended Harvard. I think that helps to make the first half of the story credible. However, it is hard to read about the frenemy friendship the girls in the book have in college. Interesting read, and would be great for a summer read!

"I received this book for free from Shespeaks."
Suspenseful towards the second half of the book. the first was a little slow going but picked up. Thhe 3 girls are not nie people but I was curious. I enjoyed the book and reccommend it.

"I received this book for free from SheSpeaks."
I was very excited to start reading this book, I always love thrillers! But I was somewhat disappointed with the content of this book & story. It started out promising, giving a back story, but I quickly got tired of flipping back and forth between the present & the past, it got old quick! I thought the story would pick up eventually and be more of a "thriller." But unfortunately, it never really got all that interesting for me. I would love to read another book by this author to maybe have them redeem themselves.

I will give this novel a one star because the plot has potential, however, it is so cheesy I can’t believe it was written by anyone over the age of 18. This is more of a teenage romance, drugs, sex novel than a murder mystery for an adult reader.

I really want to give this book a good rating but I will start by saying that the title is misleading. I can't really relate to the characters though initially I felt a sense of nostalgia because I was once a college girl myself but then there was a disconnect between myself and the characters. I also couldn't understand how girls who are so different could connect so quickly. The plot does not really correlate. It's like hey we're in college and like 20 years later... oh there's a tragedy. Cool. I didn't enjoy it much but maybe I'll re-read. Wasn't a page turner and took me a while to get through it. I received this book for free from SheSpeaks.

I thought I would like this book more than I did once I was done reading it. I have mixed emotions. I liked the story as a whole, but
It started out good, but often it would drag on with mundane details. For the most part it still kept me wanting to read more and interested in the story, but not as much as I had thought it would. I like how it jumps from past to present, but I think it could have been done a little differently in order for it to flow better.

*I received this book for free from SheSpeaks*

I received this book from SheSpeaks. The beginning seems interesting but I lose interest near the middle. It it's not too bad. I don't want to spoil it. I love watching crime shows on investigation discovery and this story did not catch my interests. The characters are okay and relatable. If you like a mystery over check this out.

I was sent this book from sheSpeaks for free to review. The first half of the book was very slow. But the second half was much better and was more of a page turner. The book was a quick easy read and would be perfect to pack to read on a trip/vacation.

There is not one single likeable character in this page-turning narrative. Kate, the spoiled rich girl, is especially despicable, which made me wonder why her friends remained loyal to her. The ending was definetely anti-climatic. This is one to read if you find entertainment in people behaving badly.

I just love suspense and thrillers. This was a difficult read for me. I love reading and enjoy escaping into the mind of the author and of the story-line presented in the book. Unfortunately, the characters in this book; even though they all came from various walks of life and backgrounds,; it just seemed to be something missing from what I expected from the story. I did enjoy the suspense from the book because it kept you wondering what would happen next. I received this book for free from SheSpeaks. #alwaysthehusband

I finished it ONLY to find out "who done it." The author is overly obsessed with drugs, alcohol, sex and wealth which negatively affected my ability to enjoy the book or to have empathy with any of the characters.

I was hoping for more to be honest. First off, the characters weren't likable, which takes me a bit out of it unfortunately.
I also had hoped for more from the description, it wasn't a waste of a read but it wasn't as entertaining as I had hoped.
I received a copy of the book complimentary from SheSpeaks, but opinions are my own.

The best way to start is I received this book for free from SheSpeaks. I tend to decide in the first few pages whether I'm going to enjoy a book. I read the entire book and every page felt like a chore. Based on the blurb it sounded interesting, but the characters aren't likable and the editing is weak. I will continue to watch for future books by the author, I like the way she writes. Hopefully the next book will show the writers true promise.

Definitely an interesting book. I did like the book, the only thing I would say is that it struggled to keep my attention. It was slow at times, but still a great concept.

I received this book complimentary for reviewing purposes.

I received this book for free from SheSpeaks.
I wish I could say that I liked this book; I really tried to like it, but the characters are all so unlikeable, unbelievable and un-relatable. The idea behind the story was interesting, but, seriously the characters ruined the whole thing. The author was very rich in her descriptions, which helped to paint the overall picture, but at times, the story got lost in the details. Not even halfway through the book, I wanted to quit reading it, but I kept at it because I knew I had to write a review.

took too long to get interesting. had too much about college sex, drugs, and drinking that had nothing to do with the plot. a lot of things were left hanging. a poorly written book that you keep waiting to get better. would not recomend

To be perfectly honest, I found this book to be quite boring. The author talks about them all being friends but really they were backstabbing each other since they met. It does not take long to find out who the victim is. When I read, I try to put myself in the story. I would have never talked to these girls after the 1st year.
All in all, the plot was a bit too predictable and the constant change of POV was irritating. The writing wasn't all that bad but the scenes could have been set up better.
I received this book for free from SheSpeaks.

I am going to stop reading the books the critics say are great. This book was a jumble that jumped into the past then present- which some books do but this as very ackward. Some of the chapters seemed unnecessary. Very predictable.

I received this book from SheSpeaks. The beginning seems interesting but I lose interest near the middle. It it's not too bad. I don't want to spoil it. I love watching crime shows on investigation discovery and this story did not catch my interests. The characters are okay and relatable. If you like a mystery over check this out.

I was sent this book from sheSpeaks for free to review. The first half of the book was very slow. But the second half was much better and was more of a page turner. The book was a quick easy read and would be perfect to pack to read on a trip/vacation.

There is not one single likeable character in this page-turning narrative. Kate, the spoiled rich girl, is especially despicable, which made me wonder why her friends remained loyal to her. The ending was definetely anti-climatic. This is one to read if you find entertainment in people behaving badly.

I just love suspense and thrillers. This was a difficult read for me. I love reading and enjoy escaping into the mind of the author and of the story-line presented in the book. Unfortunately, the characters in this book; even though they all came from various walks of life and backgrounds,; it just seemed to be something missing from what I expected from the story. I did enjoy the suspense from the book because it kept you wondering what would happen next. I received this book for free from SheSpeaks. #alwaysthehusband

I finished it ONLY to find out "who done it." The author is overly obsessed with drugs, alcohol, sex and wealth which negatively affected my ability to enjoy the book or to have empathy with any of the characters.

"I received this book for free from SheSpeaks." My first reaction to this book after reading the description and reviews was that I was very excited to read it. As i started reading it I found myself losing interest. It didn't hook me in like most books do. I forced myself to pick it up a fourth time and have continued reading it. It took a very long time to get to a good part. I still haven't finished the book but I plan to, to give it a fair review.

I was hoping for more to be honest. First off, the characters weren't likable, which takes me a bit out of it unfortunately.
I also had hoped for more from the description, it wasn't a waste of a read but it wasn't as entertaining as I had hoped.
I received a copy of the book complimentary from SheSpeaks, but opinions are my own.

The best way to start is I received this book for free from SheSpeaks. I tend to decide in the first few pages whether I'm going to enjoy a book. I read the entire book and every page felt like a chore. Based on the blurb it sounded interesting, but the characters aren't likable and the editing is weak. I will continue to watch for future books by the author, I like the way she writes. Hopefully the next book will show the writers true promise.

I thought it was slow in the beginning and sort of got lost. Then the story started to build even though the title gave you the answer I felt at different times could have been other characters in the book that were the murderer. I enjoyed the story and from the middle to the end could not put it down

It's started out on Present Day, which is the night of her 40th birthday. She is with someone and they are taking her to a place in the dark woods. They reach the foot bridge. It's a place that kids like to jump from. People have died here, but the thrill of danger keeps kids coming back. He died here. No Trespassing, the signs say. But they are trespassing now. He tells her as she backs away from the edge, "Go ahead and jump. You know you want to."

Then it jumps to a day, 22 years earlier.

Kate, Aubrey and Jenny met in college and quickly became friends. The inseparable kind. They shared secrets, laughs, heart breaks. They went on and got married. Kate to a party boy, Jenny to a boy next door type and Aubrey married up.

Now though, time has gone by. Things have happened. They aren't the friends they once were. One of them has died mysteriously. Things have changed. Is it possible that these 3 best friends could now hate each other? Enough to lead to murder? Who's being led into the woods to die now?

Michelle Campbell has written, It's Always The Husband very well. It's so descriptive and captivating as well as thrilling and flows off the page to create a real feeling of tragedy and danger. The world she has created feels authentic. The characters are full dimensional, dynamic and real. The locations are beautiful and colorful. And you will not be able to put it down.

This book does not read like just an old story. It is an adventure. One that takes you places and through things, right along with the characters.

Between friendships and love, then betrayal and anger. The story unfolds and leads to the most heartbreaking climax. And the ending will surprise you.

I honestly could not put this book down. I read it everywhere and anywhere. I read it while laying in bed, cooking dinner, taking my bath and while the kids played. I truly felt for these characters. Life is messy. I could relate to that. I even thought about what the characters would be like in real life. This book made me laugh. Made me want to cry. Made me feel pain for them. And left me wanting more.
The cover is also very pretty and appealing. I love how the face fades into the bridge and also looks like the sky in parts. Creative. I also loved seeing the other expert opinions of the book on the back. The book itself is bound in a nice blue cover and it is made really well.
Loved the author's dedication page lol

I’m a true crime murder mystery, 48 Hours nut & I know if a woman winds up dead, the investigators look at the husband first. So, Michele Campbell’s, It’s Always the Husband intrigued me with the title alone.

The start of the book started off pretty strong. We meet the three friends at the prestigious Carlisle college & we start to learn about each of them. I particularly liked Jenny because she was so strong & determined. As we learn more about each girl, we see how deeply flawed each of them are & as a reader, I became less convinced their friendship would remain strong as the story progressed. If they weren’t roommates, would have they ever become friends? Likely, the answer is no.

Then the story took a turn & I wasn’t ready for it. I was ready for a thriller jumping back and forth between the past & present & instead of filling in the RIGHT NOW (which is what I was dying to hear about). Michele gave us more history on these characters. There was so much history that I almost quit reading because I wasn’t sure the story would pick back up where we left off, which is someone is being coaxed to jump off a bridge. Thankfully, I was patient, as I urge you to be & the story came together incredibly well. I didn’t see the ending coming & it left me wanting to talk about it with a fellow reader, which is always a plus for me.

Thank you, Michele Campbell, St. Martin’s Press & NetGalley for providing our copy in exchange for an honest & fair review.

3 ivy league college girls from 3 different backgrounds become friends. The more I read the more I came to believe it was more of a toxic friendship between the three. During freshman year a incident occurred that forever changed the three girls. A lot of twist and turns and who had done it come into play. I really like how much the author puts you in so much detail of each character of these 3 women, so you understand why things occur the way they do. Even 20 years later what happened during freshman year is brought up again and everything falls into place but not in a positive way. Full of mystery with a touch of jealousy and craziness. I received this book free from SheSpeaks.

It's Always The Husband or is it? Kate, Jenny, and Aubrey have been friends since freshmen year of college. Tragedy strikes in the spring of their freshmen year and the girls aren't as close as they once were. Fast forward 20 years and all are living back in the same city. Tragedy strikes again and there are so many questions and not enough answers. Murder or suicide? Was it the husband or someone else? It was a great who done it and it keeps you guessing until the very last page! Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an ARC of this book in return for an honest review.

I love that Michele Campbell has you guessing from the very beginning. Couldn't put this book down! Three girls who meet in college, completely different from one another. Different backgrounds and struggles form a friendship that carries on..but does it really? This book was amazing and a complete delight to read! Michele Campbell did a great job putting you right there with these girls and their lives. Definitely recommend this it's a very good mystery. I received this book free from SheSpeaks

It’s always the husband is a compelling story about three former college roommates Aubrey, Kate and Jenny. Throughout the story it alternates between their college years and 22 years later when they are reunited and their lives are drastically different making you wonder if they are really friends or frenemies. During the first part of the story we get to know the ladies, their personalities & family life but years later when they meet again and one of the ladies dies mysteriously, it’s always the husband who is the prime suspect. Did he do it or was it someone else? This is an intriguing novel that kept me captivated from the beginning to the end. I enjoyed it and would definitely recommend it. I received this book for free from SheSpeaks to review. All opinions about this novel are 100% my own.

I received this book for free from SheSpeaks for my opinion. I was instantly intrigued from reading the back of the book since I love mystery thriller suspense books! I had never heard of the author before, but was excited to try reading a book from someone new to me. It was slow at first but I was invested so I continued to read and was hooked. It's full of drama, mystery, suspense and nice little twists. I would definitely recommend It's Always the Husband and look forward to reading more from Michele Campbell.

This was a really good read loaded with twist and turns. I sort of bounced between which girl I liked and which one I did not, but none of their personalities was that great. The starts out like every freshman's first day and gets twisty turny from there. I would recommend this book as a great summer read. "I received this book for free from SheSpeaks."

I predict this will be novel will be a big time beach read this year!
It truly is a page turner. I didn't expect to like it as much as I do.
Three girls from such different backgrounds become fast friends in college...
Highly recommended. Go for it.
"I received this book for free from SheSpeaks."

This book def kept me on my toes, but the pace was lacking a little. The three main characters Aubrey, Kate, and Jenny met at Carlisle College in New Hampshire. Aubrey is a kid on a scholarship and is desperate for approval and friends. Jenny is an overachiever who is always wiping up other's messes. Kate is a bubbly New Yorker who kind of sucks Aubrey and Jenny into her web. They become more like frenemies than real friends. The three girls take part in a shady situation during their freshmen year that glues them together for life. Fast-forward 20 years later, and their secret leads to murder. I received this book for free from SheSpeaks.

If you like a good mystery and a book about the dynamics of troubled friendships this is a great book to read! So many interesting layers to this book and it had me hooked all the way until the end. Kate, Aubrey & Jenny each completely different characters ensue a very tangled web! I really enjoyed reading intricate story!

It's Always the Husband goes back and forth in time about three roommates from college, then and now. Michele Campbell gives the reader an interesting story with a mystery that keeps the reader guessing. I was given an early copy to review.

I loved this book. It has so many twists and turns and keeps you guessing until the end. Meeting the main 3 ladies, Kate, Jenny, and Aubrey as they start off their college career, was intriguing. So many happenings and it was a great whodunit book. Reading it makes you wonder is it really ' Always the Husband.' As a member of SheSpeaks, I received this book for free from SheSpeaks.

Oh my goodness. You know that moment when you're anticipating all the good things the book description promises and you begin to think that they aren't going to happen? Yeah, I hit that moment rather early on.

To make this book work, many of the characters probably needed to be unlikeable, I think. Most were very shallow and one-note. I can deal with some of that when it's necessary for the plot, but these characters were so bad ~ so bad. I didn't like any of them. A few times I asked myself why I was still reading, but by that point, I just had to see where this was going.

Even the poor scholarship girl, Aubrey, fell immediately under the spell of the "poor little rich girl", Kate, and her gang of followers. Jenny, the townie, did also, but in a very different way. She wanted to learn from Kate and her father so as to move up in society.

It's interesting that none of these women appeared to change from college. They all continued in their pre-ordained roles of rich girl, fixer and clean up girl and the "wannabe". There was no growth, nothing to make me care.

I appreciate that I received this book from Netgalley, the publishers and the author, but it just didn't work for me.

This book was a strange one for me. I enjoyed the storyline and thought that the plot was good overall. But it is aimed at readers who love suspense and to me, this is a mistake. Having read a previous review from the super-talented book-blogger Chelsea (thesuspenseisthrillingme.com) where Chelsea had stated that it might be aimed at the wrong market, I have to say that I wholeheartedly agree. While there are moments of suspense in this novel, there is not enough for avid readers of this genre, in my opinion, and for me, IT'S ALWAYS THE HUSBAND by Michele Campbell is more general fiction with some dramatic flair, than suspense.

Meeting in college, Jenny, Kate, and Aubrey form a fast friendship even though they are all completely different from each other. Fast forward twenty years and one friend is telling another to jump off a bridge. The story of their complicated and complex relationship unfolds as the narrative moves from past to present, which I always enjoy as it keeps the pace moving along. The characters in this book are not particularly likeable but that doesn't stop you from wanting to understand what is happening between them. I enjoyed the writing style and the twists and turns in the plot, and the ending was a surprise, which is always welcome. IT'S ALWAYS THE HUSBAND by Michele Campbell is a solid story for general fiction fans.

*I voluntarily reviewed this book from Netgalley.com

I enjoyed reading this book. The plot was well presented and provided the current and back story. I thoroughly enjoyed reading the book. The storyline was developed as were the characters. The plot definitely had some twists until the very end. A suspenseful and entertaining read. I received this book for free from SheSpeaks.

This book is so good! It is a must read. The authors style of writing is perfect. I feel in love with the characters and plot instantly. Can't say enough good things! I received this book free from SheSpeaks to review it and it was so worth it.

I received this book to read and review. This book is okay. It is about three girls that met in college and how they became friends and what happens in their lives. The book cuts back and forth between past and present. It has some sexual content, drug use and language so it is not for the very young. #AlwaysTheHusband #ad @StMartinsPress @SheSpeaksUp

"I received this book for free from SheSpeaks." My first reaction to this book after reading the description and reviews was that I was very excited to read it. As i started reading it I found myself losing interest. It didn't hook me in like most books do. I forced myself to pick it up a fourth time and have continued reading it. It took a very long time to get to a good part. I still haven't finished the book but I plan to, to give it a fair review.

Refreshing story in that a mystery builds throughout the novel, and the characters are very well developed. College friends reunite in a college town and a decent amount of mystery tied to the overall story line. At times it seems a tad unrealistic, and some of the characters kind of pathetic but overall a good read.

This book kept me on my toes until the very end with all the twists, turns, secrets, betrayals, and loyalties. This debut novel is absolutely perfect and I look forward to reading her next one! This novel is perfect for anyone looking for a great suspense/thriller novel!

I struggled to get into this book. Even though the second half was an improvement on the first half of the story, it wasn’t enough to resurrect the tale. At the heart of this story are three women, from different backgrounds, Kate, Jenny and Aubrey and none were likeable. Their so-called close friendship was shallow and destructive. Definitely not a page turner, nor a thriller, I’m surprised this work was punted as such.

Just when you think you’ve figured it out- not a chance - the author keeps the reader in complete suspense. Three college students, all from various backgrounds, have been accepted at Carisle, a very elite college. They become the best of friends as well as roomies. Of course there was always the jealousy around old money, then the drugs scene, alcohol, and of course sex. So what could possibly go wrong? Twenty-two years later, all three have moved back to the college town, they swore they would never see again. And then there is a possible homicide, where a body was found over an embankment of an old dilapidated bridge. Who could have done this? The mystery overshadows the three best friends and their husbands. Then put an over zealous Chief of Police in charge, who follows his instincts, and a very controlling Mayor, and a very very rich benefactor, and you have a real botched up mess. What is the secret that everyone has been trying to cover up from twenty-two years prior at the same old bridge? So what was the motive? Or was it suicide? This book will definitely keep you guessing until the very last page. I really did enjoy this book very much. The plot was genius, and the character development was right on point with all the characters. The dynamics were superb. I look forward to reading more from this author.