| The Wife Between Us | |
| Author: | Greer Hendricks Sarah Pekkanen |
| Country: | United States |
| Language: | English |
| Genre: | Thriller |
| Publisher: | Pan Macmillan |
| Published: | January 2, 2018 |
| Pages: | 346 pp |
The Wife Between Us is a 2018 thriller novel written by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen.[1] [2] [3]
Part 1
The first part of the book moves between the perspectives of Vanessa and Nellie. Vanessa is watching her ex-husband Richard's new fiancée. She lives with her aunt in New York City and is working at a clothing store to get by after her divorce from Richard. Nellie is Richard's new fiancée, a pre-school teacher. Vanessa is determined to stop Richard from marrying his new fiancé while Nellie is nervous about marrying Richard and adjusting to a new life with him. Vanessa has suffered from mental health problems since college where she had a secret relationship with one of her professors which resulted in her becoming pregnant. She abandoned her sorority's initiation ceremony for the pledge she was overseeing, Maggie, to confront him only to learn he was married with children so Vanessa had an abortion. Maggie ended up drowning during the initiation ceremony and her older brother Jason blamed Vanessa and vowed to make her never forget it.
Near the end of the first part it is revealed that Vanessa and Nellie are the same person (Vanessa being her present self, and Nellie being her past self). It was Richard's idea to give Vanessa the nickname Nellie, because when they first met, she was a "nervous nellie".
Part 2
Vanessa confronts Richard's new fiancé Emma and tries to warn her about Richard but she does not believe her. Shortly into their marriage, Richard
The New York Times wrot"The novel is halfway over before the first reveal, but it’s worth the wait, if only for its singularity. Then the twists come fast and furious."[1]
In 2017 the film rights for The Wife Between Us were purchased by Steven Spielberg's Amblin Partners.[4]