The Widow, Fiona Barton - Ciska's Book Chest

*Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in return for an honest review*

Author: Fiona Barton
Publisher: Bantam Press
Pages: 320
Format: eArc
ISBN-10: 0593076214
ISBN-13: 9780593076217
Publisher: eBook | Hardcover | Paperback

There's a lot Jean hasn't said over the years about the crime her husband was suspected of committing. She was busy being the perfect wife, standing by her man while living with accusing glares and anonymous harassment. Now her husband is dead, and there's no reason to stay quiet. People want to hear her story. They want to know what it was like living with that man. She can tell them there were secrets. There always are in a marriage.
The truth--that's all anyone wants. But the one lesson Jean has learned in the last few years is that she can make people believe anything. For the reporter who has secured the exclusive interview, this is the scoop of a lifetime. For the detective who has lived a half-life since he failed to get justice for the victim, it is a chance to get at the truth that has eluded him for so long. For Jean, it's a chance to defend herself, what she knew--and when.

Slow is one of the first words that comes to mind when thinking about this book but I do not think it is negative for once. Though in all honesty it did not help that my life was fast and messy and I had difficulty getting pulled in the book.
This books gives an idea about one of those things every person has been having thoughts about. If a man does something awful like abusing or abducting a child what does his wife think. What is going on in her mind. Did she consider him as a possible abuser or did she really have no idea. Where this story fell flat for me was in the personality of Jean. She is described as rather simple, easy to be influenced by Glen. Though in her chapters the reader gets a lot of information about how she feels I never really got the feeling that it was explained how she was thinking. She was thinking because Glen told her so.
The stories of Kate and Bob Sparkes did add something to get a good feeling about the amount of pressure such a case puts on all the people involved. I enjoyed reading about the investigation parts and considering if I would find Glen guilty with the information they gathered.