The Silent Wife

I have a lot of mixed feelings about this book. Stay with me while I discuss this soap opera of a story. Jodi and Todd are a happy couple on the outside. Jodi is beautiful, caring and insanely good at being a homemaker. Todd is a successful business man with a great reputation. In the beginning, it seems like a healthy relationship. The Silent Wife, however, affirms that only the people in a relationship, really know the relationship.

Todd is a cheating son-of-a-bitch. He lives in a world without consequences, where he can take whatever he wants. It's so well written that it feels real, like Todd actually exists. The details of his slimy escapades are genuine in the way that his feelings are complex. On the one hand, he wants the stability of a life-long partner. On the other, he wants to sleep with half of Chicago's population. It makes my skin crawl.

Jodi is all about the front. Even with her own husband she doesn't let her guard down. As he cheats, as he carries on with his lousy lifestyle, she stays quiet. Not just quiet, but seemingly unchanged. She takes care of him just the same. She talks about her small revenge, like hiding Todd's keys or 'accidentally' destroying his phone. But nothing she feels or is experiencing is ever said out loud. She believes that if you don't talk about it, it doesn't have to be real.

So, the book is about this couple crumbling in a very dramatic series of events. Their faults and motives become exposed, people are betrayed, bitches be crazy, etc.. I would say more about the plot, but the thrill is in not knowing.

This book holds true my opinion that books open up our minds to ideas that we may never have explored before. I would be devastated if my husband cheated on me. Every once in a while I have bad dreams where Andrew cheats on me with another girl. Or an airplane. Or a sandwich (don't think about it too long, dreams don't make sense). I have a hard time recovering from them, and sometimes get mad at my real husband for my dream husband's transgressions (just before regaining consciousness).

But, Jodi wouldn't care. She doesn't care. She can't care. It's definitely a different way of thinking from what I'm used to, and I think I learned from it. No, I am not saying it made me okay with cheating. But, it's an interesting idea to me that someone could be okay. That, maybe, there is a certain amount of mistakes or issues that would tremendously bother me, but not others. I mean, it's obvious. But really getting immersed in a book where you're only seeing it from one person's point of view can be a whole different kind of education.

So, I endorse it. It's a thrilling read and will make you think. I highly recommend it for anyone at the cusp of a serious relationship. It's a perfect lesson on what NOT to do.