“A vital new voice in fiction, For Worse features a compelling and unique protagonist in Ellie, whose retinitis pigmentosa is both character trait and searing metaphor, a heroine unlike any I’ve encountered before. I was instantly transfixed by this thrilling debut tale of marriage-gone-wrong, each twist more shocking and enticing than the last. Bowen’s smart, engaging narration illuminates the corners of our lives we prefer not to look at too closely.” Sarah Skilton, author of Fame Adjacent and Ghosting
Description
Wait Until Dark meets Gone Girl in For Worse, a debut thriller that pulls the reader deep into a dark web of sinister plots for marital revenge.
Ellie is leaving her husband … again.
After twenty-two years of marriage and an unsuccessful separation, she can’t take it anymore. On the surface, she has a picture-perfect relationship. Jeff has been a steadfast spouse. But what seems like loyalty is in reality an obsessive desire for control. Ellie is slowly losing her sight, which means she needs more and more assistance, and Jeff will stop at nothing to ensure she feels helpless and reliant on him alone.
Determined to escape her psychologically abusive marriage, Ellie turns to an online chat room full of like-minded women in the throes of divorce. Despite their anonymity, these women quickly become Ellie’s closest confidantes. The chat room is a refuge, a place to which Ellie can retreat for solace and support.
Jeff continues to be manipulative and cruel, using Ellie’s failing vision to gaslight her into questioning reality itself. Desperate for freedom, she sinks deeper into the online world and is drawn into the dark web, where she discovers a group of women with a shocking solution for ending a marriage.
Praise
“A vital new voice in fiction, For Worse features a compelling and unique protagonist in Ellie, whose retinitis pigmentosa is both character trait and searing metaphor, a heroine unlike any I’ve encountered before. I was instantly transfixed by this thrilling debut tale of marriage-gone-wrong, each twist more shocking and enticing than the last. Bowen’s smart, engaging narration illuminates the corners of our lives we prefer not to look at too closely.” Sarah Skilton, author of Fame Adjacent and Ghosting
“Fans of B. A. Paris, Greer Hendricks, and Sarah Pekkanen will inhale this page-turning debut.” Booklist
“Bowen raises the stakes with precision and takes readers on a journey through a complex moral maze.” CrimeReads
Details
| Language | English |
|---|---|
| Release Day | Apr 1, 2024 |
| Release Date | April 2, 2024 |
| Release Date Machine | 1712016000 |
| Imprint | Blackstone Publishing |
| Provider | Blackstone Publishing |
| Categories | Mystery, Thriller & Suspense, Thriller & Suspense, Suspense, Domestic Thrillers, Crime Thrillers, Psychological, New Releases, New in Paperback |
Author Bio
Debut author L. K. Bowen was born in Boston and made her way to Los Angeles to work in the entertainment industry. Like Ellie, her protagonist in For Worse, Bowen has the degenerative eye disease retinitis pigmentosa, which is slowly destroying her vision. To learn more about RP and other degenerative retinal diseases, or to contribute to finding treatments and cures, please visit www.FightingBlindness.org.
Narrator Bio
L. J. Ganser is a multiple Audie Award–winning narrator with over six hundred titles recorded to date. Prized for versatility, his work ranges from preschool books to crime noir thrillers, from astronomical adventures in both science and science fiction, to Arctic Circle high school basketball stories. He lives in New York City with his family and dog, Mars.
Lisa Flanagan is a classically trained soprano, comedian, voice-over artist, and Earphones Award–winning narrator.
Overview
Wait Until Dark meets Gone Girl in For Worse, a debut thriller that pulls the reader deep into a dark web of sinister plots for marital revenge.
Ellie is leaving her husband … again.
After twenty-two years of marriage and an unsuccessful separation, she can’t take it anymore. On the surface, she has a picture-perfect relationship. Jeff has been a steadfast spouse. But what seems like loyalty is in reality an obsessive desire for control. Ellie is slowly losing her sight, which means she needs more and more assistance, and Jeff will stop at nothing to ensure she feels helpless and reliant on him alone.
Determined to escape her psychologically abusive marriage, Ellie turns to an online chat room full of like-minded women in the throes of divorce. Despite their anonymity, these women quickly become Ellie’s closest confidantes. The chat room is a refuge, a place to which Ellie can retreat for solace and support.
Jeff continues to be manipulative and cruel, using Ellie’s failing vision to gaslight her into questioning reality itself. Desperate for freedom, she sinks deeper into the online world and is drawn into the dark web, where she discovers a group of women with a shocking solution for ending a marriage.