Ramadan’s exacting translation holds the reader in her grip, and what makes this so thrilling is not just the narrator’s surprising ruthlessness but how Ventura causes the reader to repeatedly change their mind about who’s to blame for the messed up marriage all the way to the explosive ending. It’s a bold and memorable first outing." Bergman's Scenes from a Marriage meets Ruth Rendell. . . . My Husband possesses a dark, clinical and raspy humor. With a very well done final twist, as unpredictable as it is Machiavellian, you won’t want to read this vaudeville just once." — Le Nouvel Obs She always thinks he’s about to abandon her. “Is my husband canceling our lunch?... Did I get dressed and made-up for nothing? Is he telling me he’s not coming home tonight, that he’s not coming home at all, that he’s leaving me?” Ventura writes, channeling the narrator’s thoughts when she hears the “bing” of an incoming text.

As I read more and more of this book it reminded me of those men youtubers/tiktokers that say women should live for men. These are the women they want. Well sans the cheating. She’s happy that the book is appearing in the U.S. “It’s fascinating to me because love is cultural,” she says. “I’m really curious to see how it will be received.”The following is from Maud Ventura's debut novel My Husband . Ventura is twenty-nine years old and lives in Paris. She leads the podcast division of one of France’s major radio stations and speaks fluent English. Emma Ramadan is the recipient of the PEN Translation Prize, the Albertine Prize, an NEA Fellowship, and a Fulbright Scholarship. Her translations include Barbara Molinard’s Panics, Virginie Despentes’s Pretty Things , and Abdellah Taïa’s A Country for Dying . She lives in Brooklyn. The winner of France’s First Novel Prize in 2021, My Husband builds on the premise of hits like Gone Girl and Fates and Furies—how well can you really know your spouse?—and adds the tension and creepy obsession of You. The result is an irresistible read—compelling, tense, and engaging, infused with sly subversive humor, and told in an utterly original voice that makes it unforgettable. A] wry, psychologically complex debut . . . This riveting emotional thriller requires serious willpower to not devour in a single sitting.”— Oprah Daily

I worried that her over-analyzation would’ve become old after a certain point, but each day of the week brought up something new and different, which kept me intrigued up until the very end. It’s a short read. The mounting anticipation was wonderful. The twist was as sour and sweet as a clementine. Sometimes I ask myself whether I should feel guilty about going through my husband's things. But I always come to the conclusion that I should not, for one simple reason: I wish he would do the same. I would finally have the proof of his jealousy and the confirmation of his commitment. Unfortunately, I know he doesn't. Unfortunately, my husband trusts me." Writing about control as much as love, Ventura describes a marriage from hell that works, however oddly. Our unnamed Parisian housewife is madly in love with her husband. She even resents the children from taking his attention away from her. She will do anything for him. She orbits him like the earth orbits the sun. She thinks he is the most charismatic and charming man. With vigor and zest she proudly worships the ground he walks on. Yet, she's filled with anxiety that he will leave her someday and that thought is utterly dreadful to her. While I am finishing my coffee, my husband leans toward me and whispers into my ear, ‘We need to find a moment to talk’. Then, after a short pause, he adds, ‘It’s important’.”

Monday: “I’m in love with my husband or should I say, I’m still in love with my husband. I love my husband as much as the first day I met him.” A tasty, if not always tasteful, tale of supernatural mayhem that fans of King and Crichton alike will enjoy. What a wonderfully tense, obsessive, enveloping novel—almost like a feminist, introspective spin on Fatal Attraction! Ventura’s deftly spun debut is a sharply observed dissection of marriage that will haunt you for days.”— Virginia Feito, author of Mrs. March The book was published in France in 2021, selling nearly 100,000 copies and winning the Prix du Premier Roman

As he emerges gently from his sleep, my husband moves closer to me, but I turn around in time to escape his grasp. That’s the rule. Last night, he went to sleep without wishing me good night, so he doesn’t get any cuddles from me now. It’s out of the question for me to give in.” Servile as that sounds, she’s also manipulative and, when she needs to be, ruthless. Because it turns out that her infatuation is matched only by her fury at her husband’s apparent failure to return her obsessive passion. Every interaction is analysed with neurotic intensity, and punishments for falling asleep without saying good night or seeming to slight her at a dinner party can range from hiding his keys to conducting an illicit rendezvous with another man.

Media Reviews

This dark, entertaining, character study written by Maud Ventura and translated from French by Emma Ramadan runs for only 5h 33 minutes and I listened to it in one sitting. At forty years old, she has an enviable life: a successful career, stunning looks, a beautiful house in the suburbs, two healthy children, and most importantly, an ideal husband. After fifteen years together, she is still besotted with him. But she's never quite sure that her passion is reciprocated. Schmid says she was always changing her mind about the characters: she’s crazy, her poor husband; the husband is a monster. Is he gaslighting her? “I had a strong emotional response to the book, and then I was laughing—a clementine?” she adds. Finally, the twist at the end of the book left me stunned. It showcased the author's skill in crafting a narrative that keeps readers guessing and working to understand the motives behind each character's actions.