The Second Woman

Artemis and Anna, two women who fall in love with Witherall men. Two women who end up dead, by apparent suicides. Why did they kill themselves, or did they?

Artemis lives on an island in Greece. She is a loner, spending her days sketching up by the house she grew up in. Now dilapidated and abandoned. She goes alone because its where her families tragedy occurred years before. An earthquake swallowing her sister into the earth, Artemis only 5 then, unable to save her. It has haunter her ever since. She is there one day when a man approaches her, Clive Witherall. Clive is a successful and secretive, entrepreneur. He has purchased some property nearby and they strike up a relationship. It isn't long before he suggests they have a child together, and they do, a son, David. She has longed to escape the island and when he whisks her away to his mansion in London, at first, she is thrilled. But all too soon she realizes she's trapped. In a foreign country with no one and Clive is constantly working, If he's not traveling for weeks on end, he's holed up in his office at home. As things progress with them and the business, Artemis realizes she must escape this life. She starts to question things and in the end, she's found hanging in their Greek vacation home. 

Many years later, David is taken with a woman named Anna. They soon find out that they are pregnant and end up marrying. He has unknowingly married someone who is spying on him. His father warns him but he refuses to believe it. However, as the years go by he sees that she is not who he thought she was.. After the twins are born, Anna appears to struggle with post-partum depression. Eventually David sees that she is a liability and she too is found hanging in her London home. 

The story darts back and forth between decades, locations and points of view. As we go between these, we learn of the suspicious natures of their deaths. When an inquest is made into Annas death, we find links to a criminal organization and connections to those involved in gun running and human trafficking. The story itself is intriguing with betrayal and love being a constant theme. With so many moving parts and characters it a highly complex story with lots of twists and turns, this story will keep you entertained for sure. Its the third book in a tryptic series and can be read as a stand alone. I received this book free from NetGalley for an honest review and will be available February 15, 2022.