The Golden Couple by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen

Wealthy Washington suburbanites Marissa and Matthew Bishop seem to have it all--until Marissa is unfaithful. Beneath their veneer of perfection is a relationship riven by work and a lack of intimacy. She wants to repair things for the sake of their eight-year-old son and because she loves her husband. Enter Avery Chambers. Avery is a therapist who lost her professional license. Still, it doesn't stop her from counseling those in crisis, though they have to adhere to her unorthodox methods. And the Bishops are desperate. When they glide through Avery's door and Marissa reveals her infidelity, all three are set on a collision course. Because the biggest secrets in the room are still hidden, and it's no longer simply a marriage that's in danger.

I usually wrestle with ratings, but this was an easy 5 star. Every twist, every turn, every unexpected invisible thread connecting plots and characters was perfection.

I continue to wallow in my favorite genre- domestic suspense-and the other day I finished this delight. I loved this therapist-turned-consultant-because-she-lost-her-license character. The writers should consider writing other books with her as their Main Character. She's that compelling. There's a lot going on in this book and I liked all of it. The more of this genre that I read, the more I want complicated plots and characters whose pasts weave together in uncomfortable ways. I figured out a few things in this one, not early, just right on time- which is nice. The protagonist was a bit on the goody-goody two shoes side for me but otherwise this one was a solid, fun and super fast read. Highly recommend.

Conventional Story Of Unconventional Therapist. If you enjoy slow burn-ish domestic thrillers where the front half builds the intrigue and the back half (and particularly the last 15% or so) ramp up the thriller/ action side... you're going to love this book that is 100% within that mold. If that's not your thing... this is still a solid story, but not everyone likes everything. :)

The unconventional - and unlicensed because of it - therapist really stole the show for me. Mostly because of just how realistic (yet extreme) she is portrayed. Yes, she is invasive bordering on criminal, contract or not. But dadnabbit, she gets results as much as any Detective out there and for similar reasons. Which actually arguably gets to why I liked this so much - one can almost read this tale as a police procedural, with a profiler taking center stage in the tale. The side story with Big Pharma is all too realistic, and the web of lies turns out to be far larger than anything anyone - be it our therapist or the reader themselves- could have guessed.

But maybe I'm a bit of a sucker for unconventional yet conventional. You should read this for yourself and make up your own dang mind. After you finish the book. Very much recommended.