Wish You Were Her

Let’s be honest: *Wish You Were Her* isn’t a subtle book. Samantha is a protagonist who makes questionable choices with alarming speed, and by the time she’s trading her midlife crisis for a Malibu makeover, you’ll either find her infuriating or irresistibly magnetic. Hannah Curtis’s narration is where this audiobook shines—her voice is a velvet trap, drawing you into Samantha’s world with the kind of charm that makes you forget to question whether you’re being manipulated. Curtis’s performance is all breathy sighs and brittle laughter in the first act, then pivots seamlessly into a chilling detachment as Samantha’s reality fractures. It’s a masterclass in tonal control, and if you’re a fan of narrators who can sell psychological unraveling, she delivers. That said, the plot is a house of cards. The premise hinges on a twist that feels telegraphed from the first chapter, and the escalation into full-blown *Fatal Attraction* territory lacks the nuance the setup promises. The pacing is erratic—too languid in the setup, then rushing toward a climax that fizzles rather than explodes. Worse, the audiobook’s production has some odd volume fluctuations, particularly during the quieter introspective moments, which can be jarring. Still, if you’re after a beach-read thriller that’s less about mystery and more about the intoxicating danger of reinvention, *Wish You Were Her* delivers—a guilty pleasure with a side of existential dread.