By: Sandra A. Miller
Narrator: Steven Jay Cohen
ISBN: 9781958506035
Publisher: Zibby Books
Publication Date: 07/11/2023
Format: Paperback
My Rating: 4 Stars (ARC)
If you don’t confront your past…it might confront you first.
From the award-winning author of TROVE comes a haunting psychological thriller about the devastating power of secrets and lies.
Dr. Gregory Weber seems to have an enviable life. He's a renowned clinical psychologist residing in an elegant home in Cambridge, Massachusetts, with his wife, Liv, and their kids, Carrie and Petey. But Gregory is starting to feel disconnected from it all. His marriage is growing increasingly strained, his children are distant, and he can’t stop fixating on an unforgivable mistake he made when he was seventeen. Something no one else knows about.
So when an unscheduled client named Mira begins appearing in his office each week with knowledge about his past, Gregory becomes obsessed with her. Is she a new patient? A secret referral from a colleague? Someone connected to his teenage transgression?
As his attraction for Mira grows more intense with each session, his professional boundaries begin to dissolve. Soon Gregory allows himself to become the patient, desperate to uncover his connection to Mira and maybe find redemption for his troubled soul.
But who is this mysterious woman? And why has she chosen to visit him?
In searching for the answers, Gregory risks losing everything that matters: his career, his family, and his mind.
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My Review
Sandra A. Miller returns following her memoir, Trove: A Woman's Search for Truth and Buried Treasure, with her latest gripping psychological suspense, WEDNESDAYS AT ONE —atmospheric and intriguing, a mystery woman shows up at 1 pm on Wednesdays to a psychologist's office with surprising revelations that will bring long-buried secrets to the surface and ultimately change lives.
Dr. Gregory Weber appears to have it all from the outside —professionally and personally. He has a beautiful home in one of Boston's most desirable suburban neighborhoods, a loving wife, a daughter and son, and a thriving practice as a therapist.
However, Gregory has a dark secret from his past that occurred when he was seventeen. He never revealed this secret to his wife and family, fearing they would reject him. His best friend committed suicide due to this event. If this event came out and the part he played, it could shatter his perfect life.
Then this beautiful woman named Mira appears at his office without an appointment and seems to know about this past. She is the one asking the questions, wearing her beautiful scarf. She shows up for four Wednesdays at 1:00 pm, and he looks forward to her visits. He is entranced.
He has suffered great pain and regret for many years with guilt about his friend and past secrets. Can he unburden himself? Mira knows things. How can she know? Who is this woman? Is he losing his mind?
In the meantime, Gregory has been withdrawn at home and very distant from his wife and kids. He has not been a good husband, father, or brother to his sister, nor has he been there for her to help care for their sick, elderly dad, blaming his strict environment for his past.
His other friend, Phil, also hides secrets, and neither has confided in the other. The what ifs? What if we could have a do-over for the tragedies that happen in the blink of an eye?
At the funeral, the past and present collide when all the pieces come together about the events of the past and that tragic night that changed their lives.
Mira has her own secrets as well.
CAPTIVATING! WEDNESDAYS AT ONE is a character-driven, beautifully written, mysterious, and intriguing tale of self-forgiveness and healing. Guilt, lies, regrets, shame, and secrets—the truth will often set you free.
Gregory wrestles with his humanity and conflicted heart, struggling with his past secrets until he can come forward to those he loves. It makes you appreciate what you have in front of you. A mix of psychological and domestic suspense, family, mystery, paranormal/magical realism, and literary fiction.
I enjoyed WEDNESDAYS AT ONE immensely and look forward to reading more from this talented author. For fans of authors Joyce Maynard, Rea Frey's (8/15) The Other Year and William Landay's All That Is Mine I Carry with Me.
Thanks to Zibby Books for a gifted ARC via NetGalley for an honest review.
@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustReadBooks
Pub Date: July 11, 2023
My Rating: 4 Stars
Praise
“Fast-paced and chilling…a brilliant mystery about lies, shame, and secrets.”
―Apple Books
“A poignant deep dive into the muddy waters of secrets and regret, forgiveness and loss. A book to leave you breathless!”
―Wendy Walker, author of All Is Not Forgotten and Don’t Look For Me
"Intriguing, atmospheric, and masterfully written…hooked me from the first scene. I'm still thinking about this layered and gripping novel." ―Lisa Unger, New York Times bestselling author of Secluded Cabin Sleeps Six
“A taut psychological thriller about family, friendship, and the price we pay when our mistakes come back to haunt us, you will inhale it in one gulp.”
―Julie Clark, New York Times bestselling author of The Lies I Tell and The Last Flight
“In Wednesdays at One, Miller’s tautly crafted debut novel, Gregory’s buried crime literally begins to haunt and undo his present. But wasn’t Gregory’s seemingly tidy life already unraveling? In this riveting psychological thriller, Miller astutely explores the powerful tensions between the desire to be known and forgiven and the terror of being revealed."
―Victoria Redel, author of Before Everything
“A terrible secret harbored by a successful clinical psychologist propels this moving, eerie thriller. In rapturous prose, Miller captures the way truth can just as easily break us apart as heal our deepest wounds. Unputdownable.”
―Erica Ferencik, author of The River at Night, Into the Jungle, and Girl in Ice
“A rollercoaster of a novel. Twisty and surprising, you won't be able to put this one down.”
―Katie Sise, bestselling author of The Break
“It was a rollercoaster! I love a good thriller.”
―Jenny Lawson, author of Furiously Happy
About the Author
Photo Credit: Sharona Jacobs
Sandra A. Miller is the author of the award-winning memoir, TROVE, and the forthcoming psychological thriller, WEDNESDAYS AT ONE.
Her essays and articles have appeared in hundreds of publications, including the Christian Science Monitor, Spirituality & Health, Modern Bride, Yankee, Family Fun, the Washington Post, and the Boston Globe Magazine, for which she is a regular correspondent.
One of her essays was turned into a short film called “Wait,” directed by Trudie Styler and starring Kerry Washington. She has also written award-winning scripts for 11 Central Ave., a radio comic strip that ran for three years in major public radio markets.
Sandra has lived and worked in New York, Los Angeles, Tokyo, and Luxembourg. She currently teaches English at the University of Massachusetts, Lowell and lives outside of Boston with her husband, Mark Santello.
She is available for speaking engagements and to lead workshops on writing and discovery.
