The Really Dead Wives of New Jersey

By: Astrid Dahl

Narrated by: Mia Barron, Sean Patrick, Emily Lawrence, Allyson Ryan, Devon Sorvari

A propulsive page-turning thriller following the hit reality TV show Garden State Goddesses where secrets are uncovered, intense rivalries surface, and a startling murder propels a producer on a riveting quest for the truth.

On this season of Garden State Goddesses: Getting canceled means getting killed.

When Hope Bennett marries Carmela’s brother, Leo, she becomes not only a Fontana, but a Garden State Goddess—and not everyone is happy. Secrets will be revealed, decades-long rivalries will surface, and a sudden murder will lead to a reality reckoning no one is prepared for—least of all the show’s producer, Eden, who must race to catch a killer and save the most dramatic season of all time.

“Juicy, gossipy, and deliciously vicious, one thing is certain: this New Jersey neighborhood has enough secrets to guarantee renewal. Readers will be clamoring for season two of this funny, dark guilty pleasure.” —KATY HAYS, New York Times bestselling author of The Cloisters

“Like the best, most addictive reality TV, The Really Dead Wives of New Jersey is about people behaving badly—lying, cheating, back-stabbing, and worse. I started reading for all the juicy drama, but it was the murder mystery that had me racing through pages at the end.” —ANA REYES, New York Times bestselling author of The House in the Pines

“Secrets, gallows humor, campy reality TV stars, and an Instagram gossip account called Shady Di—Astrid Dahl’s The Really Dead Wives of New Jersey is the kind of book I wanted to live inside. LOLing and gasping my way through, I nearly wished I’d written it myself!” —ANNA DORN, author of Perfume & Pain©2025 Astrid Dahl (P)2025 Simon & Schuster Audio

So fun!!

I had such a great time listening to this one! The story was engaging and I loved the reality tv vibe. It took a bit to learn each character, but once I did, it was great and I thought the twists and turns were great. I’ll definitely read book 2!

SO FUN!!

I’m not even a big bravo fan, and yet this was a true page turner!! I couldn’t stop listening then didn’t want it to end! Sequel please!!

Fell flat

This just fell flat for me. The story felt a little all over the place, the end felt dragged out, the characters were unrealistic but not enough to be campy, and honestly it was a bit of a downer. I think it hits different if you’re a Bravo fan, but if not it just falls flat.

Not much to see here

I'm not sure whether even "Housewives" fans would like this, but i certainly didn't. Flat characters, boring repetition of plot lines, improbable setups. Basically not over the top enough to make it fun, or even interesting enough to finish.