Jill Is Not Happy

An ill-fated road trip resurrects a married couple’s darkest secrets in this new thriller from the USA Today bestselling author of Best Day Ever and The Next Wife.

Some secrets keep a couple together.

If you ask Jill Tingley, she’ll tell you she and her husband Jack are college sweethearts living the dream in Southern California. Wealthy, popular and genetically blessed, theirs is an enviable life, though they’ve grown distant in recent years. Newly empty nesting with their daughter Maggie away at college, Jill suggests a road trip to reconnect.

Jack would rather do anything else than drive to Utah with his wife. He’s only stayed in this marriage because of a shared secret, a tragedy in the past he wanted to keep buried. And for his daughter’s sake. But Jack is finished with the charade of his marriage. He’s filing for divorce as soon as they return, no matter what.

But he doesn’t realize what else Jill is hiding.

So begins a cat-and-mouse road trip as a cunning wife―think Ripley in yoga pants―and a reluctant husband match wits and drive each other to the edge. But everything will be fine. Jill still loves Jack and believes he’s the only one for her. She’ll do anything to keep him. Anything. She always has.

Rouda makes Jill a genuinely chilling narrator. . . . Fans of unreliably narrated thrillers will enjoy it.”
—Booklist

Rouda spins a dark, deliberately paced tale of matrimonial hell . . . the plot’s unanswered questions and Gone Girl–style marital insights hold the reader’s interest.”
—Publishers Weekly

No one crafts a character quite like Kaira Rouda. In JILL IS NOT HAPPY, Rouda brings us Jill Tingley, a wife with a seemingly perfect life—and a sinister agenda. As Jill and her husband embark on a road trip, dark secrets unravel and the journey becomes a wickedly suspenseful game of cat and mouse. Readers will be captivated by Rouda’s signature blend of charm and chilling suspense.”
―Liv Constantine, New York Times bestselling author of The Next Mrs. Parrish

Nobody does twisty revenge like Kaira Rouda—and her trademark dark humor and deviously toxic characters are always deliciously entertaining. Fans of Freida McFadden will gobble up this pacey page-turner—and hope that someone like the uniquely unhappy Jill never crosses their paths. Kaira has done it again!”
―Hank Phillippi Ryan, USA Today bestselling author

Mix one part family dynamics and Rouda’s trademark dark humor, and you get the heady cocktail that is JILL IS NOT HAPPY. A revenge thriller at its best, who knew til death do us part was so literal for some people? A clever spin on the glue that keeps marriages together, I devoured this in one sitting.”
―Kimberly Belle, USA Today and internationally bestselling author of The Paris Widow

I love everything Kaira Rouda writes and JILL IS NOT HAPPY is no exception. Jill isn’t just not happy, she’s creepy!”
―Robyn Harding, bestselling author of The Haters

This tightly woven story is evocative and chilling and kept me compulsively reading until the clever, twisty end. You won’t want to miss this deliciously dramatic and suspense-filled thrill ride.”
―Seraphina Nova Glass, Edgar Award-nominated author of On A Quiet Street

Rouda’s new thriller is a perfect summer thriller: a husband and wife road trip that stirs up old secrets and pins the spouses against one another in a dangerous game.”
―CrimeReads

Kaira Rouda has crafted a chilling, spine-tingling novel of domestic suspense. Jill Tingley is one of the scariest characters of the year.”
―BookReporter

This is bold and bracing writing, and Rouda is to be celebrated for maintaining suspense and pacing with really only two characters, and their respective maneuvers and manipulations, to follow. Truly great stuff that leaves you in awe of Rouda’s talent and daring. Jill may not be happy, but you will be for digging in.”
―Jon Land, BookTrib

Each couple is a universe full of things, and sometimes those things include dark secrets and constant tensions. Rouda, who developed her chops for characters in turmoil writing romance before successfully making the move to thrillers, understands this deeply, and her works show it. A perfect book for anyone craving a deep dive into an extremely toxic relationship.”
—Gabino Iglesias, CrimeReads

With relentless pacing, this novel is perfect for fans of domestic thrillers. Every chapter dives deeper into the couple’s deceit, obsession, and the lengths they will both go to get what they want. A true page-turner, this is a must-read for fans of Gillian Flynn and Paula Hawkins.”
—Library Journal

Kaira Rouda is an award-winning, USA Today and Amazon Charts bestselling author of contemporary fiction that explores what goes on beneath the surface of seemingly perfect lives. She is a founding member of the Killer Author Club, a bi-monthly live show supporting authors. She is also a member of Sisters in Crime, Mystery Writers of America, Women’s Fiction Author Association, and the International Thriller Writers Association. She lives in Southern California with her family.