The Devoted Wife

by Sarah A. Denzil, Sheridan Smith (Narrator)

From the global no.1 bestselling author of We Play Games and Secret Sister comes a dark and twisted psychological thriller about loyalty, betrayal, and the lengths we'll go to protect the ones we love. Narrated by the multi BAFTA award-winning Sheridan Smith (star of Mrs Biggs and Gavin & Stacey).

Maya Stone is the perfect politician's wife. She supports her husband at every turn. The camera loves her, the country loves her, most of all – he loves her.

As the country heads towards a general election, the Stones are set to take the polls by storm. But when a body is discovered in their back garden, the media spotlight turns its glare on the couple who had it all.

As their picture-perfect life starts to unravel, Jeremy claims it’s nothing more than political foul-play. But when Jeremy is formally arrested, Maya finds herself at the centre of a web lies that stretches far beyond her worst nightmare.

With no one to turn to, and each ally an enemy, Maya begins tugging at a truth so devastating it will come to re-define everything she knew and everyone she loved.

Because some lies will push even the most devoted wife to do the most unspeakable acts.

Featuring a supporting cast, Rupert Darley, Luke Francis, Simon Harvey, Mark Holgate, Daphne Kouma, Geoff Leesley, Gina Murray, Alisdair Simpson, Ashley Tucker and George Weightman

Genres: Audiobook, Thriller, Crime, Fiction, Mystery Thriller, Mystery, Psychological Thriller

Audible Audio

Published April 2, 2026

About the author

Sarah A. Denzil is a Wall Street Journal bestselling suspense writer. She is also known as young adult author Sarah Dalton.

Sarah lives in Yorkshire with her partner, enjoying the scenic countryside and rather unpredictable weather.

She is the author of international bestselling psychological thriller SILENT CHILD, which topped the bestseller lists on Amazon in the US, UK and Australia.

You can read now read AIDEN'S STORY, a short story and sequel to SILENT CHILD. It's completely free here: https://dl.bookfunnel.com/n7lb74chp3

Find out more at: http://www.sarahdenzil.com/

Join the newsletter for updates: http://eepurl.com/cwAmZD

Follow her on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sarahadenzil

Check out her Instagram page:
https://www.instagram.com/sarahadenzil/

Email: sarah@sarahdenzil.com

Reviews

[Faith Thompson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't realise this was so new - I picked it as the cover looks like all the books I read and its read by Sheridan Smith. I really liked it! The story is strong and I wanted to get to the end to get all the answers. I predicted a few of the twists but overall a solid thriller/ suspense book 😊

[Jillian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Me: *driving in traffic for 2 hours to get to my home that 20 min away* I wish I could read right now instead of drive. Like-like if I just had someone, ANYONE, who could read to me while I drive then I wouldn’t feel like this is SUCH A WASTE OF TIME!!!
Me: *approaches a stoplight and checks my music apps*
My car: Audible
Me: …
My car: …
Me: *starts Audible*



Either I’d make the world’s worst detective or Sarah Denzil has cracked the code on being a mystery author…and I’m too prideful to believe the former.
Okay, jokes aside, I am a mystery novel girl and I get SO PUMPED whenever I find a GOOOOOOOD mystery. Denzil not only had me in the first half, the second half, the 3rd quarter, the second to last chapter. She had me THIS ENTIRE BOOK. The characters had complex personalities which gave way to understandable motives, cleverly leaving room for interpretation. The way Denzil weaves this story captures you the same way it captures the main character Mia in a sticky, overwhelming web of Whodunnit? I’m the type of person who can read between the lines fairly well. I like the mystery genre because there’s always some clever way the authors cause me to fall into my own assumptions and pull the rug out from under me. But Denzil, Ms. Sarah Denzil, you pulled out the rug out from me every other chapter. And just when I naively believed that now, SURELY NOW, I have all the facts and can make the correct assumption, you found a new way to surprise me again and again. You made me feel like an idiot and I beg you: DO IT AGAIN!!! WRITE ANOTHER ONE!!! DO IT DO IT DO IT PUHLEEEEAAASSSEEE!!! 🙇‍♀️🙏😭😭😭

I also must give praise to Sheridan Smith who voiced this novel. Her performance was PHENOMENAL! How could a woman be so talented enough to voice people and I knew EXACTLY who they were before the novel had a moment to fully introduce them? How? Why, Sheridan Smith of course! Thank you so much for keeping me company during my frustrating traffic drives home, for keeping me on the edge of my seat, and for having me gasping, screaming, “NO NO NO, WHAAAAAT??!?”-ing, and jumping up and down in my seat in the midst of standstill traffic. You gave such a wonderful story the life and recognition it deserves :)

[Ames · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 🌟

So here's the thing, sometimes I can really struggle with crime books because of my autism and being a Crime Junkie. This was definitely one of these books.

I really don't understand books that aren't single narration nor graphic audio, having one narrator narrate 90% of the parts, while having 20 different narrators in some spots and occasional background sound was really off putting.

All of this could of been solved by just calling the police 🙄 and I know, then they'd be no book, but the reason for the cover up has to be valid, and I found the reason here so so silly.

Overall it was fine, Sheridan did okay, the last 10% was so well done by the narrator and thats the main reason for the stars.

[Lee Taylor · Rating 2 out of 5]

2 stars unfortunately beetle .
Ending was bad too

[Jeremy Britton · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 ⭐️

[Bodies in the Library · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a five-star read for me right up until the ending. I won’t spoiler it, but it’s an example of the prioritisation of a big twist over the internal logic of the world and characters the author built with a huge amount of skill.

If you absolutely love a twist at all costs, you will probably love this novel. And the audio narrator Sheridan Smith is as wonderful in this as she is in everything she does.

[Cheryl · Rating 2 out of 5]

Another Audible read. The narrator was good but the storyline was just ok.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my first Sarah A. Danzil book but won’t be my last.
Sheridan narration really draws you in. I have always rated her as an actress and I’ll be looking out for any other books she chooses to narrate from now on.
This is a decent fast paced thriller with a few twists along the way, what’s not to like.

4⭐️
Format 🎧 Audible Plus
Recommend? Yes.

[Romulo Perez-Segnini · Rating 2 out of 5]

A thriller that was more disturbing than captivating. There were many flaws in the story that completely derailed the plot. The ending absurd and completely contradicts the narrative. Its final twist supposed to make it shocking but just landed with a thud.

Maya Stone, the wife of a prominent British politician, member of Parliament & if I understood correctly in line to become the next Prime Minister at the general elections to be held in the several weeks. She’s a lonely housewife with no kids as she gave birth to still-baby three years earlier that set her off in a depression lasting 18 months. She has an apparently loving marriage but his work occupies much of his time. In order to keep busy she decides to rearrange her flower bed despite her husband asking her not to do it and they have a gardener. She finds human remains buried a couple of feet under the top soil and tries to reach her husband. When she cannot then she calls the police. This is the biggest flaw of the narrative. One, such a prominent politician will always be able to be reach directly or indirectly by his wife in case of an emergency. Two, NEVER would the spouse of such a prominent politician call the police. That is a sure way to end his political career. This is fiction but just completely off any sense of reality. Easier to accept the existence of aliens than such behavior.

The second biggest problem for me in the narrative is the age of the human remains found. Nothing entertaining will come from it just disgust.

There’s a slew of other characters but the prominent one is Maya. Jeremy Stone is the husband and he’s got more issues than redeemable qualities. The billionaire backing the politician that are always portrayed as manipulative self-serving people. Maya’s parents. A single mom that is a drug addicted occasional prostitute that is desperate for money to provide for her child.

I did not find it entertaining in the least.

[Jennifer Winters · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Free book on Audible. I was getting desperate while my library card was expired. Great narrator. I added a half star since the last 45 minutes made me start to like the book. Story wasn’t that interesting. People in power doing whatever they want and expecting everyone else to go along with it. The ending was unexpected and I appreciated that.

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an audio original narrated by Sheridan I am a such a fan of hers and her narration really drew me in.

Maya is married to politician husband Jeremy, she is his right hand woman assistant with his work and looking after his every need, to the detriment of herself and she is struggling with how unhappy she is.

Then things become a hundred times worse when a shocking discovery is made. Will this disturbing discovery push this devoted wife to the brink. The ending reveal in this one really surprised me!

[Georgie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found it to be an engaging and easy to get into. The author does a good job of building tension throughout the story.
That said, I did feel that the ending was a little predictable. While the buildup was strong, the conclusion didn’t quite deliver the surprise or impact I was hoping for. I had an inkling from the start who the murderer was, even though the author constantly tried to throw you off the scent. It wrapped things up neatly, but in a way that felt a bit too familiar.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 ⭐️ I LOVE anything that this author writes, the way it is narrated always makes me so happy and so gripped, it’s a whole production and feels so interactive I love it!! I will never not listen to this author’s audiobooks!
Now let me tell you, my immediate thoughts in this novel is I HATE all of the men in this story, HATE THEM. They were infuriating and I genuinely wanted to throw them all out of a window.
The plot was magnificent and I love the way that Sarah writes, she makes her novels so gripping and twisty, and such an immersive read/listen.
I was pleasantly surprised at the ending, I did predict the twist that was right at the end when I was reading the beginning of the novel, but I was so engrossed in the story that I forgot about it until it came up!
When I tell you my jaw was on the floor when a twist came out about Chloe Mills, UGH Trevor is a pig!!

[Marilyn Neve · Rating 4 out of 5]

This audiobook was really well done. Great twists and turns and kept me guessing about the ending till the very last chapter. I would have given it five stars except that the narrator, who evidently is a BAFTA award winner, sounded quite a bit older than the main character was supposed to be. I have to admit it took me out of the reality of the story a couple times! But other than that it was a fabulous story and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a good murder mystery. I am particularly a fan of anything coming from the UK!

[Shangeetha Selarajoo · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book started off promising. I was invested and I could understand the main character being in the dark with her husband's activities.

But as the story progressed, she ended up being being a template of white women tears. Her husband and his friends were douchebags no doubt but where is her accountability in the events.

I feel the husband's punishment did not fit the crime despite him being a scumbag.

Trevor was cartoonishly evil, for someone that rich i dont understand why would he not just pay off his baby mama.
The amigos burying the poor child in 3 feet grave is also kinda silly considering all their wealth and influence they have amassed thus far. Like why didnt they get clive to do something about it.

I loved the narrator btw.

[Corinna · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fun listen. The main narrator was great, and the added voice actors throughout were a nice touch that made it more engaging. I didn’t see the twist coming, which always makes it more enjoyable. Overall, a good audiobook.

[Hannah Govang · Rating 2 out of 5]

The beginning was good, kind of a slow burn, but slowly it started getting so convoluted….the end was just so completely unrealistic and ridiculous. I did enjoy the narrator, she did a good job, but she couldn’t save this book. I felt the author just wanted a twist ending at the cost of the story becoming really stupid.

[Hayley Grocock · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just finished: The Devoted Wife by Sarah A. Denzil.

This is the second of hers I've read, and was drawn to this one due to the fact it was Sheridan Smith narrating. I found this one surprisingly gripping bearing in mind I usually struggle when so many of the characters are thoroughly unlikeable, but the story was very twisty and kept me hooked!

Lots of her other titles are Audible Originals, so free if you have a monthly subscription, which is ideal for me as I often need a filler in between my book club titles (the first one I read, before I was on Goodreads, was Behind a Locked Door, which was also excellent).

[Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good Audible selection with a large cast of characters. I was not expecting the twist at the end.

[Kenna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Maya Stone knows how to do all the right things. As a politician’s wife, she knows when and how to smile, how to dress, and how to control a message… Right until she finds the body of a young girl buried in her backyard.

Then, she starts to wonder about secret conversations she’s overheard and how her husband may be involved in the little girl’s death.

The Devoted Wife by Sarah Denzil is an Audible Original read. I thought it was a good book. I gave it three stars.

[Rebecca Johnson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Audible read / listen. Sheridan Smith 🙌🏼. Did an amazing job!
Good story line, wasn’t as gripped as I had hoped.
I enjoyed the first of the book, wasn’t as gripped the second part, but the narration was great 👌🏼 x

[Jodie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this and could not stop listening. Sheridan was fantastic as the narrator. Did not expect the ending. Brilliant! I will look out for more books that Sheridan has narrated.

[Samantha Bartlett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great psychological thriller, but a little sad for me. Heavy topics.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this book, just did not like the ending.

[Claire · Rating 3 out of 5]

Curious as to why half of it is like a graphic audiobook and the rest is normal??

Overall, I’d give it 3.5 stars. I quite liked where the storyline went and thought it was quite well written in general.

It could be because I had just recently listened to another thriller where the main character killed the girl and everyone was trying to cover it up, but I feel like I could see it coming from about halfway/two thirds of the way through…

[Julia Wang · Rating 2 out of 5]

called itttttt

[Emily · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hmmmmmm I suppose I did enjoy this but the ending was a bit odd.

I love a good plot twist, but not sure this one really worked!

[Kyle Haines · Rating 1 out of 5]

Put on an audiobook to fall asleep & kept getting so annoyed that it kept me up.

[Heather Boysenberry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Almost perfect…..


Well written in technique and engagement - but I can sense an editor killing off the husband to help the story along.
Before that, the plot was much more seamless, but after that plot point, the twists turned more into a messy knot, in my opinion.
I wish I could experience the original draft

[Caroline Mendl · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was super “meh”. One good reveal. I didn’t like the trope at the end.