The Husbands

From Chandler Baker, the New York Times bestselling author of Whisper Network comes The Husbands, a novel that asks: to what lengths will a woman go for a little more help from her husband?

Nora Spangler is a successful attorney but when it comes to domestic life, she packs the lunches, schedules the doctor appointments, knows where the extra paper towel rolls are, and designs and orders the holiday cards. Her husband works hard, too… but why does it seem like she is always working so much harder?

When the Spanglers go house hunting in Dynasty Ranch, an exclusive suburban neighborhood, Nora meets a group of high-powered women―a tech CEO, a neurosurgeon, an award-winning therapist, a bestselling author―with enviably supportive husbands. When she agrees to help with a resident’s wrongful death case, she is pulled into the lives of the women there. She finds the air is different in Dynasty Ranch. The women aren’t hanging on by a thread.

But as the case unravels, Nora uncovers a plot that may explain the secret to having-it-all. One that’s worth killing for. Calling to mind a Stepford Wives gender-swap, The Husbands imagines a world where the burden of the “second shift” is equally shared―and what it may take to get there.

This recommended reading was shared and sponsored in partnership with Flatiron Books.

Book club questions for The Husbands by Chandler Baker

Use these discussion questions to guide your next book club meeting.

Dear Reader, When I started writing The Husbands, I was pregnant with my second child, staring down the barrel of the recalibration of domestic responsibilities that comes with a new baby. The book felt personal, as many things that take place in the privacy of our own homes do. But if anything, living through the pandemic has exposed the real impact of depending on women to carry the burden of the “second shift” disproportionately. The problem of dividing domestic labor isn’t just personal, it’s widespread and systemic and it’s caused more than 2.5 million women to leave the workforce in the last twelve months alone, at four times the rate of men. In The Husbands I hope you’ll find a big, juicy murder mystery with something to say and I’m so pleased to be sending it to you. Best, Chandler Baker

In your ideal world, what is one thing you wish a partner would do to help without being asked?

At what point in the story did you start to believe something was off about the residents of Dynasty Ranch, and what does that reveal to you about your own sense of social norms?

The book spends a significant amount of time exploring the plight of the working mother through the eyes of Nora, but how does the undue burden of domestic and emotional labor negatively impact not just mothers but all women?

Can a husband know what a 50/50 split of domestic labor looks like when they've never shouldered all of it before?

Comparisons are often drawn between The Husbands and The Stepford Wives. What is the difference between the Stepford wives and the husbands in this novel?

Cornelia seems to live by a code of teleological ethics, believing that if the goal is morally important enough, any method of achieving it is acceptable. Up to what point were you willing to buy into Cornelia’s logic? Is there a moment when you think Cornelia broke with her own moral code?

Penny specializes in giving warm, thoughtful advice. What is the kindest piece of advice you could offer to yourself during this period of your life?

Do you feel sorry for the men of Dynasty Ranch? Why or why not?

What do you make of Nora’s decision in the last line of the book? Were you surprised? Did you find this final choice in or out of character for her? How so? Is she justified?

Let’s say tomorrow you are given the keys to a new house in Dynasty Ranch complete with all the amenities. How does your life change?

The Husbands Book Club Questions PDF

Click here for a printable PDF of the The Husbands discussion questions

“Utterly engrossing and thoroughly timely, The Husbands is both a gripping, well-crafted mystery and an insightful critique of motherhood and marriage in the modern age--working mothers everywhere will feel seen in the best possible way.” ―Kimberly McCreight, New York Times bestselling author of Reconstructing Amelia and A Good Marriage