BookNerd,
I'm not surprised either. When I first started to tell my family, they thought that I was "nuts". You see he always had the perfect image to everyone else. It was only when he came home and no one was around that he could take his "mask" off.
I am now divorced for almost 3 years, and while my family now supports me, I still do hear from time to time, that he was the "perfect" husband, that he did so much for me, that he went food shopping, that he did the wash, etc....... and I just need to walk away from them then. I no longer try to explain anything. They don't do this often, I guess just enough for me to still be questioning my sanity though.
My friends do believe me, and do support me. Thank God for friends, oh, and also forums.