If you are looking for a book that will pull you in right from the beginning, stop now; you've found it! Within the first few pages you will be left reeling from a major revelation. A psychological thriller that can hold weight with some of the greats of the last few years (Girl on a Train, Gone Girl etc) this is a must read. What happens when spying on your neighbors becomes an obsession?

When Clay decides to move his family east from the west coast, while his wife Leah and twins gets ready to join him so he can open his own brewery. He has an affair and suddenly the woman he is cheating on Leah with disappears. When Leah arrives she doesn't expect anything but instead gets obsessed with finding this missing woman Micah who disappears from the local college. Not only that but she becomes obsessed with her seemingly perfect neighbors, Russell and Clarissa. She breaks into the house and reads the woman diary and even drinks their wine and takes naps. While reading the diary she finds out it's not a perfect marriage and Clarissa is being abused both physically and mentally by her husband Russell. Leah's obsession takes twists and turns and then attempted murder. I was engrossed to see what would happen next. Is Micah found? Will Russell kill Clarissa? Will Leah forgive Clay? It goes to show you, some things are better left alone. In the end you could be left with nothing and some families will.

Thank you Net Gallery and Kensington Books

Cherie'

#NetGallery #theneighbor

Thank you to Netgalley and Kensington for allowing me to read this thriller prior to publication later this month. Leah and Clay move from Seattle to Maine so he can open a brewery. They buy a home for their family of four in a development that the builder abandons after two completed houses are sold. That means the only other family living there is Clarissa and Russell and their children. Leah feels at loose ends and doesn’t know what to do with herself while her kids are at school so she takes to sneaking into Clarissa’s house, taking small items and making herself right at home.

The choppy, abrupt style of writing made me think this book would have a very unique ending. In fact, I wanted to skip ahead and read it before I was finished, but I didn’t. Besides the characters not ringing true, they were all unlikeable. The pacing is good and the book is very readable. Others have given it 5 stars, but I needed at least one character I could at least identify with a little.

During the first few pages of this novel, there was already a shocking revelation. This book had a really strong start, and it's rare to find books like that. Usually thrillers tend to start slow in the beginning and speed up throughout. But its strong start didn't last very long and it let me down.

Leah Daniels is a newcomer in her town and she lives in a house with her husband and two kids. She wants to befriend her neighbor and becomes a bit obsessed with her as she starts to enter her house, drink her wine and read her diary. But what she finds is not what she expected.

This book is full of secrets. A secret here, a secret there. A lie here, a lie there. I did figure it before the ending, but have to say that it did ruin the novel. Once you find it out, it will completely spoil the ending for you and it seems kind of pointless to continue reading.

The book had a lot going on, that's for sure. For me, it was kind of crowded. At times it just got repetitive with some characters. I felt like I was reading a reoccurring loop. But the novel did have its thrilling and twisting moments as a thriller novel usually does. It's a great book there are things that happen that simply just don't make sense.

The conclusion was a bit of a push for me. Overall the book was satisfying and a bit bumpy. Still enjoyable!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Kensington Books for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

‘It feels strange being one of only two families living in this abandoned development.’

Leah and Clay Daniels, with their twins Zack and Zadie, move from Seattle to Maine. The move is to enable Clay to follow his dream of establishing a craft beer brewery. But the neighbourhood is not what Leah expected: the housing development is almost abandoned. Their only neighbours, Clarissa and Russell Gaines seem aloof. Clay works long hours, and Leah is bored:

‘I need to find something more meaningful in my life besides being a wife and mother.’

So Leah starts watching Russell and Clarissa. She both envies and admires their home and their university careers. But watching quickly turns to obsession, with Leah sneaking into their home. In the meantime, a local college girl has gone missing…

The first part of the story unfolds over two weeks in October, with the final part unfolding over ten days the following August. Both Clay and Leah are the story’s unreliable narrators: both have secrets, each seems able to justify quite outrageous self-centred behaviour.

‘Every story has another side.’

There is more than one mystery in this novel, more than one truth to be uncovered. And, as I discovered, more than one twist in the tale.

But the truth is that while I enjoyed some aspects of this story, the characters were so shallow, so self-absorbed that I really didn’t much care what happened to them. I felt sorry for the children and the dog, but the adults were either deluded or manipulative (and sometimes both). As the story progresses, more questions emerge, but some of the twists (no spoilers here) had me rolling my eyes in disbelief. I couldn’t stop reading because I had to know how it would end. And the ending? Hmm. I think I’d have enjoyed the novel more if I’d liked one of the main characters better, had more interest in why some of the characters acted the way they did, or found some of the actions more believable.

Note: My thanks to Joseph Souza, NetGalley and Kensington Books for providing me with a free electronic copy of this book for review purposes.

Jennifer Cameron-Smith

Imagine moving cross country from Seattle, WA to Dearborn, Maine and discovering that the contractor of your new housing development, Deerfield Estates, has left town, and your new home is only one of two completed.

That is what happens to Leah, Clay and their two young children.

Leah is alone all day, with her husband trying to make a go of their new brewery, and the kids at school. Desperate for a friend, and rebuffed by her neighbor, Clarissa, Leah decides that perhaps if she “lets herself into” the Gaines home, she can learn some things that will help her to find some common ground with her new neighbor, and help their friendship along. Clarissa’s diary provides all she needs and more.

In fact, the diary reveals that her neighbors might know more about the beautiful college student that has just gone missing than they are letting on.

But who in this story is manipulating who?

Is Leah delusional or merely naive?

Leah and her husband Clay. Clarissa and her husband Russell.

All have secrets, and not a single one is a person you will like, or be able to root for.

Are any of the characters reliable? The author will keep you guessing...but warning!! There are a lot of distasteful subjects in this book which may be triggers for you, including explicit sexual scenes, sexual exploitation and racism.

A dark thriller, and a bit TOO racy for MY tastes, but if those subjects don’t bother you, then find out what is really going on in Dearborn, Maine when this book is released on April 24th.

I would like to thank Netgalley, Kensington books and the author for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my candid review!

Strange dynamics, strange characters make this a different psychological thriller.
This is an oddly disturbing combination of self-centered characters who form two couples that are lone neighbors in an abandoned cul-de-sac in suburban Maine.
Leah and Clay Daniels have left family behind in Seattle so Clay can follow his dream to become a brew-master owning his own beer business. Leah's lonely with their twins in school and just the dog for company. Her secret childhood is unknown even to Clay.
Clarissa and Russell Gaines live next door. Both teach st Chadwick College. Their racial activism makes them well-known.
Leah fixates on Clarissa hoping to make herself a friend, but her unorthodox methods to achieve this opens her to compromises.
Each flawed character combines with each other to create a path of destruction ending in multiple murders.
I'm glad I don't have to sort out the legal mess or have these people as neighbors!

The Neighbor by Joseph Souza takes a different spin on the psychological thriller which I thought held wonderful potential. This book bubbles with racial tension which is something I was not expecting at all. Certainly relevant in today's America with the Black Lives Matter movement being a hot button topic. The thing is that while this did hold so much potential I can't help but feel that it didn't do the subject matter justice. That being said I still couldn't stop flipping the pages.

Leah and Clay move from Seattle to Maine so that Clay can follow his dream of opening a brewery. Starting a business is time consuming which keeps Clay away from home for very long hours. Leah spends most of her days alone with several bottles of wine to keep her company. A local college student has gone missing and Leah, with nothing else to do, decides she's going to do her own investigation into the case.

Meanwhile, Leah has also tried to engage with her neighbors, a black family next door, but is always given the cold shoulder in return. Leah becomes obsessed with them to the point of even breaking into their house during the day and going through all their things. One day she comes across the diary of Clarissa Gaines and here she begins to wonder if the missing girl and her neighbors have a link in some way. We then follow Leah as she conducts her investigation.

While the book is highly readable I just couldn't help rolling my eyes along the way. There were so many instances that were so unbelievable and down right ridiculous. I could nit pick it all and spoiler tag it but I'm not going to bother. Instead I'm going to wait to see what others think once more folks have written their reviews. I'll be very curious to see what others take away from this novel. 2.5 stars!

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Books for providing me with a digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was a dark psychological thriller with racial overtones. I'm conflicted over whether it raises awareness or creates more division. Well written, well plotted, good story. Very frightening at how easy it is to be drawn into a bigger picture battle without being aware of it. Knocks down trust issues and reveals how little we know others. Secrets revealed, lives ruined, unnecessary deaths. Not for the easily frightened in today's difficult society.

⭐️All the Stars⭐️ But I’m adding in this..All The Secrets! All of them!!!! 🤫Secrets! Secrets!

I’m so into psychological thrillers about Neighbors and this was all That and more. A creepy thriller about psycho neighbors? Yes please! Ohhhh and let’s just say #BadNeighbors. Written in chapters alternating between Leah and her husband Clay, we watch their marriage take a BIG fall while neither knows about the others SECRETS.
Then there’s the neighbors...more SECRETS.
No one is a reliable narrator and no one deserves our trust. The twists are heart pounding but the secrets are mind blowing and will make you drink your wine a lot faster than you planned 🍷
I highly recommend opening this book without knowing more than the book’s description tells us. Like I did. There are too many twists and WTF moments!
April 24th!!!! Mark your calendars...reserve this book now on your library hold! You will miss your life for 24 hours, that I guarantee so be prepared!

Thank you #NetGalley, the Publisher and #JosephSouza for my early and appreciated free ARC for my honest review. I am SO thankful I got to experience #TheNeighbor
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
APRIL24

Extremely unlikeable characters, some strange turns in the book, a little unbelievable at times...this story was like a roller coaster ride--fun and exciting until it is over and then you just feel a little nauseous. I recommend this crazy tale to people who like to read thrillers with unreliable narrators. I think the author is a great writer and I would read his other books.

Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for the chance to read and review this book.

A move from the West coast to the East coast (Maine to be precise), Leah and her husband hope to make a fresh start. Leah imagines plenty of new friends for herself and her twins. But the reality is, she spends most of her time alone, with Clay working long hours and her few neighbors not interested in befriending her. Leah envies Clarissa and Russell, who live next door and she finds herself watching them all the time. Soon, watching isn’t enough and Leah sneaks into their house and begins reading Clarissa’s diary, where she learns of a secret that links her neighbors to the disappearance of a local college student. Leah learns that no one is perfect, least of all her neighbors