Do you still miss Desperate Housewives as much as I do?

Are you a big fan of Liane Moriarty?

If your answer to either of the above (or both) is yes, then The End of Cuthbert Close is the Australian version of the TV show, Cassie Hamer’s domestic noir in a similar vein to Moriarty’s.

There was drama, intrigue, hilarity, romance, mystery, misunderstandings, work/life balance struggles, marriage and parenting issues, neighbour disputes, an unbreakable, supportive, times-three female friendship to weather any storm, and a cul-de-sac suburban street setting on the outskirts of a nameless Australian city.

Chapters alternated between three female friends, who all lived in a row on Cuthbert Close. And, I loved all three narrators, and households.

Alex O’Rourke – a corporate lawyer, married to chiropractor James, mother to five-year-old twins Noah and Jasper.

Beth Chandler – a homemaker, married to real estate agent Max, mother to Ethan (17) and Chloe (13).

Cara Pope – a food stylist, widowed, single mother to eight-year-old Poppy.

There were also intermittent email newsletters to his subscribers from Ryan Devine a.ka. Instagram star, The Primal Guy (a lifestyle guru who promoted a hunter/gatherer style of clean living). The Primal Guy (currently away on business in the US) is the husband of new neighbour Charlie Devine, who, along with her sixteen-year-old daughter Talia in tow, literally crashed the Cuthbert Close annual street party and, from that point on, continuously disrupts Alex, Beth, and Cara’s carefully ordered lives, resulting in utter chaos and great uncertainty.

As my tagline states, this novel definitely had some things in common with Desperate Housewives. Charlie Devine, the outsider and invader just like Eddie Britt. Twins Noah and Jasper were as cheeky, mischievous, and adorable as Porter and Preston. And there was even a culinary endeavour reminiscent of Bree Van de Camp’s garage test kitchen.

Trigger warning for the death of an animal – Henny the guinea pig was killed by Banjo the cat (offsite). It was near the beginning, so you don’t really get to know Henny, but still horrible for animal lovers such as myself. But, and this is going to sound in poor taste, the burial scene was laugh out loud, and made me think of the scene where they bury the budgie in the movie Poltergeist, which I also find amusing every time I watch it.

This was a fun, light witty read. None of the twists were particularly surprising, but they’re want you want to happen, and in this genre the lack of surprise never really bothers me. There were two surprises that I didn’t see coming though, so that was really cool. I loved how it all wrapped up. Who doesn’t love a happy ending? And, the last sentence was a neat idea to close with.

I went back-and-forth between the e-book and audio-book, and narrator Rebecca Macauley’s lively style of narration had me utterly entranced. She is also the reader for Cassie Hamer’s previous novel, After the Party, so, add that to the many reasons I can’t wait to read it.

I’d like to thank Netgalley, HQ Australia, and Cassie Hamer for the e-ARC.

Cuthbert Close is a typical middle class Australian suburban, a no through road. A street where everyone knows each other, look out for each other, and each year they close the street for an annual street party.

The book opens just as the annual street party is about to begin. The reader is introduced to Alex, a workaholic lawyer, wife and mother to twins; then there is Beth, married with two teenage children, a stay at home mum who expects nothing but ordered perfection from herself and her family; finally we meet Cara, a single mum of colour and food stylist who works hard to stay independent and pay the bills. The three women are very different but the best of friends and each of them have problems that are throwing their ordered lives into disorder.

As they put their smiles on and join the party set up outside the only empty house in the street a truck literally drives through the crowd - Charlie and her daughter have arrived to move in. The friends try to welcome Charlie and gather her into their circle. But Charlie’s arrival only exacerbates the existing problems, and even adds a new one into the mix.

This is a story of friendship and support. Alex, Beth and Cara have a wonderful relationship and help each other through their issues - marital problems, parenting, work and financial problems, against a background of unusual events that threatens to destroy their friendships. Dead guinea pigs, a quiche thrown into the rubbish bin, secretive husbands, misbehaving children and missing jewellery.

All the characters come alive on the pages and I felt I would have been able to walk into any of their homes and poured a cuppa and sat down and chatted. There is a lot of tension in the story, and then there is humour to break it down a bit before it starts to build to the final showdown. Thoroughly readable and highly recommended.

With thanks to Netgalley and the publisher, Harlequin Australia, for my copy to review

The End of Cuthbert Close is an Aussie chicklit book focusing on three friends who are all neighbours in a culdesac of an upmarket suburb (in Sydney, I assumed, although I don’t remember if it was ever really specified).

Alex’s storyline follows the struggle of juggling life as a mum (of a set of twin boys, no less) and a full time job (as a lawyer, no less). When she falls pregnant at the same time she’s offered a partnership, she has to make some decisions on how she’ll move forward.

Meanwhile her younger neighbour, Korean-Australian Cara, is facing uprooting her life and her daughter’s stability when the situation of her rental property changes. This storyline was probably the biggest romance of the book. Cara was nice enough but I would have actually liked to read more about her stubborn and emotionally closed off mother, Joy.

The third storyline was Beth’s, a mum who is at a bit of a loose end now her children are in their late teens and not as needy. While she’s wondering what to do next, Beth starts to suspect her husband might be also searching for something to do next, in the shape of an affair.

All these storylines were sweet enough but I did have a problem with their predictability. One plot point which was revealed near the end was glaringly obvious from the start and it didn’t take much to work out how the three storylines would be resolved. On the plus side, at least there was a measure of believable conflict involved with all the plots.

Actually, maybe Alex’s wasn't that believable. As in, I thought the ideas Alex’s employer suggests were a little over the top. I know it’s fiction but I just couldn’t believe a modern firm making such demands on its female employees. Not to say that I believe you can ‘do it all’ easily. I certainly never managed it and had to have a break from the workforce for a few years so I know where Hamer is coming from, however, I would imagine Sydney law firms would be more willing to accommodate women in the workforce.

Hamer’s writing style was pretty readable; she didn’t pepper her prose with long literary descriptive passages but she definitely never fell into the ‘basic’ category. And, even if I did think a few times that the three leads were a little bland, Hamer (and the publishers) did allow them to be of a ‘certain age’ (even if they were all thin and gorgeous).

I would recommend The End of Cuthbert Close if you want to while away a couple of hours with a little bit of light sweetness.

3 1/2 out of 5

This one is from Aussie Cassie Hamer and my first book of hers that I have read.
It follows three women who live in Cuthbert Close; Alex, Cara and Beth. Each with their own worries and families. A new family moves into the close and things begin to change in ways the women never thought would happen. Along with this new family, challenges arise in each woman’s life which unfolds as we get to know and relate to the women.
I enjoyed the revealing of the women’s problems and lives whilst juggling a family and social activities. Their stories are relatable to every woman who is in their shoes with relationships, kids and work.
This is a great light hearted read and exactly what I needed. If your looking for something that’s light hearted and will touch your heart this is a great option. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. Happy reading

The End of Cuthbert Close is the second novel by Australian author, Cassie Hamer. Is it the End of Summer Street Party on Cuthbert Close where things start to go wrong? Or have things been brewing well before that? Lawyer Alex O’Rourke has certainly been feeling the pressure of a full-time high-stress job while raising twins. But it’s not her wonderful husband, James, or her best friends and close neighbours, Beth Chandler and Cara Pope exerting the pressure; it’s Alex herself.

The annual party comes to a first-ever premature end with the arrival of a wild storm hot on the heels of the removals truck that brings a new and unexpected (by all but one) neighbour, Charlie Devine and her teen-aged daughter, Talia, the family of lifestyle and hunter-gatherer guru, Ryan Devine (aka The Primal Guy).

Beth is feeling pressure of a different sort: her children don’t seem to need her any more, and their new neighbour interprets her welcome as interfering. Young widow Cara’s ever-critical Korean mum thinks she should do more with her life: being a food stylist isn’t a proper job; she should use her accounting qualifications; and move out of that dilapidated cottage in the bulb of their cul-de-sac. But that cottage holds all her memories of Pete.

Then things ramp up a notch: for Alex, the results of the test she’s just done, a dead pet, and the call from the boys’ school principal just add to the load; Beth’s husband is exchanging concerning texts with an unknown number; Cara’s visitor brings bad news, and the man her mother has selected? Please, no! But then an evening commiseration session sparks an idea that might just save the day for some of them.

Hamer’s depiction of Cuthbert Close will strike a chord with many readers: a place where neighbours become friends. And this group of friends is easily recognisable from the ordinary people we encounter in our daily lives. Most of the characters are appealing for all their very human flaws.

The plot, which includes a fire, a missing ring, a malicious note and an unplanned haircut, has a few twists and red herrings to keep the reader guessing before a very satisfactory conclusion, some aspects of which will surely surprise. Themes of holding onto the past, work-life balance and empty-nesters are explored.

The description of the Melted Snickers Mug Cake will have many readers salivating: luckily, the recipe is available in the free Cuthbert Kitchen recipe book, along with several other delicious sounding dishes, if you sign up for the author’s newsletter. A very enjoyable read.
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and HQ Fiction.

The End of Cuthbert Close, Cuthbert Close is set in Australia and could be your average street. This was an easy to read, fun and light-hearted book. The entertainment in it kept me reading on, it had me laughing and relating to the characters. It was a story of friendship, motherhood and balancing work/life around it all. This is a story that most of us will relate to and will enjoy reading it. Cassie has done it again!!!

The End of Cuthbert Close shines a spotlight on life in Australian suburbia. It follows the day to day existence of three females Cara (a young woman & daughter of Chinese immigrants), Beth (a quintessentail Australian stay at home mother), and Alex (a young driven career woman who has kindy-aged twins).. It looks at the minutae of their lives and depicts their similarities, the bond they share, and celebrates their differences. '

The women's balance appears disturbed when a new neighbour arrives in the street. Her name is Charlie Devine and she arrives with her teen daughter in tow. Her famous blogging, youtube sensation husband is nowhere to be seen and before too long it appears she is content to meddle and cause upheval in the lives of her neighbours. She is instantly identified as a non-mixer and not part of the team.. There is suspicion she has her designs set on Beth's husband.

This book has some drama and a little mystery. It's a fun look at life and the different stages of life as parents, the concept of belonging and the many stages of relationships as they progress. It is very much a contemporary read with the theme of social media and online personas prevalent. The three main characters are particularly colourful and likable women, and we are all likely to know someone like them or their "type". There is a supporting cast of husbands and children and make for a delightful domestic platform for the book..

This was the first Cassie Hamer book I have read and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Thank you to Netgalley and Harlequin Australia (Harper Collins) for providing me a free electronic copy of this book to read and review.

3 1/2 stars
The End of Cuthbert Close is an enjoyable read set in a suburban street in Australia. The story is seen through the eyes of the three main characters, Beth, Cara and Alex who are all neighbours on the close and have a strong friendship.
Beth is a stay at home mum with almost grown up kids who don't need her anymore and suspects her husband is cheating on her. Cara is a young widow with a 8 year old daughter, when her landlord dies it means she may have to move out of the close. Alex is the busy working mum with 5 year old twins who she struggles to find enough time to handle.
The neighbours on Cuthbert Close are so close that the whole street has an end of summer party but some new neighbours, Charlie and her teenage daughter Tahlia arrive during the party to move in and stir up a whole heap of trouble when they just don't seem to want to fit in.
Overall it is an easy read and once I started I easily got through it in a day. I just don't feel like much happenened in the book though and the ending was just a bit flat for my liking.
Thanks to Netgalley.com and Harlequin Australia for providing me with an ARC copy for my honest review.

**3.5 stars**
Cuthbert Close could be like many suburbian streets around Australia. While celebrating with the traditional street party, new neighbour Charlie and her daughter roar into the street. But these newbies don’t seem to appreciate the welcoming gestures of their neighbours.
This was a very easy read which centres around three friends and their families. Beth, Cara and Alex each have their issues to work around and they can’t understand why Charlie is so stand offish.
This was more of a suburbian drama. I felt that not alot out of the ordinary was happening but some how, I was swept up with it all and just wanted to keep reading. A good way to pass the time in these strange days when we’re encouraged to stay at home.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy to read.

Well this was a nice slice of escapism! Fans of Liane Moriarty and Sally Hepworth will revel in this suburban contemporary tale of neighbourly intrigue and backyard betrayal.

Cassie Hamer explores many issues relating to marriage, parenthood, and work-life balance within her latest release. Each of the main characters have something big going on in their own lives, but playing out in the background is a mystery involving their new neighbour: Charlie Devine, a woman who seems to be intent on not fitting in with the Cuthbert Closers, right from the get-go.

There is plenty going on within this story to keep you intrigued and entertained. Cassie Hamer has a sharp sense of humour that often had me laughing out loud for the duration. If you’re looking for something to just sit back and relax with while social distancing, I can recommend The End of Cuthbert Close as a good choice for your next read.

‘When it came to passive aggression, Alex had a particularly highly tuned antenna. There were only two things that threw it out. One of them was Botox, and the other was genuine sincerity, which Alex found very difficult to pick, mostly because it was so rare.’

This is a great Women's Fiction story about a suburban Close and the people who live there. I absolutely loved the stories of Beth - the home-maker, Alex - the high flying lawyer and mother of twins and Cara - a widowed single mum who is a food stylist with a daughter. They all get along famously despite being quite different, but that all seems to change once a new neighbour Charlie and her daughter Talia move into the close.

What follows is great - there is a missing hamster, a suspected food poisoning, a suspected betrayal, missed opportunities, threats of eviction, parenting issues, jealousy....I could go on, but won't for fear of any spoilers!

This is the first book of Cassie Hamer's that I have read and I felt totally committed to this book, as I just had to keep turning those pages to find out what was happening with everyone at Cuthbert Close. The author did a wonderful job of drawing you in to the plot and the characters were fantastic - you could definitely relate to them and the situations they found themselves in - I'm sure we all know people like Beth, Alex & Cara!

I definitely believe it would make a great movie - hello - any producers & directors out there???
Many thanks to Harlequin Australia and Net Galley for the complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Cuthbert Close has always been a place people dreamed of living where back yard cricket is played and street parties are had and the neighbours bond over a community BBQ where everyone pitches in and does their part.

The story centres around the lives of three very different but independent, strong, successful women. Food Stylist and recently widowed single mother Cara, Alex the Corporate Lawyer and mother of twin boys and Beth the stay at home mum extraordinaire. The three women and their families all have a close relationship with each other. They are all enjoying their end of summer street party when Charlie Devine, glamorous wife of online guru The Primal Guy who is moving in to the street with her teenage daughter make quite an entrance.

Overall I found it a light-hearted, easy to read story that kept me engaged throughout that at times had me laughing out loud. I found the lead characters to be very relatable and easy to connect with. It was a story of friendship, motherhood and managing the work/life balance.

I want to thank Harlequin Australia and Netgalley for generously providing me with this book in exchange for an honest review.

The neighbours are gathered together for their annual street party, when a new family moves in. But newcomer Charlie - the super-fit wife of online lifestyle guru The Primal Guy – makes it clear she’s not here to make friends.
Meanwhile food stylist Cara, a widow, is worried that she will have to move out of the cosy home she has created for her daughter. Lawyer Alex gets a promising job offer at the wrong time and stay-at-home mum Beth thinks her husband is having an affair.
This has all the hallmarks of an entertaining suburban Australian drama, with neighbourhood feuds and relatable family problems. It was ticking over nicely but then, what a dud ending.

I very much enjoyed Cassie Hamer's debut novel, After The Party. I followed her via Twitter before she was published so we'd sort of circled each other virtually for some time. She seemed like the sort of person I'd like IRL... if you know what I mean? You often get an idea of what someone might be like through their interactions with you and others even if you've not met them in person.

And Cassie's accessible, familiar and easy prose in After The Party only cemented that feeling for me.

A friend asked me (after another review recently) if I meant that 'accessible' writing implied it was 'simple' in some sort of derogatory way. "Absolutely not!" I responded. In many ways it's the opposite. We all know those who write in such a way that we finish a sentence and no freakin' idea what we just read. In my professional life that happens WAAAAY too often as people try to sound smart or learned.

In reality, being able to share things in a way that others lap-up delightedly is an art. It's putting yourself in the mind of your audience (or reader in this case) and knowing exactly what it is they want and need.

And Hamer does that again here, offering believable dialogue and a brilliant combination of wit and snark. 

Our lead characters are a delight. I loved that they stretched the age divide (though none quite my age!). Their children and their situations are all different and they themselves realise (in some ways) they have little in common, other than the bridges of friendship they've built as a result of proximity. They've become dependent on each other in the way close friends do. I'm not one to have a gazillion friends but I do know there are a few people with whom I can share the worst without them judging me.

That's what Hamer does well here - portray the boundaries of those friendships. Of course the novel is about relationships more broadly: those with partners, parents, family, kids and well as in the workplace.

We meet all three woman at pivotal points in their lives. They're there for each other but each has their very own unique battle.

Here Hamer offers us a reminder (no matter where we're at in life) that we still have the opportunity to make the changes we need to make. To better align our lives with our values. To remind ourselves what's important.

For much of the novel I felt Hamer had developed Charlie as a bit of a cliched Instagram influencer bitch. You know, the overdone anally-retentive health-freak we all love to hate. She's not at all friendly towards our leads and really quite unpleasant. Her daughter, Talia is far more affable, though the relationship between the pair seems to be strained.

I did guess where things were heading. Not the specifics—which is good as I'd read far more malevolent things into unfolding events (obviously I read too much crime fiction—but Hamer pulls out a few surprises in the end.

I also appreciated that she ensures that our characters' lives don't go in a predictable direction. It ultimately felt very real.

Some of the themes from her previous novel, including motherhood and the judgement and guilt surrounding it, again feature.

"You see everything through a lens of guilt." p 148

And popular culture is again reflected via Instagram influencers, bloggers and email newsletters, and Hamer adds in some cynicism for good measure.

I should mention—associated with motherhood / parenting guilt—are questions around the behaviour of children and the extent to which parents are responsible. That's also reflected in the relationships a couple of the lead characters (Cara and Alex in particular) have with their parents and the circumstances of their childhoods. 

This would be a great bookclub book given bookclubs are predominantly frequented (online in the times of Coronavirus) by women. I'm sure many could relate to the predicaments of the characters here and understand the many challenges they're facing.

This is a book that I simply could not put down. I laughed. I cried. I wanted to reach out and hug each of these women at one time or another. Alex, Beth and Cara each have such different lives and yet I could relate to each of them in one way or another, and I think that was one of the reasons I so loved this book. I travelled back to early motherhood when I saw Alex watching one of her twin sons praying for their dead guinea pig—““God. Please let Henrietta into guinea pig heaven because she doesn’t eat much, and her poo is tiny.” It’s just the sort of thing one of my sons might have said at around the age of five. At the same time I cried for Beth when her engagement ring disappeared—I lost mine in a bale of hay, never to be found again. I’ll be reaching for this book again and again over coming years. It’s an absolute gem!

This is the first book from MS Hamer that I have read and it won’t be the last, I thoroughly enjoyed this story and her way with words, the emotions that she brings to the surface of fabulous characters. It was fun and moving as we see three neighbours and friends sort through problems that are thrown their way, I do hope that you will pick this one up and get to know Alex, Beth and Cara as I did.

Alex is a lawyer, wife and mother to twins, her life is hectic, and Beth is married with two teenage children and a stay at home Mum and food nutritionist who is a little worried about her husband at the moment and then Cara is a single mum and food stylist who works hard to keep a roof over her and her daughter’s head, these three ladies are all very different but the best of friends and all of them have problems that are causing them much concern and then a new neighbour Charlie Devine and her daughter Talia arrives in Cuthbert Close and she and her daughter are going to put a cat among the pigeons so to speak.

With the arrival of Charlie in the middle of the annual street party, Alex, Beth and Cara do their best to make her feel welcome but Charlie is pushing them away this causes much discussion and thoughts of what to do, throw in their own personal problems about what to do with husbands and jobs and a place to live and life is moving in odd directions in the normal and happy Cuthbert Close.

I truly loved this story, I loved getting to know Alex, Beth and Cara and their families they are honest real life characters with real problems who were very easy to make friends with, I think Cuthbert Close would be a lovely place to live, there are so many laughs along the way as these ladies determine what to do with their futures but above all else even when things are thrown in their paths they remain fast friends and work through emotions and uncover the truth about their new neighbour. This is a page turner at its best one that I would highly recommend, thank you MS Hamer I loved it.

This is one of those books where you get so caught up in the characters and their relationships that it is almost impossible to put down.

I loved the friendship between the three main characters and the support they gave each other. I found the story humorous and entertaining and, for the most part, realistic. For a book which was basically a suburban drama there was a good little mystery thrown in as well, although I guessed the culprit fairly early on.

It was well paced, not too long, engaging and funny. Very well worth reading

‘This too shall pass.’

Cuthbert Close. The sort of neighbourhood where street parties are held each year. Where friendships are formed, and children play in the street. Three very different women have become close friends: Cara is a food stylist; Alex is a corporate lawyer and Beth is a stay-at-home mum. They are having their annual end of summer street party when a removalist’s truck drives into the close. The truck is headed to the vacant house at the end of the close: Charlie Devine and her teenage daughter Talia are moving in. And then there’s a storm, but that’s just the beginning...

Things start going wrong in Cuthbert Close: Beth is worried about her husband Max, Cara and her daughter Poppy are concerned about the future and Alex is finding it ever more challenging to juggle her responsibilities as the mother of twins with being a corporate lawyer.

‘Yesterday, I held a funeral for a guinea pig. I will not judge you.’

Beth, Cara and Alex establish a new business, but someone seems determined to sabotage them. Alex is offered her dream position, but there are domestic issues to consider. Beth is worried about her marriage, and Cara has parental expectations to meet (or avoid).

What does the future hold for these women in Cuthbert Close?

Contemporary issues (with an occasional twist) in middle class suburbia: issues that many of Ms Hamer’s readers will be able to relate to. I enjoyed this novel, the relationships between the main characters and the challenges they were trying to meet. There’s a wry humour in the storytelling which I really enjoyed.

‘The past is who we are, for better or worse.’

Note: My thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin HQ Fiction for providing me with a free electronic copy of this book for review purposes.

Jennifer Cameron-Smith

I took a while to read The End of Cuthbert Close. It was difficult for some reason for me to keep the characters straight in my mind. The story centres around three friends who live in Cuthbert Close, an upmarket suburb. The story looks at their lives, and their marriages. Once I had the characters organised in my mind the story became more interesting to me. I didn’t mind it, and would probably have a look at other work by this author.

Three friends, Cara, Alex and Beth all lived at the end of Cuthbert Close. They had been friends for years and their camaraderie was relaxed and casual. Their annual end of summer street party was in full swing when a removalist truck appeared at the end of the street, determined to drive through them all to the vacant house at the end. That was how they met the glamorous Charlie Devine and her teenage daughter Talia. Their dislike of Charlie was instant but they were going to be neighbours, so Beth took a home cooked quiche to welcome them…

As things began to go wrong within the Close and with Beth, Cara and Alex, their lives entered previously uncharted areas. Alex was doing her best to make a decision in her position as a corporate lawyer, while her five-year-old twins had her hair going gray; Cara and her daughter Poppy were feeling very insecure and Beth wondered what was going on with Max. The new business the three women had started suddenly came under fire – was it sabotage? What was going on? Was the peace and tranquility of Cuthbert Close coming to an end?

The End of Cuthbert Close is my first read of Aussie author Cassie Hamer’s writing, and I enjoyed the closeness between the three neighbours and friends who are the main characters. Typical suburbia with humour, family, friendships, motherhood and money struggles combined with a seriously tricky mystery made The End of Cuthbert Close a highly readable story which I recommend.

With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my digital ARC to read in exchange for an honest review.