An English thriller set in a small village with murders and horror which all started with an accident when a deer was hit by a car.

Knocking on the nearest house door in the pouring rain led the car owner, Leah Talbot, meeting the apparent owner of the house.

She then embarks on all sorts of 'adventures' involving Martin Tate the apparent owner (and murderer) with some far fetched decision making by her trying to avoid him whilst he killed others and captured her unfaithful husband. Why she couldn't involve the police fully was a mystery, and spoiled a good read.

Thanks to Net Galley and Harper Collins One More Chapter for the chance to read and review. 3 stars seems a bit mean as the writing is very good.

What would you do if you unknowingly spent a few hours with a serial killer? For Leah, it’s a series of bad decisions that kept me turning the pages. The cliffhangers at the end of each brief chapter kept me turning the pages eager to find out what happens next. I found the ending to be satisfying as it brought the story full circle, however leading to this was a bit messy and not plausible. There were moments that I found unnecessary, and I found myself wanting to scream at the main character for every decision she made. If this was Parker’s intent then bravo, if not, how dear you. To avoid spoilers, I can only describe it as our lead makes poor decisions similar to those found in any classic horror movie. Overall, I finished this read in one sitting and applaud R. J. Parker for his ability to keep his reader engaged.

Wow, what a ride. Fast paced thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat and up all night. Who knew that knocking on the wrong door could end up like this. This was my first book by this author but it won’t be the last. Thanks to NetGalley for the privilege to read and review this book.

This was a fast paced thriller. It was an enjoyable read but it was a little far fetched for me. It was hard to connect with Leah and some of the decisions she made.

I received an advanced copy from NetGalley and the publisher in return for an honest review. Thank you for the opportunity.

The synopsis of this book sounded soooo good, but what a disappointment!

The main character made unbelievably stupid choice after choice which made me actively dislike both her and her husband. The sister backstory added little to the plot and I thought the violence was unnecessarily gratuitous. The timeframe was unrealistic and the repetitive nature of the main character’s experiences was annoying. I also hugely dislike coincidences in my book and the fact that the main character just so happened to knock on the door of the house where the murderer just so happened to have noticed her in a coffee shop a few days earlier and become fixated on her seems very coincidental. All in all a huge miss for me.

This was a scary story, imagine your life being controlled by a sociopath, high tension all the way through. Most of the characters didn't make good choices but bit was an absorbing story. Great twist in the tail! .

This book started so well. The idea of the main character going to a house for help after a car accident, only to discover the following day that the man she was attracted to had murdered a woman in the house, is great. What followed though was an increasingly far fetched and ridiculous sequence of decisions and events. Leah has to be one of the more annoying characters in a novel. I really didn't care what happened to her or Elliott.
Ideally, I would have given this 2.5 stars but that wasn't an option so I rounded it up rather than down because it's a very quick read. Sorry, just not for me.

This is my second book I’ve read by this author and I didn’t love this one as much as the last one. It started off really strong, getting right into the action. I did like the main character and really felt for her and the situation she was in. There were quite a few twists and turns along the way, but the whole middle section was a little slow for my taste. I also felt like the end wrapped up fairly quickly and left some things unanswered. Overall, this one was just okay for me.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I thought this was a superb psychological thriller, possibly one of the best books I have read this year. The Good Neighbour by R J Parker just keeps you guessing what will happen next, the twists and turns are intriguing and keep on until the end of the story.
Be careful going to a strangers door in the dark of night, they may not be who you expect.
Highly recommended

Hooked from the start, very dramatic and intense read which held my attention throughout! I love a thriller and the two R J Parker’s I’ve read so far have been brilliant, exciting throughout and very easy to read and follow (perfect when you’re in a reading slump)! I have another R J Parker on my bookshelf to read and after finishing The Good Neighbour I really wanted to get straight into that one.

I needed to keep reading and find out what happened next to Leah, a book full of suspense and excitement, and one I felt started a bit too realistically! The situation Leah finds herself in at the beginning of the book (without spoilers) is something I feel could so easily happen to me!!

Loved this, 100% recommend!!

The Good Neighbour was a good thriller,reminded me of a true crime murder documentary with all the twists and turns and edge of your seat drama, a typical game of cat and mouse.

With short snappy chapters too which meant I devoured this over just a couple of days, the author did a great job of ending each chapter on a little cliffhanger which just made me want to keep reading.

I loved the extra twist at the end regarding Husband Elliott, I thought that was very clever and just added that final little kick to finish the book off.

If I was to say anything though it would be that I would have loved a little backstory on the killer, why he was such a sadist but I do appreciate how that would have been difficult for the author to add into this story.

THE GOOD NEIGHBOUR was released last week so it's there for the taking NOW it's a great fast paced easy to read thriller so it's a winner in my book.

Thank you #netgalley #rjparker and #onemorechapter for allowing an arc copy, much appreciated.

TWENTY Must-Read Books of 2021 that You Need On Your Bookshelf
In 2020, I read a crazy amount of books. I doubt I will ever top the amount I read!

I’m trying to read as much as I can and just plowed through some of the best novels I have ever read. I didn’t think another year could possibly compare, but there is an absolute plethora of books that are SO GOOD coming out now and in the next few months.

I cannot stop reading! As soon as I finish one I pick up another.

Here are TWENTY books that you will want to read as soon as they are published.

These are books that will entertain, make you think, make you laugh, some will have you biting your nails in suspense. Take a look now and let me know what you will be reading!

13. The Good Neighbour by R.J. Parker, this is for those who want a quickly moving suspense.
When Leah Talbot crashes her car one night, she spots a light on in a nearby house and approaches, hoping that someone is home.

He is.

Charming, handsome, Martin Tate answers the door to the bedraggled and traumatized Leah, inviting her in. Though she’s not there for long, Leah feels an indescribable pull to the man who has helped in her hour of need.

But when she returns the next morning to say thank you, it isn’t Martin who answers the door this time. It’s the police.

There’s been a brutal murder and the female homeowner is lying dead in a pool of blood upstairs in bed.

There’s no sign of Martin…

Until he comes looking for Leah.

The Good Neighbour is a nerve-shredding domestic suspense thriller of secrets and serial killers perfect for fans of Sharon Bolton and S. E. Lynes.

This is out now!

This book is a creepy, stalker filled rollercoaster that takes you on such a wild cat and mouse chase! The storyline starts out with Leah Talbot crashing her car late at night on a country back road on her way home and when she realises she needs help she has to think fast when she sees a house light on nearby. She makes her way cautiously along the treacherous road and when she knocks on the door she is met by Martin Tate who is more than happy to help a damsel in distress. However, not everything is as it seems and when Leah tries to return to the house the following morning to thank Martin with a bottle of wine her whole life takes a crazy turn. This book had a good flow and was thrilling and gripping enough to make me want to carry on reading but unfortunately it didn't blow my mind. I felt no connection with any of the characters and in all honesty Leah just annoyed me throughout and don't even get me started on Elliot. It had some good twists that kept me captivated but certain parts felt a little bit far fetched especially with one of the murders. And I don't know if it's just me but some parts of the story felt a little too 'inspired' by other thriller/horror books. Overall, this is an easy read that is a gripping and creepy and it will take you on a twisted journey and if that is what you're looking for then I recommend giving this one a go!

Reading Between the Wines book review #32/115 for 2021:
Rating: 4 🍷 🍷 🍷 🍷
Book 📱: The Neighbour
Author: R J Parker
Genre: General Fiction (Adult) | Mystery & Thrillers
RELEASED on March 18, 2021!!! Get your copy!

Sipping Synopsis: Leah had a wreck at night and needed help because her cell phone was dying. She decided to go to a neighbor’s house to ask for help. The man there, Martin Tate, was a little weird but helpful. Leah felt some kind of connection to him while she was there and after she got home safely. She goes to thank the man, and probably test the connection, but encounters the police officers. The house she went to for help the night before was actually not Martin Tate’s home but a woman who is now dead, and Martin is on the loose and looking for Leah.

Final sipping thoughts: Deranged! Crazy! Scary! These are the words that went through my head as I read this story. I absolutely loved the short chapters, flashbacks, and narration. It is so scary to think you can’t even go to your neighbors without your whole life changing. Leah made some of the DUMBEST decisions in this book which made it really hard to feel sorry for her. RJ Parker’s depiction of Martin Tate was so creepy that it brought such a tinge of horror to the story. I couldn’t hesitate to pull out my kindle at the red light because I just needed to finish and find out how the story ended. If you like psychological thrillers as much as I do, this is a good one for you.

Cheers and thank you to @NetGalley, @BeMyKiller and @HarperCollinsUK, @OneMoreChapter for an advanced copy of @TheGoodNeighbour

#TheGoodNeighour #RJParker #HarperCollins #OneMoreChapter #NetGalley #advancedreadercopy #ARC #Kindle #Booksofinstagram #readersofinstagram #bookstagram #nicoles_bookcellar #bookworm #bookdragon #booknerd #booklover #bookstagrammer #bookaholic #bookreview #bookreviewer #IHaveNoShelfControl #ReadingBetweenTheWines #fiction #thriller #suspense #mystery #MysteryAndThriller #GeneralFictionAdult

This started off great with a woman, Leah, crashing her car and killing a deer in the middle of the night. With her phone dead and her car not working Leah knocks on the door of the closest house for help. A very helpful guy opens up and helps her out, but the next morning a body of a woman is discovered in the same house.
The dead woman apparently lived alone so who was the man who answered Leah’s knock? The killer?
I had high hopes for this one, but it kind of deflated as it progressed. By the end it all seemed a little too far fetched and the police procedure felt almost comical!
There are no big revelations or twists in this thriller but just the actual search for the murderer. I thought the characters were all quite one dimensional, in fact the inspector we are introduced to, fades out of the picture near the end to never return in the story and you don’t even realize it...
A lot of the story was just unrealistic and even Leah’s actions and reactions seemed off!
That being said, the idea and writing were good!

Thank you to NetGalley, the publishing house and the author for the opportunity to read a complimentary advance reader copy of this book in return for a review based upon my honest opinion.

This was a great read with a few flaws. While I liked the storyline, I found it implausible that this all takes place during a one day period; that would be one super long day, no way it could all happen within twenty hours. That being said, I really enjoyed it; it kept me in the edge of my seat and had many aha moments.

Leah Talbot is on her way home when she wrecks her car hitting a deer; her phone is dead and she has no choice but to walk the distance to her house, but then she realizes there is a neighbouring property that is closer. She is greeted at the door by a gentleman who invites her in and assists her by calling the police and the AA to pick up her vehicle, they share an odd moment and Leah quickly leaves. The next day when she decides to bring a bottle of wine as a thank you to her neighbour, she is greeted by the police at the property telling her that the homeowner, a woman, has been murdered. She is shocked and trying to sort things out in her head when she gets a text from the man, Martin Tate, telling her not to say anything to the police.

From this point on the book moves quite quickly, with Martin demanding her compliance, and her for some reason complying. As he led her around town on a mission to save someone she loves, her estranged husband, Elliott, the story got weirder. I found Leah‘s decisions not very smart, at any time she could’ve changed the outcome of this story but then again, it wouldn’t have been so relentlessly fast paced and edge of your seat. I really enjoyed the ending of the book and will definitely check out more books by this author.

Wow! What an intense read. I was literally on the edge of my seat and a bundle of nerves the whole way through this book.

Leah Talbot was driving home at night on a dark deserted road when she suddenly struck a deer. Unable to move the deer or her car she went looking for help. She knocked on the door of the only house she could see. Tate Martin opened the door and invited Leah in to make a call to the police and a local tow company. He seemed like a decent handsome man that could be trusted but how incredibly wrong Leah Talbot was. Over the next few days Leah’s world is turned upside down as people go missing and others are murder. Just how far will Tate Martin go to get to Leah Talbot?

This is the first book by Richard Jay Parker that I have read. It was brilliantly written, fast paced, intense and captivating. I could not put it down. I do have to say that there were some parts that were rather gruesome and very disturbing but if you skip over the gory details, it is well worth the read. Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins UK for giving me a free electronic arc of The Good Neighbour in exchange for my honest review.

The premise of the book really drew me in. After hitting a deer and having car troubles, Leah stumbles upon the first house she sees. Then man let’s her in and helps her call AA and the police, and helps he get on her way. He’s attractive, and charming, and upon waking the next morning Leah is compelled to return to the house to say thank you. Only she returns to find out the female resident was murdered las5 night, and the man who helped her may as well be the murderer. This turns into a crazy cat and mouse game of Leah trying to catch the man, before he can harm her, or her family.

Incredibly fast paced book, I finished it in one day. However, the book itself didn’t do it for me. I did not like Leah, at all. She had so many issues and the way she went about doing anything at all really made me angry. I didn’t even like her dad, who was a poorly old man suffering from Alzheimer’s. just none of the characters clicked with me which made the book very hard.

It gets two stars because of writing style. Not many books can get read in a day for me, so that was really what saved it for me.

A creepy, pacy thriller where Martin, a psychopathic killer, fixates on Leah who just happens to knock on his door after hitting a deer with her car. Little does she know that there's a dead body upstairs. I raced through the story - not one to read before bedtime though!

Thank you to Netgalley, Harper Collins; One More Chapter and R.J. Parker for this e-copy in return for my honest review. This book drew me in from the opening pages. I started reading it last night and finished this afternoon. A truly gripping read and kept me turning the pages. Will definitely make me second guess asking a stranger for help.