Perfect for fans of Big Little Lies, this novel explores the dangers of trusting your neighbors and sharing your secrets.

This book is scary in the worst way. A sinkhole opens up in a suburban area hot on the heals of a fallout of friends who will use the secrets of each others past to launch wild (true and untrue) accusations against the block families, resulting in the tragic death of a child. This horrible accident leads to breaking and entering, violent attacks on children, an accusation of child molestation, a separate accusation of child abuse, beating a ,an within an inch of his life and finally the climax of an entire family murdered. The fallout being the suffering of the blocks children for the rest of their lives.

I love the way the novel was written, using new paper articles, and different points of view. It totally reminded me of Big Little Lies but not so much it seems a copy cat. Thank you for the advanced copy of this very enjoyable and thought provoking novel!

From the first page of this story I was intrigued. You learn of a crime so scandalous that the world is obsessed with what happened years later. The crime has created Broadway shows, Halloween costumes, and yearly and articles. Controversy surrounds the events and 'sides' are taken. What a wonderful beginning for any mystery reader!
The book is written through interviews, newspaper articles, and multiple narrators so you see the details from all sides. I liked how Langan revealed plot details; sometimes slowly and other times with a big statement that surprised you, hooking you to read further to learn how it come about. In behind all the drama is the environmental disaster occurring in the neighborhood, like a character all of its own, you can feel the stifling heat and smell the crude oil oozing from ground. The blackness covering the area and getting into peoples' homes for me symbolized the spreading fear, paranoia and lies. Langan has been compared to Liane Moriarty or Celeste Ng, as she is another female author able to show families with real human emotion in all their complicated ways.

Thank you to Simon and Schuster Canada for allowing me to read an early copy in exchange for an honest review.

Wickedly dark and yet weirdly and uncomfortably funny, this novel unveils dark traumas in a seemingly typical suburban neighbourhood. Set in a future time, it touches upon climate change and the sinkhole that appears in the nearby park mirrors the secrets and violence just beneath the surface of this community. One never knows what goes on behind closed doors and how much damage is caused by gossip and innuendo. This was a page-turner of a book that kept me reading 'til the wee hours!

Was super excited for this one after I read the themes and that it was compared to some books that I really loved. Overall I really enjoyed it, a quick afternoon read for me. I really love books with different perspectives and was excited that this had that. Going to be telling all my reader friends about this one.

So, I finished reading Good Neighbors last night and I'm still kind of at a loss as to what to write about it.

Good Neighbors follows several character who live on Maple Street - Primarily The Wilde's and The Schroeder's. The Wilde's don't really fit in with the Maple Street "demeanor", but Rhea Schroeder takes a liking to Gertie Wilde. However, one evening (after having too much to drink) Rhea reveals too much to Gertie and their entire friendship is never the same. Then a sinkhole opens up behind the homes and there are heat spikes causing more and more tension between the Wilde's and Schroeder's. Then tragedy strikes and that's when it really starts to "heat up". Accusations fly back and forth until finally someone snaps.

Honestly, I was shocked at the amount of 4 and 5 star reviews here. I mean ya, the book was compelling and kept the reader intrigued, but the premise was so farfetched, I felt like I couldn't even wrap my head around how something like this even happens! And trust me, I was in the mood for a good thriller novel, but this one really missed the mark for me. This is a really dark novel that touches on abuse, rape and murder.

Sadly, I rate this one a 2/5 stars.
(Also, there were several spelling mistakes that really irked me, but that is not reflected in my reasoning for rating this novel 2/5.)

Thanks to NetGalley for a free copy of this book for my honest review.

Sarah Langan in “Good Neighbors” to be published February 2, 2021, explores the idea that it doesn’t take much to unleash the monster within each of us.

Maple Street in Long Island is an idyllic curated neighborhood, complete with perfect neighbors who have perfect jobs, who live in perfect homes, and who have perfect children. That is, until the Wildes move into number 116. Arlo and Gertie Wilde are the Al and Peg Bundy of Maple Street. Their kids burp, shart and do inappropriate things in public. They are the perfect scapegoat for the tamed monsters lurking inside the residents of those perfect homes. During the summer heatwave, a 180-foot-deep and 6 foot square wide sinkhole spontaneously appears at the end of the street, claiming a dog and spewing out toxic fumes. Rhea Schroeder’s daughter, Shelly, accidentally falls into the sinkhole and one by one the neighbors turn on each other and falsely accuse Arlo. Before the summer is over, Maple Street is in shambles and countless lives are ruined.

Langan is a gifted writer. She has stuffed so much into this story that it takes days to unwind it all and make sense of the subtle nuances, symbolism, irony, and the literary techniques so deftly worked into a fantastic plot. Lagan writes to expose the envy and hatred lurking below a suburban utopia. She cleverly shows the power of mob mentality at work after a few careless words uttered by a child are shared with the police. Sadly, the possibility of lives being ruined by words spoken out of insecurity, jealousy or hatred is not a new concept. We humans have been dealing with it since the beginning of time; our human nature is destructive if we give it enough space. We each hold the power within us to help or to hinder another. Lagan’s characters, worried about fitting in and undermined by the pressure to be perfect, give in to idle gossip and hurtful actions. It’s easier to be liked for being wrong, than to like the ‘odd’ family on the street. The author had me giggling several times with her sly humorous streak and shocked, more often than not, at the heartless actions of Maple Street residents. She has the ability to describe evil and turmoil with detached hilarity. I was reminded of Shirley Jackson’s writing style, as Langan’s is similar. Both authors also use the repetition of phrases throughout to add to the suspense and to enchant readers, and they both use themes of evil lurking in a seemingly ordinary environment. Cryptic symbolism is also evident in both Jackson and Langan’s writing. The addition of the periodical articles, from the future, sprinkled throughout added to the plot and the suspense. What a clever idea. You’ll be reminded about how much children emulate adults, how easily they can be manipulated into saying what we want them to say, and how commonplace bullying is in today’s society. You will ruminate Langan’s story long after the last page is turned. I love it when I read a book like this and often need to go back to reread it to find things I missed the first time around.

As I finished the last page I was reminded of the timeless maxim, “All that is required for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.” This certainly is indicative of the Maple Street Monsters.

Thank you to Sarah Langan, Simon and Schuster Canada, and NetGalley for this thought provoking advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

This book was a great surprise. Humanity at its worst. Realistic, dark and an addictive read. I had to read it quickly in its entirety !

I was given this book through Netgalley as an advance reader copy.

This was a very interesting look at how people can react to childhood trauma, crowd mentality, the rumour mill, prejudices and peer pressure. The characters are very well defined, as are the relationships between them. There is an element of vigilante justice which brought to mind the legend of the Black Donnellys in Lucan, ON many years ago. This was different to most of the books I read, truly a unique story and writing style. I recommend this book to others who love a different style mystery with family saga.

I love suburban drama and this book grabbed me from page one. While it's definitely a darker book than I would normally read, and you have to be in the mood for a storyline where a lot of bad things happen, I didn't want to put it down or stop reading. It's set in the future, but it explores timeless issues and themes, like social hierarchy and class, childhood trauma, and tragedy. The characters were so unhinged yet believable, the plot was interesting, and the hooks kept me wanting to turn the page to see what happened next. The closest comparison I would give it is a much more uncomfortable, disturbing Big Little Lies. I haven't read a Sarah Langan book before, but now I want to explore more!

I requested and received a temporary digital Advance Reader Copy of this book from #NetGalley, the publisher and the author in exchange for an honest review.

This is a thought-provoking novel set in the near future about one neighborhood that's destroyed because of group-think, gossip, and cancel-culture. The story revolves around two neighborhood friends and mothers who couldn't be more different from each other, but still, they've bonded. For Rhea, the appearance of perfection is paramount, while for Gertie, she just wants a loving place to raise her family. When Rhea opens up for the first time and shares her deepest secrets with Gertie, the reaction wasn't the one that she had hoped for, so she decides that she must destroy not just Gertie, but Gertie's entire family. In the midst of the character assassination campaign, Rhea's own daughter goes missing, and this just amps up everything. I'm not going to retell the story in a review -- read the book -- it's worth it. The characters are well drawn and believable and I think every reader will see people they know, and maybe even themselves within these pages. Thank goodness for the children. Evocative of Animal Farm, Lord of the Flies, An American Tragedy. A devastatingly perceptive morality tale.
#netgalley
#thankspublishers

“Good Neighbors” is a fast-paced novel that encapsulates a much darker side of American suburbia. It is well-written. It introduces the reader to a neighbourhood in Garden City where appearances are the only things that matter. It is an extreme example of peoples’ need to keep up with the Joneses, but it knows how to hit home with familiar situations that make for unsettling relatability.

We are introduced to all the families in this neighbourhood, but mostly follow the actions and behaviours of the Wildes and the Schroeders. They are polar opposites: the Wildes are new to the neighbourhood and clearly ‘trashier’ than anyone else there. The Schroeders are more educated, affluent. They share a commonality in that they both harbor a great deal of darkness from past negative experiences as well as present occurrences. We get to see what happens to them when their children become friends, fall in and out of friendship, and experience their bleak reality together. Just when you think that seeing within the minds of these two families is enough, you get to see just how complacent and sheep-like the rest of the neighbours are too and what lies they tell themselves to get through their days. It is a good look at how easily people can turn on one another with a little negative influence. What people are willing to do to live in a made-up reality instead of facing their traumatic issues head-on. Who people are willing to hurt, including themselves.

The book is half a look inside the minds of the main characters and another half watching the neighbours interact. It is disconcerting to make connections to your own daily life with the happenings within these pages, and I’m sorry to say I’ve seen some of it first-hand. However, I do believe that is the point. The gossipy, two-faced, suppressed behaviour of these people are commonplace and should be noted and avoided. The real horror here is the mental state of the neighbours and how it might relate to you, the reader’s, own mental state upon engaging with this book.

I read this book quickly and easily. It is an edge of your seat kind of read. I enjoyed that I sometimes felt like I was reading a soap opera that goes very dark, like a guilty pleasure. The characters, how different and unique their mindsets and behaviours were, were well-done. The way the children were written felt very accurate, touching, and painful. I loved this book.

A big thank you for the ARC via Netgalley!

Good Neighbors is about families living in a Long Island neighborhood. It is a slow-paced story with many characters. The plot is good but I couldn’t get into the story.

I didn’t finish the book.I received a free copy of this book by NetGalley and Simon and Schuster in exchange for a review. Thank you for this ARC.

Taking place in the near future, Good Neighbors examines the underpinnings of a middle class neighbourhood in suburban Long Island.

There’s always that one perfect family in the neighbourhood. You know the one, the house is always clean, the children are perfectly groomed and they are the social glue that holds the neighbourhood families together. They can also be the queen of the clique, the decider of who is worthy of friendship and the one for whom secrets are currency. In this story, that character is Rhea Schroeder. Rhea organizes neighbourhood gatherings and is a well-liked college professor. Nobody knows her history and why she left Seattle and even she doesn’t understand the cause of the “‘murk” that surrounds her.

An evening on the porch with a neighbour drinking more than her usual, Rhea begins to unravel. When a giant sinkhole opens up in the park across the street and her daughter falls in, it is the beginning of Rhea’s facade to fade. In an effort to retain her standing in the community Rhea must make sure that no one focusses on her problems. How this plays out is tumultuous and disconcerting.

The writing was propulsive and the atmosphere quite ominous. The story feels as though it breathes and the metaphors were clever. The author accomplishes all this while still applying a wry humour to her writing.

Thank you to @netgalley and @simonschusterca for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Good Neighbors comes out February 2, 2021.

This book was a bit slow in the beginning and I was tempted to not continue with it but I’m certainly glad I did. It is a quirky book with a cast of deeply faulted adults that I wanted to smack numerous times throughout the book. The children in the book were wonderful characters who proved to be the mature people in this book. The neighbours were like a group of cliquy teenagers who didn’t care if their gossip had any truth to it, they just wanted to belong so they spread their gossip without once thinking of the harm they were causing. Even after being slapped in the face with the truth they still twists things to justify their behaviour. The children on the other hand recognized the damage that lies can cause and banded together to rectify the whole fiasco. The book touched on so many issues, just amplified a hundredfold. I don’t know what genre you would classify this as but I think anybody could read this and enjoy it. Thank you to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster Canada for the opportunity to read this book.

DNF....I received a free copy of this book by NetGalley and Simon and Schuster in exchange for a review. What attracted me to this story was the comparison to Celeste Ng's writings which I have really enjoyed. "Good Neighbors" was just too dark for me. It was set in a suburban neighborhood of Long Island and although I expected conflict and intrigue, the meanness amongst the characters, adults and children alike was too much for me. I read 50 pages which is my self-imposed limit before judging a book, and I could go no further.

Good Neighbors is a quirky story of the residents of a suburban neighbourhood. It examines motherhood and groupthink at the same time. Rea and Gertie are different kinds of mothers. One making sure her daughter and other children live up to both her and society's expectations; the other letting her children know love and freedom while failing to give them a stable home. The book relates the goings-on of a cast of eccentric characters as their neighbourhood implodes after being hit by a massive sinkhole. The book consists of alternating chapters between the parents and the children and the story becomes more intense as accusations fly and meanness escalates.

I really enjoyed this book. I just love unconventional characters and this adds an odd plot which kept me, the reader engrossed. This was a quick read as I found myself up late at night turning the pages and reading just one more chapter all night long. Recommended for those who love a story filled with peculiar characters and events.