This was a good story, but I did not find it as good as some of Nailing Singh's other series. If you like mystery thrillers you should give this book a try.
I will be reading the next book this series when it come out.

Quiet In Her Bones takes readers on a red herring-filled journey, demanding an answer to the question: “How far would I go to find my mother’s killer?” Filled with twists and the constant second-guessing of characters’ intentions, I finished each chapter in a high state of paranoia.

I have daydreamed about how I would exact revenge if someone dared to hurt a loved one of mine. I’d grit my teeth as I threatened the bad guy over the phone, quoting Liam Neeson’s character from Taken, “I will look for you, I will find you, and I will kill you.” But I know that I don’t have Neeson’s “very particular” set of skills, I am not in shape, and lack the budget for an international mystery manhunt. That being said, there’s nothing I love more than a good “whodunit” thriller, and that’s exactly what Quiet In Her Bones delivers.

When Indian socialite, Nina Rai, goes missing one rainy night in the lush brush of a wealthy New Zealand cul-de-sac, many are left to think she ran off for a life of freedom and luxury after stealing a quarter of a million dollars from her controlling husband. But when her remains turn up ten years later in the deep, leafy forest behind her neighborhood, the entire community is baffled. Nina’s son, Aarav — a worldwide best-selling thriller author — becomes obsessed with solving her case. Not even blackmail and a few near-death experiences seem to stop Aarav as he relentlessly pursues the mystery behind his mother’s death, but his sleuthing does not go unnoticed by the authorities, who begin to suspect foul play as they learn more about Aarav and Nina’s complicated past.
Aarav is arrogant, sadistic, and clearly suffers from the trauma of his parents’ emotionally and physically abusive relationship. After a nearly fatal car crash leaves him heavily medicated, readers realize that most, if not all, of his flaws stem from trauma experienced as a 16-year-old kid when he lost his mother that rainy night.

Although their home was broken, there was love between mother and son, Aarav and the rest of his family. And we see that as Aarav mentally deteriorates, that the only person that can help him is his deceased mother. The line that Singh weaves between the reader and Aarav has you rooting for Aarav, even if he may be the culprit — you want him to finally find peace. Is Aarav a loyal son or his mother’s killer? This question propels your forward, and keeps you guessing until the very end.

A Setting That Is As Much A Leading Character As Much As It Is A Device

The natural beauty of New Zealand provides the perfect backdrop to develop the plot. I knew New Zealand was beautiful, but after reading this novel I was drawn in by the level of detail Singh provided. She transports you to the forest-enveloped roads and wide, open landscape. The landscape is almost elevated to being its own character.
The cul-de-sac where most of the novel takes place, and the fateful night when Aarav last saw his mother drive away, is filled with your typical affluent neighborly characters. At times, I felt some of the neighbors were a distraction from the main storyline and were not needed to drive the plot forward. The juxtaposition of these two worlds, nature and ever-spreading suburbia emphasizes Singh’s deliberate paradox.

Not Your Average Murder Mystery, But That’s What Makes This Novel Worth Reading

Many thrillers take readers for a tailspin just as this one did, but the unique characterization I loved and valued in this thriller was the culture that permeates each page. As a thriller junkie I’ve read Behind Her Eyes, Woman in the Window, Gone Girl, and more. While those thrillers are phenomenal, and readers develop a relationship with characters — this felt different. Singh did a wonderful job authentically describing the Indian culture of the Rai family. I felt close to Aaarav’s culture and it was a breath of fresh air to have multicultural characters weaved into this genre.

Much like how You Should have Known by Jean Hanff Korelitz relishes in Jewish tradition — an element conveniently whitewashed in The Undoing, HBO’s loose adaptation — Nalini Singh’s inclusion of the Rai family’s Indian culture enriches the reader experience. The sprinklings of Hindi throughout the book made me feel closer to the characters.

This whodunnit, based in New Zealand’s natural splendor, is sure to keep you on your toes until the very end.

I kinda expected more of a psychological thriller than a police procedural. It had great Asian representation and an unreliable narrator (so I guess that was psychological) and I kept turning pages to find out what really happened.

It has the amazing Nalini Singh writing, characters, & pacing that I really like. If you like a domestic thriller or an unreliable narrator, I think you will really enjoy this one. It hit all the points of a good thriller, although some of the pacing of the book was a little slow. All in all, I liked it!

Quiet In Her Bones by Nalini Singh was very interesting. I read the first in this series and to be honest did not care for it, partly because it was so far from what she normally writes. This one, however, did hold my attention from beginning to end. The character were well developed and the interactions of them was spot on. From discovering that his mother did not just run off 10 years ago, to finding out what ultimately happened to her, this was a story that had many twists and turns. Aarv (the son and main character) is an interesting character and I think that fans of Singh’s will enjoy this story.
Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book for an honest opinion.

And engaging story that held my attention! I have really been surprised and impressed with Nailing Singh's writing and love the line from the blurb "Even the dead aren't allowed to break the rules in this cul-de-sac."

I was drawn in instantly when I started this book and found that the mystery sets up from the start which I really liked! I'd recommend it to fans of the authors past work and those who like a good mystery!

I had a hard time with this one. I felt it started out strong and I couldn’t put it down but slowed down in the middle. I’m a big fan of Singh so I will read her next.

Singh is such a talented author, of that there is no doubt. But I just found this book so incredibly meandering and drawn out. I also had a terribly hard time keeping track of all of the characters, especially listening to it on audio. I did find the ending quite satisfying but this book was just so hard for me to get through.

Riveting, dark, and twisted—Nalini Singh’s Quiet in Her Bones is an atmospheric thriller that kept me hooked until the final page.

This is the second book I’ve read now by Nalini Singh and she writes settings like the best in the business. Both books of hers were set in New Zealand. In Quiet in Her Bones, the book is primarily set in a very private, very expensive neighborhood surrounded by thick forest. I pictured the forest having a slightly jungle-like quality compared to the US and I swear I could see all of those shades of vibrant green and the dark shadows where the car crash that starts this book off occurred.

Narrated by the son of missing socialite Nina Rai, Aarav is the epitome of a tortured protagonist. Unreliable narrator, even to himself—Aarav has some serious blocks in his memories as he works through the story to unpack his complicated family dynamics. Singh does an incredible job showing the duality of Aarav’s mother Nina in flashbacks. She was such a complicated character, despite not being present in the story in the current timeline. I felt Nina leapt off of the page, simultaneously glamorous, cold, fiercely loving, needy, and flawed. She was mesmerizing.

Ten years ago wealthy socialite Nina drove off in the night with a quarter of a million dollars and was never heard from again. The theories about Nina were wild, made even the more salacious by knowing the private, secretive, wealthy community she came from. When her car and bones are discovered buried in the forest not far from the house, it’s clear that the wild theories that she escaped her marriage are wrong. Nina never was free.

Someone knows what happened to Nina that night, but in this wealthy community where the members pay for the cloak of privacy designed to keep their secrets, the truth may be buried as deep as her bones were. As the story unfolds, Aarav unpacks repressed memories from that night and from his childhood. Due to an accident, he is living back at his father’s house and it seems he can’t escape the ghosts of his past. But is Aarav truly innocent? Is he a good person? Well, that’s for you to find out!

I enjoyed Aarav as the detective into his mother’s death, particularly since Aarav even seems to be investigating himself. The secrets he learns about his mother, father, and the others of the neighborhood alone are enough to make this story gripping. What truly grabbed me, though, was the enigmatic Nina. She was simultaneously fiercely strong and fragile as spun glass. I felt invested in each new memory of her.

And of course, in a neighborhood like the one in this book, the cast of support characters are just as interesting. The pacing on this was slower but steady, with tension and suspense creeping in around the story until the end. If you like atmospheric mysteries with complex characters, this one is for you!

Thank you for the advanced copy of this book! I will be posting my review on social media, to include Instagram, Amazon, Goodreads, and Instagram!

My first read by this author and it was okay. I found nothing really bad about it, but nothing super compelling in the story either. Not sure I could recommend it to anyone, but it was just alright.

Didn't capture my attention and engagement. Interested in trying it again though and hopefully it will take.

It’s very engaging and an interesting read. This is the first time I have read something by this author and I would love to explore more books by her. Thank you to netgalley and the publisher.

scary. haunting. you gotta be in the spooky mood for this one. I loved the thrill ride this went on and it was unexpected and good in so many ways

I am a member of the American Library Association Reading List Award Committee. This title was suggested for the 2022 list. It was not nominated for the award. The complete list of winners and shortlisted titles is at <a href="https://rusaupdate.org/2022/01/readers-advisory-announce-2022-reading-list-years-best-in-genre-fiction-for-adult-readers/">

This one was just okay for me. I felt the pacing was a bit too slow for me. There are times when slow pacing is okay, but here with the multiple suspects, and the unreliable narrator, I felt like it was too much. I wasn’t able to figure out the “twist” so that was nice. Overall this one was just meh.

Another effective psychological thriller from Nalini Singh - unreliable narrator, rich people problems, immigrant feels, all set against the dramatic backdrop of the New Zealand bush.

I really enjoyed this book- it’s the first Nalini Singh novel I’ve read! It won’t be the last. I love how fast paced this book was and I loved the New Zealand location.

Thank you to the publisher, netgalley and the author for sending me this book in exchange for my review. This one just wasn't for me. the synopsis sounded wonderful but after reading about 50% I just couldn't stand the main character anymore. his constant banter and complaining was driving me up the wall. the also weird relationship he had with his mother. this may be one you guys love but it was a DNF for me.

I was about halfway through A Madness of Sunshine when I knew I was going to have to pick up Quiet in Her Bones immediately after. Both books are stand alones, featuring very different characters, and yet there are comparisons to be drawn between both books. Namely that Singh once again creates a world with a large cast of characters all of whom have secrets - although this time out it's an exclusive, upscale cul-de-sac neighborhood.

Ten years ago Nina Rai stormed out of the home she shared with her husband and teenage son never to be heard from again. Also missing? $250,000. Her disappearance has haunted her son, Aarav, who heard her scream, right before the front door slammed...twice. Or did he? Aarav, now a success thanks to his debut novel catching fire, is recovering from a bad car accident. So bad that when he's released from the hospital he's under doctor's orders to not be alone. So he goes home to stay with his father, stepmother and half-sister. He's suffering from terrible migraines and there are gaps in his memory - problems only exacerbated when the police show up and announce that they've found Nina Rai. Her car slid off the road into the bush and has been hidden for the past decade. Mommy Dearest is now nothing but bones....bones found in the passenger seat of the Jaguar.

Now Aarav knows for sure. His mother didn't just leave him. Her marriage was a disaster, her relationship with his father extremely volatile - but she never, ever would have left her only child voluntarily. She's been dead since the night Aarav heard the scream. Determined to know the truth he starts his own investigation. The exclusive cul-de-sac where he was raised and where his father still lives is full of neighbors, all of whom have secrets. Then there's Dear Old Dad. The front door slammed twice that night.

Terrible car accident, migraines, drugs, gaps in his memory - buckle in kiddies it's Unreliable Narrator time! Aarav doesn't know what memories he can trust and then there are the gaps thanks to the car accident and the prescription drugs. He's under the care of a neurologist and a shrink. Oh, and he fully acknowledges he's a sociopath. Warm and cuddly our boy ain't.

I'll be honest, I'm not a fan of this trope in suspense. Blame it on The Girl on the Train and cutting my reading teeth on the likes of Kinsey Millhone, but I dig competency porn in mystery/suspense. There was a trend for a while of female unreliable narrators gorked out of their skull on alcohol or drugs running off half-cocked and basically I wanted to throat punch all of them. Singh at least has the good sense to give me something different - our unreliable narrator is a dude. A sociopathic dude who is a mess but is very good at wearing the appropriate mask for whatever the occasion demands.

Aarav's instability ramps up over the course of the story as he turns over rocks and ugly things begin slithering out. As much as the unreliable narrator stuff wore on me after a while, by this point I was so invested in the cul-de-sac, the secretive residents, and the mystery of what happened to Nina Rai - our protagonist's escalating manic behavior was only a minor quibble, one derived solely from personal reader preference.

Like A Madness of Sunshine I had portions of the mystery figured out before the denouement but not all of it; although as the pages dwindled I did worry for a hot minute that Singh would leave a thread dangling. Good news, she did not.

I didn't like this quite as much as A Madness of Sunshine (again, personal preference talking here) but this is actually the better executed book. It felt tighter to me, although it lacks a strong romantic element thread that the previous book had. That might be a deal breaker for romance fans, but not really a concern for someone coming to this book wanting suspense.

Now I'm left with only one question. When is Singh going to give me another suspense novel? Tick tock, tick tock...

Final Grade = B