Excellent story! Totally engrossing!. Looking forward to reading more by this author! Could not put this down!

I’m kind of burnt out on “perfect neighbors with horrible secrets” stories, but this was a pleasant surprise in that it wasn’t that simple. This was more than just the telling of a dramatic group of people in a neighborhood; it was about women, marriages, parenting and friendship. Before that makes it sound schmaltzy, let’s back up…

Alyson and her husband, Justin, have over-extended themselves by buying a house in The Enclave, an exclusive area in Denver. The neighborhood is full of professionals, and their children all go to an elite school. Alyson feels out of place around these people who have a lot more money than her, but the women are friendly and invite her to book club meetings and football parties. Soon, she’s made some friends (but she still feels inadequate around them).

One woman is more standoffish than the others, and that’s Bonnie Sloan. She’s the unofficial neighborhood matriarch, with a son heading to Yale, a son in middle school and a daughter in kindergarten. She’s also running for political office, but when her younger son is murdered and his body dumped at a lake by the neighborhood, everything in her world stops. They all take pause; the neighbors are scared for their children, and worried that there is a killer among them.

Alyson is one of the better characters I’ve read lately. She feels inept, her husband is keeping secrets and not sleeping with her anymore, her son is having a hard time adjusting to his new school, and she doesn’t feel like she fits in anywhere. She wanted this house, this neighborhood, for a better life - but it sure doesn’t feel better. She keeps trying though, and she’s quite a sympathetic character.

This novel wasn’t brilliant or amazing, but it was a really good book with characters you can root for or against, and a solid mystery to keep things interesting. It started slow, but picked up as it went along, and the ending was nice and neat. Overall, this was quite an entertaining one, and I’m happy to give it four stars.

(I’d like to thank Sourcebooks, Rebecca Taylor and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my review.)

The Secret Next Door is an intricate story of the extent a mother will go to to protect her child.

Rebecca Taylor is a mastermind story teller that makes you feel like everything is going on right around you. I feel like I knew Alyson personally and just had to see what she was going to do or say next.

The Secret Next Door, is about Alyson Tinsdale and her son. Alyson feels the need to provide a life she never had for her child and will move mountains to do so. Alyson has just moved into her dream home determined to impress the other moms.

Bonnie is the "it" woman in town. Bonnie, is having a bit of difficulty with her middle child, Elijah. This may just stand in the way of her obtaining her long time goal of being in the center of the political world.

When a 13 year old boy turns up dead, the entire town turns to panic and chaos.

What secrets does this town hold? Who killed this boy?

Stay turned November 9, 2021 to find out!

Seemingly Perfect…
A seemingly perfect and peaceful neighborhood, filled with seemingly perfect residents. All the things that this neighborhood is most definitely not. Gossip, secrets and lies aplenty abound in this particular community and when a death occurs the very real cracks soon begin to show. Well crafted suspense with a credible cast of characters and some solid twists in the tale.

Shortly after I started this book, I realized it was not for me. The cover intrigued me but I only got to 20% before throwing in the towel. I did not connect with any of the characters at all. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

The Secret Next Door
A Novel
by Rebecca Taylor

Thank you so much Sourcebooks Landmark and NetGalley for this r advance copy for my honest opinion . It was a jaw-dropper. Bam, I was hooked and flew thru the book enjoying such a thriller, mystery. Wonderfully written and very realistic.

Wow!! This story is amazing!! Loved all the characters in here. They were all different but played so well on each other. It was like watching the story unfold in front of you. So well done. I could not put it down.

This book is amazing !!!! It grabbed my attention right away ! I finished this book in one day! The Characters Were relatable. The story flowed well. I never would have quested the ending it shocked me but drew the whole story together! Amazing book can’t wait to read another by this author!

The Secret Next Door
Rebecca Taylor
Sourcebooks Landmark
Publish date: 2021
Review date: September 2, 2021

Alyson Tinsdale, her husband Justin and young son Andrew have just moved into an exclusive Denver neighborhood called the Enclave. Alyson misses her friends from college and is eager to make new friends in the neighborhood. A neighbor, Gabby Lawrence invites her to the ladies book club where Alyson gets totally smashed. She doesn’t remember how she got home but woke up fully dressed and lying next to the toilet. Not the best first impression she wanted to make.

Other neighbors are wealthier than the Tinsdales and include Bonnie and Bennet Sloan and their three children: George (teen-ager), Gracie (5yrs old), and Elijah (13 years old). Bonnie rules the neighborhood and now that her children are in school she wants to run for the state Senate.

All is well in the neighborhood until the town council proposes that an Extreme Golf facility be built. Carl Wayland (retired CEO and well-connected) is furious because the Extreme Golf facility would bump up to his property and block his view of the Rocky Mountains. The neighborhood is not divided over the issue.

Then, tragedy strikes. A young boy is found drowned in the neighborhood lake. It seems that the neighbors’ public images are very different from their private lives. There are plenty of suspects, but whodunit?
Taylor’s book is easy to read and hard to put down. I especially like the way Alyson matures throughout the book. I wasn’t impressed with the secret in her husband’s basement.

It was a good read and I give Taylor 4 stars. I recommend it.

Thank you Sourcebooks Landmark and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I love a book that slowly reveals it's secrets; what I love less is a book whose characters hide secrets from the reader.

When Alyson and her family move into the high-class neighborhood the Enclave - although at the lower end of said high-class; she tries everything she can to belong. In fact, our main protagonist is portrayed as a social climber, enthusiastic wine drinker and frustrated wife and mother.

One of the frustrations - her husband is sleeping and spending all his time in the basement. Which is locked. That was a real what the f*ck moment - we are dealing with a woman too afraid to go into her own basement. The reasoning behind Alyson's husband, Justin, locking the door is later revealed and is a bit of a let down, to say the least.

Juicier are the secrets in the neighborhood, and what kept me reading - in addition to the easy writing style - is the portrayal of neighbor Bonnie and her family. Whomever said money cannot buy happiness is right - especially when Bonnie's son is murdered and the police have no leads.

Alyson turns out to be an instrumental part in finding out whodunit - but while the author reveals that Alyson finds out things about her neighbors that lead her to the answer - the reader does not know what those 'things' are until the mystery is solved. Give us all the clues so we can go ahead and be proud to solve it ourselves.

3.5 rounded up to 4.

A young family, new to a very wealthy neighborhood in Colorado discovers that the neighbors aren’t as perfect as they appear. It seems that everyone is hiding something and then a terrible tragedy strikes.
I really enjoyed this book from the beginning, but it seemed like the ending was rushed and just didn’t really make sense.

A perfect book for divisive times about a community. I was immediately drew into the story here. The characters are so realistic. I highly recommend this book.

I love a good neighborhood drama and this story has a lot of that and was very easy to read in one day. I thank Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Thank you to Sourcebooks Landmark for the chance to read this ARC. The Secret Next Door was a fast paced novel about the images that people portray outside of thier homes...even when things aren't so perfect behind closed doors.
I originally gave this 3 stars, since the market at the moment is saturated with these types of novels. The writing and the characters had me bump it up a notch.

This is an amazing story. I was not expecting very much, I thought it was going to be the run of the mill mystery book. I was wrong, and thank goodness. This is a great story that will hook you in the first two chapters. I could not put this book down. Everything is never what it seems from the outside and this family learns first hand about that. I would recommend this book to anyone looking for something new.

I received in advance readers copy in exchange for a honest review

Really fun, few good twists, great summer reading

Alyson Tinsdale is moving into her dream home in the exclusive Enclave neighborhood with her husband, Justin, and her son, Andrew. She is excited to provide a safe neighborhood with great schools for her son to grow up in. Alyson wants to also fit in with the other women in the Enclave and makes extra efforts to do so. Bonnie seems to be one of the important ladies in the neighborhood. Now that all 3 of her children are in school, she has decided to run for a Colorado senate seat. But her son Elijah and their family matters are making it difficult for Bonnie.

All is well until it becomes public knowledge that there are plans to build an Extreme Golf facility on some empty land right next to the Enclave. This causes the neighborhood to become divided into strong supporters and strong detractors. With tensions already high, there is a discovery that a young boy has been found dead by the lake. This sends the neighbors into a tail spin of panic and fear.

Rebecca Taylor has created an engrossing story that most people will be able to relate to, at least on some level. As in real life, things are not always perfect even in beautiful and affluent neighborhoods. The author puts a great spin on this theme and kept me entertained from beginning to end. I would highly recommend THE SECRET NEXT DOOR!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for my ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This review will be posted to my Instagram Blog (@coffee.break.book.reviews) in the near future.

Thank you so much Sourcebooks Landmark and NetGalley for this amazing thriller advance ebook!

I absolutely loved this book. It was hard to put down as it drew me in immediately and I wanted to know more and more.
The character depth was amazing! I loved how strong these characters were.
This was one of those books that sucked me in from the beginning and didn’t let go until I finished! I thought it was well written, with absolutely flawlessly done characters, and absolutely unputdownable. It had so many fun twists & turns. The storyline was brilliant and fascinating you won't want to miss this novel!

Thank you again for the opportunity to read this outstanding story!