he Perfect Neighborhood by Liz Alterman's "engrossing novel is a thought-provoking read about the dark side of suburbia and the secrets of close-knit communities..."

I couldn't have said it better myself. The book begins as typical neighbors gossip and pine for what the other one has, including their husbands. It was hard to put down! In this Norman Rockwell safe community, 5 year old Billy Barnes was walking home alone from school and never shows up, the whole town is put under a microscope. My first thoughts he is too young to walk alone, but then the neighbors were all so trusting. Until, a lot of secrets surface, affairs exposed and guilty thoughts from his anguished mother Rachel over working instead of being home with him. Unlike a lot of latchkey kids, he had a sitter that waited for him on the doorstep, but that day she was late, so she carried the guilt and grief because she had secrets to hide why she was late. When another child in her care goes missing, this raises significant implications on her.

A hair-raising chill will run through your body when the truth becomes more lies and people aren't as they appear in this fancy neighborhood. The trust put into others will have you question what is lurking in their dark minds and how they ever got to that. The story flows thoughtfully through 3 POVs, Rachel, Cassidy, the babysitter and a famous actress, Allison who also lives in this not so close-knit neighborhood. Keep your enemies close....

I think this is probably a 4.5 for me. I wish we could give half stars. LOL! This book kept me guessing throughout. I only had an inkling of the culprit once or twice and then pushed it away thinking that can't be it! LOL! It did seem to wrap up super quickly compared to the pace of the rest of the book. It was kind of like someone said to the author, "Ok, time to wrap this up." LOL! That's really not a huge negative. And I did really like that she gave us an epilogue for each character and where they ended up. I hate when books just end and you don't know what the aftermath was. So this one wraps up things really nicely in that regard.

I would like to offer a TRIGGER WARNING for this book though. It does depict miscarriage and infertility as the basis for one character's story. So please know if you are sensitive to that topic, you might want to skip this one. It's not graphic or super detailed, but enough that if someone has just experienced either of these, it might not be the best book choice.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for sharing this book with me. All thoughts are my own.

All of a sudden Allison, a model, leaves her Rockstar husband. And then the real trouble starts—a 5 year old goes missing and then another child—both watched by the same babysitter. How are these
three events connected—the two abductions and the departure of Allison. Step brothers and babysitters are all under investigation. And how is a neighbor who recently returned from Afghanistan connected?

Curious, more curious and most curious. The departure of a woman is understandable but losing two children? Loss and grief are partners in this mystery. Liz Alterman has done a terrific job at helping us actually “feel” a sense of grief and loss and to what great lengths one may go to stop the pain.

Maybe many neighborhoods are not so perfect after all.

I read The Perfect Neighborhood by Liz Alterman and it was not the typical plot that I could see the ending coming. Kids were disappearing, and it did keep me guessing what was going on. There were many suspects with the way Alterman set up the storyline and designed her characters who all had their flaws and secrets. I was thrown off track and didn't see the ending coming, which is unusual for me! It was a quick, easy read and not crazy wordy. Glad I got to read this one!

Very basic story although it was good it was a very worn out story line and had a very basic plot. It was enjoyable but unoriginal.

Liz Alterman's new immersive novel is a story about the dark side of seemingly perfect communities that are so closely knit, that everyone nose digs into everyone's business. Allison Langley has ditched her husband and the town is bubbling with speculation, when a child goes missing. Cassidy, the babysitter, who was supposed to be with the child, is running late and is anxious when she realizes the child is missing. The usually quiet neighborhood is rocked by this tragedy. What follows is a walk through the complex histories of various characters, in an attempt to allow the readers to speculate on who could have perpetuated the whole thing. I started having my doubts about who'd done it once I was half-way through the plot. I could see through the diversions. But A jarful of dark secrets, a burly mix of complex characters and their imperfections and a dash of psychopathic tendencies kept me hooked.

The story is told from multiple POVs and starts with gossiping community members who can't help but speculate about the secrets behind the tragedies unfolding in the lives of their neighbors and judge them at every possible opportunity. This one of the aspects of the story that it makes so thought provoking. What one person sees as an uptight, haughty woman, actually turns out to be a grieving mother who does not know how to talk about her suffering. You get the picture. And, there's a lot more to think about. Things like, how we tend to ignore red flags that signal to a person's deteriorating mental health, how trauma can make a person jumpy, how sometimes we can make bad decisions or judge people too harshly, how we can't help someone who does not want to be helped, how when we loose something, we tend to psychoanalyze every random action we ever took, to determine what we did wrong etc. etc.

I think if you like dramatic novels based on closed-knit communities in the suburbs, you will enjoy this story. It will keep you hooked.

Thank you Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books for an ARC.

#ThePerfectNeighborhood #NetGalley

The Perfect Neighborhood by Liz Alterman is a five star example of domestic noir. This novel lures you in, closes the door behind you and refuses to let you leave until the last page is turned.

Oak Hill is the setting for the story—an upper middle class/upper class neighborhood where children are instagram-worthy ornaments. Rumors spread like wildfire, and everyone has a secret. It is these secrets that provide the women of Oak Hill with fodder for their lurid gossip. When one of their own, Billy Barnes, a young boy full of curiosity and energy, disappears, the entire neighborhood is shaken. While some try to convince themselves that it is a family issue and that their own children aren’t in any danger, others hold their babies a little closer and trust everyone a little less. At the heart of Billy’s disappearance is Cassidy, the eighteen year old babysitter who was a few minutes late to arrive and meet Billy the day he vanished. As events unfold, Cassidy is further exposed to the uncomfortable spotlight of suspicion, and Oak Hill will never be quite the same.

Alterman has managed to create vivid characters who are as real as one’s own neighbors. In their interactions, they are portrayed as flawed beings with generally good intentions—intentions which are often unfortunately drowning in self-indulgence. Each individual in Alterman’s cast (and the cast is almost unwieldy in its numbers) is unique and imbued with traits that make them distinct individuals rather than simply cogs in a societal wheel. It is her ability to bring these characters to life that is the strength of the novel. Whilst not all are likable, they are all relatable, and this reader was invested in them as they battled their demons and the circumstances that surrounded them.

The plot of The Perfect Neighborhood is one of twists and turns that made the book in my hands disappear as I was lost in the chaos of Oak Hill. Each word on each page appeared intentional with zero page fillers or fluff. Alterman made every syllable count in much the same way a poet might. No detail was overlooked if it in any way added to the story, and no superficial, unnecessary detail was added. Even the red herrings were integral to the plot. Because of this, I found myself engaging in every sentence on every page. I have a tendency to skim when I’m bored—moving quickly through extraneous text that could have been excluded without affecting the outcome. Here, however, there was no skimming as I devoured every word.

The final chapter in this novel is the one that clinched the five star rating. It was unexpected and left me with goosebumps. Though this was the first piece I’ve read by Liz Alterman, I can guarantee it won’t be the last.

Thanks to Net Galley and Crooked Lane Books for the opportunity to review this ARC. Publication is scheduled for July of 2022.

This book is perfect for fans of The Couple Next Door or The Push. The story is told from multiple view points, but it starts with the disappearance of a five year old boy. As we read the accounts from multiple people who live in the town, we have to keep track of who saw what, trying to figure out who took the little boy. Who is really innocent in this so-called 'perfect neighborhood'?

The book begins with a 5 year old boy, Billy, disappearing. The babysitter didn’t make it to his house in time, so we don’t know if he ever made it home. People start to speculate it’s the parents, but then another child disappears under Cassidys (the babysitters) watch.
This book will have you guessing right up to the very end.

I really enjoyed this book that kept me guessing until the end.

Featuring a rock star and his actress wife, plus two missing children, the book at first appears to be about two different stories, but the plotlines crash together in a mostly satisfying way.

I enjoyed the turns, but felt some action was a bit unrealistic.

Oakhill is straight out of a Norman Rockwell painting. People still leave their doors unlocked. Everyone knows each other and is in their business. It's the kind of town where secrets don't stay hidden for very long. Raise the stakes with an ultra-rich rockstar, an actress, a real estate mogul, and bored housewives with unlimited renovation budgets. Looks will deceive you in The Perfect Neighborhood.

I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley in exchange for this honest review.

The entire community is thrown into chaos when kindergartener Billy Barker doesn't make it home from his 15-minute walk back from the elementary school. Billy's mom is one of the three working moms at the school, and this particular day he didn't have his phone, and the teenage babysitter was late that day.

Days creep by into weeks, and the police are no closer to finding Billy. Drive through this perfect neighborhood, and things aren't always as they seem. Marriages that look perfect on the outside are falling apart behind closed doors. There's drama, backstabbing friends, affairs, and potlucks with an extra side of gossip.

The Perfect Neighborhood melds true crime and psychological thriller into a fast-riveting book that will have you glued to the pages until you find out what happens. The story is told from the perspectives of the female neighbors, including Billy's mom, babysitter, and neighbor. Everyone has their own suspicions and their own secrets.

I give this book a solid four stars. Almost a five-star review, but there was some predictability in the plot without revealing spoilers. Overall this is a book I will recommend to my friends. This thriller would also make a great book club pick. There are so many elements of the book to discuss, like how we treat our adult friends, gossip, child safety, and living in a tight-knit community.

The Perfect Neighborhood is a domestic thriller that I couldn’t put down over the weekend.

In the first chapter, we learn that the neighbors are gossiping about how Allison Langley, an actress, left her husband in the middle of the night. What happened to the perfect couple? The scandal is quickly forgotten when a little boy in the same neighborhood goes missing.

The story is told through the perspectives of several women in the neighborhood. There were twists throughout that kept me guessing and interested despite a few plot points I found hard to believe (the biggest one being how the babysitter waited for a five year old boy to walk home instead of going to pick him up from school?)

Overall a really enjoyable read. Out on July 12th. Thank you to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for my digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

When a child goes missing from a neighborhood where seemingly everything and everyone is perfect anyone can be a suspect. Told from the perspective of multiple points of view including the mother of the missing child, the babysitter and a woman who left her husband without any notice. I enjoyed reading this multi-point of view story that had me trying to figure out throughout who kidnapped the child and for what purpose. The characters were interesting and flawed all in their own ways but helped to create a full cast of characters to make this an enjoyable read.

I do love a domestic thriller where the 'perfect neighborhood' crumbles, secrets are exposed and all is not as it seems.

An enjoyable, quick read with it fast pace and twists and turns. Most I didn't see coming and enjoyed the suspense.

Will look forward to Liz Alterman's future books. Thanks to netgalley for the chance to review this book.

Ok, this book was confusing to me. It had a great mystery, I was surprised as to who the kidnapper was, but I really didn't care for the "mommy" group. It was a little hard to follow being told by so many. I thank Netgalley for the advanced copy

Mindblowing! I couldn't stop reading and there were many plot twists (which I love). I didn't have a clue about what happened, which as a thriller reader, it's something that bothers me when it happened. Cannot wait for it to be released!

Thank you to NetGalley and Liz Alterman for this E-ARC in exchange for my honest feedback and review.

The neighborhood of Oak Hill appears to be the perfect place to live, raise a family, and have amazing neighbors who become life-long friends. When the disappearance of a young boy, Billy, shocks this perfect neighborhood. Everyone is ready to blame his parents, his babysitter, and start making their own accusations. Allison and Chris seem like the perfect couple who live in this neighborhood but Allison ups and leaves before the first child disappears and soon after another child goes missing. What do these neighbors all have to hide?

I really enjoyed the author's use of multiple points of view. It helped to flush out who these main characters were. There were a couple of points of view of secondary characters that I felt were unnecessary. Without those the story would have still made sense. Overall I really enjoyed this thriller. The ending was not one I saw coming. I especially liked the twist at the very very end. It makes me want a follow up book.

The Perfect Neighborhood, was not at all what I was expecting but holy smoke was it mind blowing! This was an insane fast pace novel that puts you on a suspenseful ride of your life.

Liz Alterman, knocked this book out of the park and made me a super fan! This was my first novel by Alterman, but no way will it be my last. I enjoyed the short chapters as it was easy to keep going and not put down .

This is a domestic thriller packed with secrets and suspense. Told from multiple points of view. Billy is 5 years old and missing. Set in a wealthy neighborhood, this is wildly unexpected. The story is narrated between the point of view of his mother, his babysitter and a neighbor. What happened to Billy?

With so many suspects that had motive, this book was hard to figure out and kept you on the edge of your seat . Throughout the book, small clues are dropped that give you just enough satisfaction . Typically, I am able to figure out the direction I am being led into but this one had me guessing the entire time and I loved every minute of it!

The ending was just "WOW" .

The Perfect Neighborhood will have me thinking about it for awhile now. I am still stuck in this period of "what the heck did I just read" ? In all good ways!

Interesting look at suburbia in the spirit of other similar books (Such a Quiet Place). This one hit close to home as Billy is the same age as my daughter, so this book got very intense at times for me.

Thanks NetGalley, the publisher and Liz Alterman for an ARC to review. Tragedy hits the perfect neighbourhood where danger never hit before.
Captivating writing, reads like you are watching a dark suburban drama. Every parent's worst nightmare happens, twice!
I loved it.