Can you imagine finding two bodies in the backyard of your new house? Oh wait, new to you house? A house that you inherited from your grandma? Bizarre for sure. And that's what has happened to Saffy. So now, she has to deal with the police digging up and identifying two bodies in her backyard and worry about her grandma's involvement.

It's an interesting premise for a book and and Douglas doesn't disappoint. Switching back and forth between Saffy's point of view and her grandma's, we learn all about the life her grandma lived back in the early 80's leading up to the the bodies were buried. It's a richly told tale that has mystery, intrigue, love and betrayal at its heart.

Special thanks for Netgalley for an advanced e-galley in exchange for my honest review. This one is out now!

I received at complementary ARC of this book from Netgalley on behalf of Penguin and was under no obligation to post a favorable review.
I liked The Couple at Number Nine even though some parts seemed to drag for me in the middle. Saffy’s mom inherits an old cottage and gives it to Saffy and Tom and as they are remodeling it their builders find two bodies buried in their back yard from many years ago. The house belonged to her grandma who is suffering from dementia and she has no idea who could have been murdered and buried in her garden. As the police try to figure out who the bodies belong to Saffy and her mom start investigating on their own. The mystery starts to unravel and it takes while for the pieces to come together. The twists in this book were very unexpected and I wasn’t able to figure things out until almost the very end. A good mystery!

This book grabbed me from the very first chapter. Just when I thought I had the story figured out, there was another twist and turn that kept me guessing even longer. This book will definitely keep you engaged until the very last page. Highly recommend!

Great book. Kept me guessing with all of the twists and turns of this story. The characters are each unique. The family dynamics are ever changing between mothers and daughters. I don’t give many 5 star ratings but this book really deserves it.

Saffy and Tom have recently moved into Saffy's Gradmother's remote cottage. While renovating, the workers unearth something shocking. The police are called, an investigation is under way and interviews start. The police want to interview Rose, the Grandmother, but she has Alzheimer's and is in a nursing home. Does Rose know about the secrets this house holds?

Although the story starts off slow, be prepared for the 2nd half which is filled with lots of twists.

Saffron “Saffy” Cutler and her boyfriend Tom Perkins are expecting, and very excited to be given her grandmother’s Cottswold cottage in Beggars Nook by Saffron’s mother, Lorna. Lorna has a job and a life in San Sebastián, Spain, and chooses not to live in the old cottage gifted to her by Rose, her mother, who is in a nursing home suffering from dementia. As Saffy is busying herself weeding the garden of her idyllic home, she hears a scream from the backyard. Thinking one of the construction crew has been seriously injured while building her dream kitchen addition, she runs to find out they have discovered the skeletal remains of human hand in the opening made from displaced dirt. Saffy rushes to call both the police and Tom to have him come home as soon as possible from his job in London. It turns out not one but two skeletons are unearthed by the police, who call the backyard a “crime scene,” much to Saffy’s disbelief and unease. That’s when the danger for everyone involved begins. The police discover through forensics that the people in the makeshift backyard grave have dead for about thirty years. Saffy and Tom have nothing to worry about, but the police insist on speaking to Rose. While Rose’s memories are quite fuzzy, it does seem clear that she knows something. The police continue to dig into the case, but Saffy begins to feel that both she and the cottage are being watched. The truth might be elusive…but was Rose involved?

This is a mind-blowing book, and I loved every page of it. It was masterfully penned, with so many twists and turns that I felt like I was speeding on a narrow mountain road! Everyone in the novel has something to hide, some more than others. It was a gripping tale: suspenseful, nerve-wracking, dangerous, explosive. The plot was taut, emotional, and exciting. The family drama was brilliant and real. The thrill of uncovering every detail was palpable, sometimes breathtaking, and the climax left me open-mouthed and in disbelief. Maybe it was naive of me, but I did not see that shock coming! I highly recommend this incredible thriller, and will definitely read more of Claire Douglas’ work in the future.

I’d like to thank NetGalley, Claire Douglas, and HarperCollins Publishers for the ability to read and review this ARC.

About the Book:
"The victims....

When pregnant Saffron Cutler moves into 9 Skelton Place with boyfriend Tom and sets about renovations, the last thing she expects is builders uncovering human remains. The remains of two bodies, in fact.

The investigation....

Forensics indicate the bodies have been buried at least 30 years. Saffy has nothing to worry about - until the police launch a murder inquiry and ask to speak to the cottage’s former owner. Her grandmother, Rose.

The witness....

Rose is in a nursing home and Alzheimer’s means her memory is increasingly confused. She can’t help the police, but it's clear she remembers something.

The killer....

As Rose’s fragmented memories resurface, and the police dig ever deeper, Saffy fears she and the cottage are being watched.

The truth....

What happened 30 years ago? Why did no one miss the victims? What part did her grandmother play? And is Saffy now in danger?"

This was a thoroughly enjoyable page-turner of a thriller with lots of fun twists and turns!

I'm trying to figure out what to say about this book because I ABSOLUTELY LOVED IT! But articulating what is it that made me enjoy this book more than the umpteen other mysteries I read every month is proving difficult. The story opens in a Cotswold style village in England. Point one in its favor, although the setting doesn't play much of a part in the story. I think it was the puzzle aspect of the story that was so appealing. There were so many seemingly odd pieces that somehow fit together in the end.

Saffron and Tom are reoccupying her Grandmother's house which has been rented for years. In the course of some remodeling, two bodies are unearthed in the garden. This brings the building to a fast halt and presents a complex world of problems for the young couple. Her Grandmother, Ruth, is in an elderly home suffering from dementia, so she is unable to help unravel the mystery of who is buried there. Sully's young and vivacious Mother, Lorna, comes from Spain to offer support to the young couple, and also becomes embroiled in solving the mystery of the two bodies.

Meanwhile in another town a young man is discovering that his father may have a mysterious past, but their relationship is not good and his mother died in an accident. There is no one who can help him fill in the missing pieces until he stumbles across a clue in his father's study.

These two different people in different towns seemingly have nothing to connect their stories. I don't want to say more because I so enjoyed watching the threads of this multi-layered story unravel to a satisfying conclusion . This was my first Claire Douglas book, but I'm eager to read some of her earlier works and see if they live up to this one in enjoyment value,.

THE COUPLE AT NUMBER 9
Claire Douglas
Mystery/Thriller

Saffy and her boyfriend have recently started to remodel her grandmother’s cottage; then a shocking and disturbing event happens. Two bodies that have lain dead and undisturbed for over 30 years are found.

This book is told by three different viewpoints. After you get the hang of jumping character’s every chapter, not to mention one set in a different time period, you will be hooked. I usually see a twist coming, but the one near the end came from left field for me. I would give it a solid 4 stars.

While I must admit this is a well-written book, I didn't find the story or the characters particularly interesting. The POVs and timelines switched often and kind of screwed with the flow of this whodunit mystery.

It's also unfortunate just how predictable the ending was. I'm not one to enjoying guessing ahead in a mystery novel, but despite my reluctance I figured out the big twist very early on. I suspect you will (or have) too. Is this a spoiler? I don't think so, but I suppose having someone confirm your suspicions would be enough for you to think "oh...that really?...well, darn it".

I haven't read any of Claire Douglas's books, and after this, I'm not sure I'll seek out any others.

This was a pretty good mystery, which begins with a couple of bodies being discovered buried beneath a garden during a home renovation. The search is on for the identity of the bodies, as well as who put them six feet under. The search will produce more questions than answers and permanently alter more than one family.
The climax wasn’t terribly surprising, but also not ridiculously obvious, and I appreciated that the author didn’t feel the need to throw in all the “twists” that are so prevalent these days.
Thanks to #netgalley and #penguinpaperbacks for this #arc of #thecoupleatno9 in exchange for an honest review.

This book has multiple timelines and characters that meld stories from the past and present. It was intriguing and clever and kept me wondering until the very end.

Thank you so much to net galley for sending me a copy if this book. Honestly I thought this was just gonna be a basic mystery thriller novel but it was so far from basic.read this!!

3.5 ⭐️ Rounded Up ⬆️

Synopsis : Claire Douglas explores the nightmare scenario of what happens when building work unearths human remains in the back garden of a young couple's new home. When pregnant Saffron Cutler moves into 9 Skelton Place with boyfriend Tom and sets about renovations, the last thing she expects is builders uncovering a body.

My Thoughts : This was a fun & easy read! I am glad I read it and would recommend to others. However, I am sad how it got boring in the middle where I wanted to skip ahead at times to get to the good stuff. I did like the story overall and the twists, even with me guessing some, so I will round up to a 4!

I would like to thank NetGalley, Claire Douglas and Harper for my arc copy in return for my honest review!

I really enjoyed this book, my first read from Claire Douglas, there were SO MANY really amazing plot twists and the concept of finding bodies in your backyard of a house owned by family for generations was a really fun thriller experience

Two things right off the bat: one, I couldn't put this book down and two, I never expected the ending. Every time I thought I had it figured out, the author snapped me back into reality and I honestly never saw the end coming.

The story is told by several characters. Saffy speaks in the first person and she's the very first character we meet. She's young, pregnant, full of hormones, and on top of it all, in the hole over which her future kitchen will be, a skeleton has just been found. The other characters narrate the book in the third person, and cross different timelines. There's a lot going on in the book. If you don't like busy books, this might not be the right one for you. It's easy to read and holds your interest the entire time.

This is my first book by this author, and if the rest are like this, I'm going to be busy reading for awhile. I look forward to her next book!

Thank you, NetGalley for the chance to read and review this book. All opinions are mine and freely expressed.

4.5 stars rounding up here on NetGalley

I loved this so much! The setting was so great, and I loved the characters. The alternating timelines kept me turning the pages and set up the story so well. I loved the family secrets and the dynamics. The end was SHOCKING. I will definitely be reading this author again!

Ohhhhh my my my. The twists and turns!!! If life wasn’t so chaotic I’d have finished this beauty in a few days easily. This was fast paced and told from multiple perspectives with no questions at the end! I had to tell myself to stop reading at the end of chapters purely so I wouldn’t stay up too late. Highly recommend for any fan of thrillers! 4.5 stars rounded up.

A thank you to Netgalley for sharing the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Having read Just Like the Other Girls, which I found to be a decent read, my expectations were fairly average going into this one, but I sure did like the description. I'm happy to report that it exceeded my those moderate expectations and found this to be an all around engaging thriller. Interesting characters, good use of the back and forth in time that were clearly delineated, and most notably (and personally important to me as a lover of great thrillers) lots of twists, including a few that aren't necessarily as intuitive as one might think. 4 stars.

I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley.

Wow. Wow. Wow. What a twisty-turning book this was. This is my first book by this author - will not be my last.

Saffron Cutler and her boyfriend Tom moved into a cottage that is owned by her grandmother. The cottage is quite dated so they decide to put some blood, sweat, and money into it to make it their dream home. As the excavator is digging up the backyard for the addition, a problem arises - they find a human skeleton hand. All digging comes to a halt, the police come out. Not only did they find a hand - they found 2 bodies. Forensic testing show they have been there between 30 and 40 years.

As the story unravels provided through multiple points of view - the truth comes out and no one will be the same again.

Did I already say wow??