I liked this book a lot, and it kept my attention with its twists. There has been a rash of domestic neighborhood thriller type mysteries lately, and this one, while good and entertaining, didn't really stand out as anything different.

Saffron Cuttler and her boyfriend Tom have just moved into their dream home and are expecting their first baby. However, their kitchen expansion and renovations go horribly wrong when the builders unexpectedly dig up the remains of two bodies. Hoping the bodies are from hundreds of years ago Saffron tries not to worry. However now that the police have officially turned her backyard into a crime scene and launched an investigation her dream home is starting to become a nightmare. It’s not long before it’s determined that the remains seem to only be about thirty years old. Now Saffy definitely has something to worry about because thirty years ago her grandmother Rose was living in the home. Wanting to get to the bottom of this mystery she’s going to have to question her own grandmother who suffers from memory problems and increasing confusion as she’s started suffering from Alzheimer’s.

Holy hell y’all The Couple At Number 9 is a roller coaster and a thrill ride. It’s a slow burn that will drag you right in from the first page. Saffy, Tom and Lorna are such loveable characters and you’re rooting for them to solve the mystery and be able to move past what’s happened. There’s plot twists galore and and ending that I kind of guessed but still loved. The Couple At Number 9 is a psychological thriller that is full of so much family drama you can barely keep it all straight so if that’s your jam this this one is definitely for you. This is the first Claire Douglas novel that I’ve read but it’s definitely not going to be my last one.

This book was everything I thought it was going to be and more. It was twisty and an excellent mystery. Highly recommend.

A journey through suspense, family secrets, mystery, and allure, The Couple at Number 9 will keep you reading until the story completely unravels. Loved this read and would love to see it translated to the screen!

I can't say I liked this book, because I have to say that I LOVED this book!
Saffron and Tom are ready to start their family in their dream home they are remodeling until everything is put on hold after they find 2 dead bodies baried under the garden.
Who are they? How long have they been there? Did grandma Rose know them or that they were there?
Rose keeps naming people they don't know, someone is hiding in the woods behind the house, and no one seems to know anything, or do they?
An amazing story, with more twists and turns than a amusement park ride, and will keep you on the edge of your seat for the entire ride!!!!

The Couple at Number 9 is a intriguing story filled with suspense. It is different from anything I’ve read lately. Claire Douglas knows how to write a psychological thriller. I highly recommend.

The English countryside, a pair of dead bodies, and the kind of twisty-turny intrigue that I can truly say I didn't see coming. It's hard to review this book without spoiling; suffice to say that it's perfect for anyone who loves a thriller, particularly one set in the English countryside in a small, slightly claustrophobic town.

A twisty thriller with multiple POVs and dual timelines is basically the set up of my perfect book.
Going into this I was very intrigued.
Saffy and Tom move into Saffy’s grandmother’s cottage and begin renovation when two bodies are found buried in the garden. Totally normal right? No!

From there the story gets twistier and creepier.
Saffy’s grandma Rose not only has dementia, but a journal we see passages from, and a whole lot of secrets.
But then Saffy’s mom also lived in this cottage for a bit right? Except she only remembers tiny glimpses of feelings or memories.
And then there’s Theo and his father in Yorkshire that also tie into the story somehow after Theo finds a newspaper clipping in his dad’s office related to the bodies being found.

What a wild!
Overall parts felt drug out, the middle started to get long, I was ready for more answers, and I did guess a major twist but the reveal was still fun!

Divergent stories weave together nicely snd unexpectedly. Didn't see it coming. Nice job going back to the 70's and to current seamlessly. Good character development. Will read more by Claire Douglas.

Okay, I really wanted to love this one. It had so much potential but it was wayyyy too much of a slow burn for me (which, as a fan of the Gothic genre is saying something!)

The story did finally get super juicy by the end but unfortunately by that point I was just turning pages to figure out the ending because I'd been reading it forever (or so it felt.) I thought the ending was very clever (even though I did figure it out before the reveal) so I'll bump it up a few stars overall.

Thank you to Netgalley for my #arc

I’m still stewing over this one hours later because I HAVE THOUGHTS 🙃🙃🙃

first of all, this story alone begs the question of what would you do if you found two dead bodies in your backyard while doing construction? for me, I’d move LOL 😅 but for the MCs, they’re determined to solve the mystery

and the only one who can truly solve the mystery is … a 80+ year old woman with dementia 🫠

I absolutely loved the premise and how rose flitted in and out of consciousness. as someone who grew up with their own grandmother suffering from dementia, the representation was spot on!

every time rose revealed a little bit more about herself, the story developed even more! I found myself second guessing and re-guessing every character every chapter 😅

while I did guess the big twist, I still absolutely loved the ride!

the thing that didn’t sit quite right with me was the LGBTQ+ representation. it felt very surface level, thrown in as a plot twist, and superficial. if you’re going to include a FF couple, make it meaningful and not as a throwaway plot point. I also am really sick of the trope where the MC realizes she’s queer all of a sudden and then turns psychotic because of her revelation.

while I do think the author meant to include it as representation of the community, it was very poorly done in my opinion.

thank you to netgalley and penguin random house for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review 🥰

rating: 3 stars
wine pairing: australian malbec

In 'The Couple at Number 9', a pregnant Saffron and her partner, Tom, are renovating her Gran's cottage in Wiltshire, England, as their dream home. Then, the builders unearth bodies from its rear garden!

The story moves back and forth in time to show Gran's earlier life in the cottage with small Lorna (Saffy's mum) and how she came to share her home with another woman. Slowly, jigsaw pieces of the puzzle come together.

When the full picture emerges, it's a fascinating one.

The twists! This thriller held my attention until the very last page. I read this in one sitting and couldn't put it down

I found this book to be attention holding. A young couple, a family home no one knew about and unidentified bodies buried there. I was anxious to see the onion peel of clues go faster. I liked the back and forth of story times. I must admit, I had a hard time at the end figuring out who the grandmother really was. It was nice the family got together. Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!

✨The Couple at Number 9 by Claire Douglas✨

Genre: Thriller/ Mystery
Pages: 400

📚 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 thirty 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 its’ 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 thirty years ago? Why did no one miss the victims? What part did her grandmother play? And is Saffy now in danger?

📝Just as I thought I knew where this was going, the author was like “think again” 💁🏻‍♀️ A tense & captivating plot with just enough thriller elements to keep you on the edge of your seat! I could never guess what was going to happen. All of the plot twists caught me by surprise!

The mystery spans across three generations of women, each with their own unique personalities and quirks. There were several POVs, but the author did a great job weaving the stories from the past and present where it wasn't confusing, I couldn’t put this down!

💫Thanks to @harperbooks and @netgalley for my ARC💫

This was quite the thrilling, spooky read. I really enjoyed it. I liked how slowly all these connections were made that told a broader story.. I really liked the characters as well. The story was quite descriptive. I enjoyed it

The inheritance of a family home should be a blessing for young Saffron, her husband Tom, and their growing family. 9 Skelton Place may be small, but renovations should make it their perfect home. The renovations uncover a horrifying scene, making 9 Skelton Place into the scene of a crime and Saffron's ailing grandmother a prime suspect. What happened thirty years ago and what will her Grandma Rose's memory reveal?

You might need a character map to get through this one, but once you have all the ties and connections sorted out it is quite interesting. With multiple timelines and four narrators, The Couple at Number 9 is a slower-paced thriller that is all about secrets, love, and crimes of passion. The twists and turns are aplenty and even though I guessed the big reveal, it didn't take away from my enjoyment at all. This is one tense read, one that leaves you guessing just as much as the characters.

This one just wasn’t for me. I read the advance reader’s proof until about 30% back in early July and got distracted by other books because this was just dragggging. Then I tried to pick it up again recently by renting the audiobook for another 13% and still at 43%, there still wasn’t much of a plot or excitement so I decided to call it quits. I didn’t care enough to spend six more hours of my life just to find out who the bodies belonged to or what happened with the mysterious lodger and dementia grandma.

Thank you to NetGalley, Harper Perennial, and the author for an advance reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review.

A beautiful day working in the garden becomes a nightmare with long-lasting effects on a family.

When construction workers are excavating the yard to build an addition, Saffron is shocked by what the workers have found. Two sets of skeletal remains.

A mystery begins to find who lived in the house at the time the bodies were buried, who the people were, and how they became buried there.

Saffron's grandmother lives in a nursing home and has dementia, so interviewing her is difficult. Saffron's mom lived there but was very young, so doesn't remember anything about that time.

The Couple at Number 9 is great! Filled with all of the emotions one would feel during this experience flowing from the pages. The big reveal confused me at first, but after thinking about it, this author is a genius!

I was given this book to read and review. Thank you.

Disease. This is a beautifully written, expertly-plotted psychological thriller with a twist that still has me reeling. I loved the characters – Saffy, Tom, Lorna, Rose, Daphne, Snowy. I loved the setting. I thought Rose’s dementia was portrayed accurately and sensitively. And that twist!!!