Weeellll, Butter Up My Baby Muffins! 😯🤯😳

Holy Fluff! Baby Fluff! WHAAATTT?! 😯 As soon as I started this novel, I was yanked in! I knew without a shadow of a doubt I'd love this unique, different premise. And let me tell you I was NOT disappointed. Jodie decides to move into a gated community full of the hoity-toity types. Except for her neighbour, Norah and her daughter, Lacey who had cystic fibrosis. Something about them appeals to Jodie, especially Lacey - feeling pulled in by their unusualness. But she doesn't know the past of her neighbours, and soon a murder happens in the close community. Each woman has a past they desperately want to keep under wraps, but The Grove will beg to pull it apart. Geez almighty! I did NOT see any of that coming! My word almighty. I'm absolutely gobsmacked. That ending!! 😳

Thank you to NetGalley and Embla Books for this ARC.
Release date: March 22, 2022

I give this 4.5 / 5 snowflakes! ❄️

A gated community is a fun place for a psychological thriller! There’s secrets behind every door, but these are also the people you’re supposed to be able to trust. 🌼

This book is told from 2 POV:
✨ Jodie - newest resident of gated community The Grove
✨Norah - her and her terminally ill daughter, Lacey, live next door to Jodie

Jodie moved to The Grove for a safe place to live, but she never intended to get to know her neighbours. But she finds herself feeling sorry for Lacey. Why does Norah keep her daughter apart from everyone else? And Norah doesn’t want Jodie, a complete stranger, poking into her business.

The two women don’t like each other and distrust each other’s motives. Since the story is told from both POV, it kept up the mystery of who was telling the truth, and what was actually happening. The books takes a turn for the dramatic near the end, and the reader is left with lingering questions. ⁉️

I would’ve liked a little more explanation at the end, but I do feel like my expectations for the story’s’ trajectory were turned upside down, and I didn’t guess what would happen at the end. Which is definitely what I want from a thriller!😮

📚This book comes out March 22!📚

✨Thank you to Embla Books, Netgalley and Becca Day for a free copy of the ebook, in exchange for an honest review.✨

Jodie has secrets and where better to keep your secrets and yourself hidden than in a gated community? Take Norah and Lacey for example. They have secrets but is it the secrets you think they are?

I enjoyed the premise of this book however I felt that the pace could have a gone a little quicker and I wish the author would have delved more into the others of the community and what they’re hiding. I think it would have added a nice layer to the story.

All in all it’s a good book but if you’re looking for a quick read this one isn’t it. I would recommend this book if you like a slow burn.

Chapter One begins at 108 days before the murder. This is my favorite type of book, a new neighbor in a gated community trying to remain anonymous but there are secrets to be revealed, affairs to be uncovered, and a murderer to be revealed. Highly recommend!

most of the story was a good attempt at creating feelings of foreboding in the reader. Unfortunately, for me, this just went on for too long and became a tad tedious, probably because I felt I knew how it would end, I couldn't help but feel that the story was familiar.
The characters didn't really attract me, I wanted one I could identify with but could not get a feel for or get to like any of them.
The denouement was a disappointment, rushed and, I'm afraid, predictable.
However, the very things that I dislike in a book such as the ever changing points of view and the "countdown to murder" are likely the very things that other readers will greatly enjoy.

Interesting but not really my cup of tea. Well written I just personally couldn’t get into the story. A fresh start in a new town. A perfect neighborhood. And then she starts to notice some weird things with her neighbors. Should she step in and save the girl? Or mind her business? Predictable and honestly it was a struggle to keep my interest. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Many thanks to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this thriller.

Jodie is a thirtyish woman with a past she's running from. She moves into a gated community in a new town and begins working at the local paper (she's a journalist). She meets and interviews her neighbours - they are a single woman (Norah) and her handicapped daughter Lacey. Lacey has cystic fibrosis compounded by diabetes and Norah is her full time carer. Jodie and Lacey become clandestine friends, with Lacey watching TV through Jodie's window - her mother won't allow her to watch at home. Jodie is undergoing a great deal of stress in this story - something in her past haunts her and she drinks heavily at times to deal with it. This leads to embarrassing situations and lots of excuses to avoid going to work. But when things come to a head, it's bad for all of them.

This story was fast to read, because I just skimmed a lot of Jodie's stressed out thoughts, they were very repetitive. And I still want to know why one person from her past caused her so much fear. Also, I found the phrase "pride of place" used three times in this novel, which is two times too many.

I was LOVING this book until the end. I didn't really enjoy how this book ended and unfortunately that made me dislike this book. I love a story about a fresh start and feel I can give it a solid 3!

lntriging but weirdly strange storyline not really my cup of tea but find my self getting very involved in this unusual story.Lots of sub plots within the main plot but found the very end disappointing I was still looking for answers to some of the questions left in the ending.

There's no rewriting or hiding the past and this book proves that point.

Living behind a gated community nothing on the outside can touch you but what if the threat is on the inside.

This story is told from two different POV, two very complex characters hiding from the truth, it covers several sensitive topics.

I was disappointed with the ending it just didn't work for me and left a lot of unanswered questions.

Thank you for the opportunity to read and review this ARC. The concept of this book seemed like something I would really enjoy but it ended up falling flat for me. It was a slow burn until the last quarter and then it just felt very rushed to a wrap up.

The Girl Beyond the Gate is an enjoyable read ,a story about Jodie who it seems is running away from her tragic past and moves to a gated community in the hope of some privacy and peace ,Overall a good story but I would have liked to have heard more about the neighbours stories and the ending was unsatisfying with too many unanswered questions but for a debut book very good .Many thanks to the Publisher ,the Author and NetGalley for my free copy in return for an honest review .

Thank you Embla Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book before publication.

I'm writing this fresh off finishing. Oh, how I wish you could give .5 stars. 3 stars feels too low, but 4 a bit too much. So consider this a solid 3.5 rounded down to a 3.

THE PLOT:

Jodie is running from a tragic past and thinks she's safe in Kensington Grove. AHT AHT... It's never that easy Jodie. After meeting her neighbours, Norah and Lacey, a terminally ill 14-year-old girl, Jodie becomes convinced something is off. As she starts digging, she has no option but to dig up her own secrets too.

MY OPINION (SPOILERS)

Kudos to Becca Day for a great debut. It's not easy putting your words out there to be relentlessly judged and picked at.

*Rubs hands* Let's get into it.

The writing was decent. There were funny parts, thoughtful parts, sad parts, scary parts, the whole gauntlet. Too many descriptive details for ME, but the story flowed and the pace was decent. I liked the countdown to the big finale... It subconsciously gets you excited for the big reveal and keeps you engaged. A good strategy on the author's behalf. One particular scene at the end with Jodie and her daughter was especially heartbreaking. It was very well written. It reminded me of the scene from Woman in the Window when her family dies in an accident. It made me feel a lil something something in my cold black heart.

Ok... so why 3.5 stars only if the writing—usually my #1 gripe—wasn't soul-crushingly bad?

1) The relationship between Norah and Lacey is a fictionalized version of Gypsy Rose Blanchard and Dee Dee Blanchard. In the Blanchard's case, Dee Dee was pretending her daughter was sick for $$$ and perks, but one day Gypsy has enough and kills her mom. Now, there isn't a problem with drawing inspo from real life, but I found it odd the author didn't acknowledge this anywhere. Certainly due to the similarities, you would want a little footnote... Otherwise it seems like you're exploiting and sensationalizing a very tragic real-life case of Munchausen disease gone wrong. Idk, if I were close to the Blanchard family and read this, I would feel hurt. Munchausen is a mental disorder, and this book clearly paints Norah as a full-blown psycho. Not to be all "woke", especially because thrillers essentially pimp out our trauma for a buck, but the fact Norah and Lacey were based on such a real-life people, it kinda threw me. Also, it felt like since the author didn't acknowledge her inspo, she was trying to claim it was her own original idea... Not cool.

2) The ending. I am confusion. So... you're saying... She wasn't lying? She was? Idk. I wanted a definite answer. Also, it seemed like Jodie's "plan" was more stressful than actually dealing with the consequences. Girl, your drunk ass would last as a fugitive for 30 mins.

3) Too many strings left untied. I would've liked to know more about Allison, about Christian's involvement (how could he be in love in the club with someone like Norah!??! Ew), about how Norah became Norah, about why Jodie's baby daddy was answering the phone at her aunt's place?? Did I miss something there? Was Ty actually booed up with her aunt?

Anyways. Overall, a good read. If the author had added a little acknowledgement about the Blanchard inspo, I'd be happy to round up to a 4 given the rest.

PROS AND CONS:

Pros: Decent writing, good pace, engaging chapter structure
Cons: Doesn't acknowledge Blanchard inspo, unsatisfying ending, too many unanswered questions

I feel like I've read this story before but it was still a pleasant enough read. It's got a few twists and turns but nothing terribly shocking. It's quite a quick read actually and doesn't really have that much depth to it. I felt the end was a bit rushed which took away from it for me. It is well written though and will keep your attention until you do find out just what is going in the community.

Decent thriller. Unreliable narrators. Quite a few twists but a rushed ending that felt like it undid all the previous buildup. That said, a departure from some of the run of the mill "girl behind the gate on the train in a window across the street" type of books we've been getting. looking forward to more from the author.

A Sense Of Foreboding….
A fresh start in the exclusive gated community of Kensington Grove sounds perfection to Jodie Madison but from arrival onwards she feels a sense of foreboding. She may well have made a big mistake and when a murder takes place, a downward spiral begins. Fluidly written suspense with a credible cast and a well drawn setting. A premise well delivered which felt let down slightly by the sharp, abrupt and seemingly rushed ending but, nevertheless, made for a gripping read.

This is a great debut for author Becca Day!

Our main character, Jodie, moves into a gated community that has a full cast of interesting and suspicious characters. Jodie, herself, clearly has a few secrets, too! She soon finds herself pulled towards Lacey, a child who reminds her of someone she used to know, who has a serious illness Jodie is starting to suspect may not be real...

The 2nd POV is Norah, Lacey's mother, who clearly isn't quite right and keeps her daughter locked down and away from other people.

The book goes back and forth between the 2 POVs, as we countdown towards a murder that keeps you turning the pages. Along the way, you find yourself suspecting one person, then the other, all while trying to figure out the multiple mysteries Becca Day wove into the storyline.

Looking forward to Book 2 from Becca Day! Don't miss this one!

Just wow

I couldn’t put this book down. For me from the first page

Really enjoyed the twists and turns. Then ending for me

Thank you to NetGalley

I really liked this book, except the ending. It centers in Jodie, a young woman that moves to a gated community to start over after experiencing a tragedy. She takes a shine to the teenaged girl named Lacey next door, but the girl’s mother, Norah, is extremely protective and tries to keep them apart. Jodie grows more and more concerned about Lacey’s well-being as the book continues. The chapters alternate between the POV of Jodie and Norah.

Jodie was a relatable character and I could empathize with her and also forgive her sometimes unwise decisions. I am not sure if the author intended the reader to bond with Norah during her chapters, but I never connected with her at all. The gossip between the neighbors and pecking order was fun to read about, though I almost wish we got a little more of the other neighbors’ stories.

I raced through the book because I wanted to see what happened and then the end was somewhat abrupt and didn’t answer all my questions. I felt like a lot or action happened in just a few pages and I didn’t get enough detail about these pretty major happenings. Then I just didn’t feel satisfied by the overall culmination of the story.

Overall, this was a good book that i read quickly and I’d recommend it to others, though I hope the ending lands better with other readers. Thanks to Netgalley for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Jodie is looking for a fresh start in her life. She moves into an exclusive community called The Grove. However, Jodie is having a tough time adjusting to the new community. She intends to keep her distance from the neighbors, but gets drawn into a situation with the terminally ill neighbor, Lacey, and Lacey’s mother, Norah. When a murder happens in the Grove, Jodie finds herself trying to protect Lacey from her own mother. As the past comes more to light with Jodie and Norah, it becomes unclear which one telling the truth and which really has good intentions.

THE GIRL BEYOND THE GATE is a quick and easy read that I thoroughly enjoyed. I loved how the author led you in one direction down a path and then would immediately pull you into a surprising u-turn! The psychological undertones kept me glued to the pages!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Embla Books 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.