This book sounded like a winner. Unfortunately it was an incredibly slow and boring read. I didn't connect with any of the characters, and really struggled to finish it

The Perfect Home is a suspenseful read about June Sweeney who lives a nice, quiet life tucked away in her cul-de-sac with her two college age children, Sam and Cathy. When a new neighbour pulls up one evening, June is concerned - he doesn't seem like the polite, quiet people she's neighbours with. And he seems to have turned his eyes toward her daughter. June gets angry when the cul-de-sac is clogged up with cars that are being worked on at his house and when her and her other neighbours confront him, things turn for the worse! When one of her neighbours is murdered in cold blood, June starts to panic - is she next?!
This wasn't as gripping as I had hoped it would be and I found non of the characters particularly likeable. Hunes children were very disrespectful towards June and her ex husband was disgraceful! Not really a great read for me unfortunately, but there are some good little twists.

June vit, avec ses deux enfants, dans une banlieue calme et agréable et elle est très heureuse chez elle. Mais récemment, un nouvel habitant s'est installé dans le quartier et son arrivée ne fait pas l'unanimité. D'après June, il semble louche et s'intéresse d'un peu trop près à sa fille, Cathy. Lorsqu'un de ses voisins est assassiné, elle mène l'enquête et découvre que ses jours sont également en danger.

J'ai eu beaucoup de mal à avancer dans ce livre, car je ne me suis pas du tout attachée aux personnages, en particulier, le personnage de June que j'ai trouvé particulièrement agaçant et détestable. Elle semble s'acharner sur le personnage de Steve, qu'elle juge dès sa rencontre et cela m'a dérangée tout au long de ce livre. June est censée travailler dans le social et j'ai trouvé que son comportement et sa personnalité étaient à l'opposé de sa profession, elle est dans le jugement des autres et manque d'empathie.

J'ai eu l'impression de lire une histoire sur un groupe de voisins, qui ont peur du changement et qui cherchent à occuper leurs journées, en critiquant tout ce qu'ils peuvent, plutôt qu'un thriller psychologique.

Grosse déception, pour ma part, concernant ce roman.

This book just was not it for me. I found it to be rather predictable and boring at times. I just find it hard to believe how gullible June was. After all the stunts to scare her out of the house, she still couldn't figure out what was going on. Also, what the heck? How was the ex still coming and going after the situation that causes them to split up? This book was just ok to me. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Perfect Home
by Kevin Lynch
Well, I did finish the book. It was a very difficult one to get through. It seemed to be lagged most of the time. But, I do understand a lot of time, effort and sweat go into writing. I wish Kevin Lynch well and thank him for the chance to read his advance copy.

Badic domestic thriller but I enjoyed it. Read in about 2 days and the plot kept my attention. Not familiar with this author but wouls definitely read other books. Thank you NetGalley for this ARC

It’s a beautiful place to live. Or die…

June Sweeney is a divorced mother of two living in the family home in a quiet cul de sac. Life seems pretty perfect- friendly neighbours, peace and quiet after a hard day as a social worker- but that all comes to an end when Steve moves in a few doors down. Running his garage business just outside his front door and spilling out onto the street, Steve’s loud music, aggressive-sounding dogs and loud music isn’t a match for this quiet neighbourhood. When a neighbour is murdered, June quickly realises that her little piece of heaven isn’t safe and someone wants her gone…permanently.

This is the second book of Lynch’s that I have read (Somebody Out There was published last year). I liked that the book was set in Ireland once again and Lynch is clearly drawing inspiration from the little housing estates that you come across dotted around the larger cities here with the long-established neighbours having to deal with new blood moving into their area. I have read books before with similar plots but I enjoyed how Lynch let the dubious characters infiltrate June’s family and cause tension within her own home/sanctuary.

There are many unlikeable characters in this book- probably the most annoying two are not the ‘bad guys’ but June’s own children. They are self-entitled, lazy and have a serious attitude problem with their mum. Both are adults and yet act so childish throughout this book that I was constantly rolling my eyes and thinking of how my own mum would never have let me speak to her that way (Irish mammies are a strong-minded breed so June wasn’t as convincing for me in this role).

I figured out who the villain was pretty much at the beginning of the story but I enjoyed reading the book and seeing what twists, if any, Lynch would introduce. I would characterise this as a slow-burner and told from a single POV, June’s endless inner stream of questions definitely doesn’t help speed up the story. A predictable outcome with enough suspenseful elements and annoying characters to make it an enjoyable read. However, I think Lynch’s first thriller Somebody Out There was more my kind of book!

Thank you to NetGalley and Inkubator Books for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of The Perfect Home.

June lives in a lovely neighbourhood; good neighbours, quiet street, a house that she loves. That is, until Steve moves in with his broken down cars, loud music and barking, menacing dogs. Is this something June can sort out herself, or is there something more calculating going on?

I enjoyed this book, although I had more or less guessed what was going to happen around halfway through. I was hoping for a twist at the end that I didn’t see coming. However, a solid 3.5 stars rounded up.

The plot is not something I haven't seen before. It was done a hundred times and there is nothing really new that could make this different from the other books. Well, I liked to be in the main character's perspective but the outcome of the story is very predictable. I didn't have a hard time piecing the pieces of the puzzle together because I already figured out the story halfway through.

Still, it was an OK book. Would love to read another novel from this author.

Thanks to Inkubator Books for the ARC! Appreciate it.

Highly recommend!! This book is a definite page-turner! You'll be left thinking about the story long after you put the book down. First book to read by this author but definitely not my last!

The main character is definitely not June Cleaver but June Sweeney. Her attributes were few other than having a beautiful flower garden in her backyard. Her neighborhood appears normal and quiet. Her simple lifestyle includes heartache with a cheating husband …that is moving in with her best friend down the road. To add to her woe she has two arrogant, spoiled college age children that always manage to take dad's side.

I really, really wanted to like this book. It was clear from very early on who wanted June out of her home. I didn't really fall in love with any of the characters and just found myself being annoyed with them. What are you doing Cathy!? Overall, it was a slow read with a very obvious outcome. Thanks to #NetGalley and #Inkubatorbooks for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

June Sweeney divorced her husband, Nick, when she learned of his affair with her best friend. They are the parents of college age kids Cathy and Sam. Nick wants her to sell the house as he needs the money to get a place with his new girlfriend. But June refuses. She has a good job and works hard to keep the house going and taking care for Cathy and Sam.

When tending her garden, June notices a man move in down the street. His name is Steve and his works on cars in his driveway with music blasting. He also has two snarling pit bulls. He is divorced with two little girls and asks about Cathy babysitting for him. June is leery of him but lets Cathy decide and she goes for it.

Sam is hanging around with another family where the boys spend a lot of time smoking weed. June figures it’s what boys do and hopes it doesn’t interfere with his school.

Some people tried to get June and another neighbor to sell their homes so a college extension could be built in the area. They both refused. When another man starts harassing these two people to sell, things turn ugly and her neighbor ends up dead. What is going on? Who killed her friend and now she is being pushed to do the same. Will she be the next one killed?

I felt like rolling my eyes all the way through this book. Is this a typical family? Father is a loser and Cathy and Sam are brats. Who supports their kids and allows them this ridiculous “freedom?” Why are the police so lax in doing anything about the problems? I wanted to give all of them a swift kick. Totally dysfunctional family. Glad I don’t live near them. Give this book a miss.

Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

This novel is really predictable. June is a mother of two teenagers who lives with her. Despite the fact that she is divorced, he continues to pursue her. Now, a new neighbor has moved in across the street, and she has developed an obsession over him. Then horrible things start happening in the neighborhood, and June is convinced that it's the new bad kid in town who's behind it all.

There were parts that really kind of dragged on so it didn't really build as much suspense and fear as it could have. The characters were all somewhat annoying, either their personalities or lack of action. The end at least had a twist, but the twist made a couple of unlikely, too=pat conclusions.

Ok, this book literally highlighted my every fear.

How traumatizing would it be if you did not feel safe in your own home/neighborhood? What if you felt like you could not trust the people you should trust with your life, your family?

The Perfect Home, is an immense psychological thriller that will have you questioning pretty much everyone and everything . To say that I lived in a bubble of psychological fear throughout the entire book would be an understatement. I felt the paranoia that was taking place.

If you enjoy a suspenseful thriller that will keep you at the edge of your seat, The Perfect Home, is definitely for you. Kevin Lynch, knocked this one out of the park. You will not be disappointed .

I was sucked into this book right away. What happens when you don't feel safe in your neighborhood? In your own home? Yes, there are stereotypes represented in the story as "ruffians" move into a quiet neighborhood, but that is part of the point. The MC tries to be strong & brave while being psychologically manipulated, isolated emotionally from her family, and then paranoia starts setting in.

She is gaslighted from a handful different men including a rental manager who smooth talks just a little too well, the ex-convict who moves in a couple houses over and shows too much interest in her college-age daughter, and her ex-husband who abuses her mom guilt and uses their children to pressure her into getting what he wants.

I rooted for this character because under all the terror, manipulation, and isolation she knows something is wrong and she would do anything to protect her family, her neighborhood, and her livelihood. I enjoyed this book immensely and what I take away from it is, always trust your gut.

Good characters, predictable but didn't really hold my interest. Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book

I know that the phrases page turner, unputdownable are very overused but in relation to this book they just describe how I felt. Normally a Saturday lunchtime would find me having a glass of wine in the village but not this Saturday. I just couldn't leave the book.

I was really drawn into June's life? Her perfect home, her perfect neighbours and then, slowly, the evil creeps in and what should be your safe haven, your home turns into a place of shadows and terror as the tenticles of fear creep into every corner of your life.

I had to keep reading until I found out if evil triumphed or did the good guys win. And who were the good guys?

This is my first ever DNF. unfortunately I can’t keep focus. This book is dragging out and I keep having to go back pages to find out what I just read.