The Wife Next Door by Rona Halsall
What brilliant writing! I mean … what could go wrong when a divorced couple decide to live next door to each other with their new partners? HA! Ummmm, everything! There was suspense, drama, intrigue, terror, and tons of psychological warfare. The plot was fantastic, and kept me engage throughout the entirety of the book. It was very well written, and just flowed. This is a must read for anyone who enjoys a good thriller. Certainly recommended!
Many thanks to Rona Halsall, NetGalley, and Bookouture for the advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

✨I flew through this book because I could not, for the life of me, work out what the the hell was going on. I accused everyone but the actual perpetrator🤦🏼‍♀️.

✨I didn’t really like any of the main characters until towards the end. I felt incredibly sorry for one of them and they didn’t deserve anything that happened throughout.

✨Rona does a brilliant job of making you think you’ve worked it all out when in-fact you’re no where near. I was shocked at the reveal!

✨I only gave 3.5 stars as once all was revealed it just kind of ended. Nothing else exciting happened. It just wrapped up quickly and was over.

✨Overall a good storyline with a decent twist but not one I will remember.

Really? An ex wife and her boyfriend living next door to her ex husband and his new girlfriend, add in three children and that is nightmare time! No, we add in gaslighting into the mix, where Jess has unexplained things happening to her, her boyfriend Ben, is a sketchy character, having had an affair with Carol, Rob's new girlfriend. Whew! I am sorry, but the entire scenario is ludicrous, Jess doubts herself, and comes across as a wimp, Ben is a playboy, Carol is hiding something, and Rob spends all of his time working. I liked Jess's mom! It is mostly soap opera, too much for me, you know that she is in trouble, and you want to say, "How stupid can you be?" I would recommend only if you don't have anything else. Sorry, but I can't get back the time spent on this book.
Thank you,
carolintallahassee

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I am mixed about this book. It was fast paced but also dragged a bit. I kept thinking how many obvious things keep happening and no one else notices. Since it was so fast it missed character development and I figured the twist out from the get go. It took away from the reading experience since I assumed correctly what was to happen.

Thank you to Bookouture, NetGalley for the ARC!

Fast paced and hard to put down, I read it in a day! Lots of twists and turns and there was enough substance to each character that all of them had reason to be bad! Ending was a bit abrupt but I think I liked that rather than being drawn out forever. Would definitely recommend and many thanks to Netgalley for an advanced copy x

Ver y good read with a gripping storyline. I was kept guessing as to who the person is who is threatening the protagonist. Very well written in a way to keep the reader engaged throughout. One thing though I felt the ending was abrupt and could have had a but more drama.

As a newbie to thrillers, I have found it can be hard to get into the story while the plot sets itself up. This book started slow but once things got weird for Jess, a newly divorced mom moving next door to her ex husband and his new fiancé, I was HOOKED.

I read this book in one day and just kept reading throughout cooking, nursing the baby, etc. I couldn’t stop reading and needed to know what happened next.

The plot kept twisting and turning but ultimately, I never suspected the ending and I LOVED that about this book! Thrillers where I can’t predict the ending are quite literally thrilling to me.

The Wife Next Door was very good and definitely on my list to buy when it gets published in October!

This was hard to put down, didn't want to stop before I found out what in the world was happening to Jess. After moving, with her future husband, into the house next door to her soon-to-be ex-husband and his fiancee, Jess begins to wonder who is messing with her. Things are being moved or disappearing. Can it be that Carol is jealous and really didn't want to move in next door to her? What about Ben's teen-aged daughter, Ruby--could she be playing tricks on her future stepmother? She is confused, but so is the reader--which makes this a compelling thriller for sure.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this advance copy.

I was drawn to read this because of the interesting synopsis. Also I've read a few books by Rona Halsall and haven't been disappointed yet.

Essentially we have a blended family who decide to live literally next door to each other. They even take the garden fence down so there are no boundaries at all. What could possibly go wrong? Certainly sounds like a nightmare to me but it's definitely the perfect setting for a tense, domestic thriller.

This was a fast paced and riveting read. There are lots of red herrings and twists to keep me guessing. And it's one of those books where everyone is a suspect.

I would definitely recommend this for domestic/ psychological thriller fans

Oh my goodness what a rollercoaster ride of a book. I was literally reading under the bedcovers ! What could go wrong when a couple decide to live next door to each other with their new partners ?-in this case ,everything! A masterclass in suspense,drama, intrigue,terror and psychological warfare. It was totally nailbiting and had so many red herrings that when the final denouement came I wasn't prepared. Brilliant storytelling,great characters and first class writing.

Rona Halsall does it again in what may be my new favourite book from her. When Jess comes to a realization that her marriage is over she thinks long and hard how best to have an amicable split. Her ex took the news really well and has a new partner which bodes well for Jess as she does as well. Jess splits custody of their son Toby, and the new partners have a child as well. Jess believes she has found the perfect solution to keep the families intact and happy. Living next door to each other! What could possibly go wrong?

Ms Halsall got me! That’s all I can say without giving anything away. I really can’t say anything more. But, wow. Well done!

A new approach to blended family life with two families moving into semi's next door to each other. Then things start to go wrong. The plot twists and turns and you try to work out who is the protagonist. Good suspenseful plot kept my interest!

I would give this book more than 5 stars if possible! This book was one of the best I have read this year! I literally could not put it down. Run do not walk to get this book!

I love Rona’s books and this was no exception . I raced through it , plenty of suspense and intrigue to keep me guessing .
Jess and Rob are having the perfect divorce , still friends they have the absurd idea of buying houses next door to each other , soon Jess is receiving threatening letters , things start going drastically wrong for her in all aspects of her life . It’s a great read and a definite 5 stars from me

The Wife Next Door is a whirlwind of a read! It's almost got it all - insane plot, great tension and atmosphere from the start, lots of twists and turns and plenty of red herrings to keep you guessing and turning pages.

And I was totally hooked by it from the first. The short chapters allow a strong pace which gains momentum throughout, so it's a quick and easy read - helped along by the author's writing, which has a style that made me feel completely intrigued from the get go.

Unfortunately, while I absolutely loved it, I didn't really feel very much for the characters in terms of particularly caring about what happened to any of them. Aside from me thinking that they were all bats***t crazy for thinking the idea of blending two families with exes and children and no boundaries would actually work, and quite often finding myself wanting to slap the majority of them (not the kids, well, maybe the teenager) round the chops with a wet fish - I didn't really like, or dislike them enough to be invested because I didn't know enough about them.

That being said, this is what it proclaims to be - a domestic thriller with mystery, drama and a fair bit of bonkers thrown into the mix - and it does it's job well. It entertains, it keeps up the tension, and it has an ending that is satisfying (although, I felt it was quite rushed.)

Yes, there are plot holes, and unrealistic scenarios and plenty of tropes that come along with this genre - but that's why we read them isn't it?! It is for me anyway, and as long as you can get past that, which I did, The Wife Next Door is a fab read-in-one-sitting thriller that is very satisfying.

Possible trigger warnings for child abuse/drugging (not at all graphic and not sexual)

The Wife Next Door publishes on 12th October 2022 and I'm positive it will be enjoyed by many. I'll certainly be looking out for Rona Halsall on my author list in the future.

Star Rating: 3.5

CAWPILE Rating: 7.43/10

Characters: 7/10
Atmosphere: 8/10
Writing: 8/10
Plot: 7/10
Intrigue: 8/10
Logic: 6/10
Enjoyment: 8/10

Many thanks to the author, Bookouture and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I have mixed feelings about this book. It was a quick read and moved at a fast pace, but I felt that once again, the female character was just dumb. Real women would not act like that! For that reason, I again subtract stars.

I also felt that the plot was super obvious. It takes away from the reading experience when you figure it out before you even know what has happened!

This review was also posted on Goodreads.

Jess and Rob aren’t your typical divorcing couple. Their split was a mutual decision, and both moved on to new relationships. Hoping to make these big changes a little easier for their son to adapt to, they decided—along with new partners Ben and Carol and their respective children—to buy a pair of houses and live next door to one another. Everything seems perfect, until Jess receives an ominous message. When unsettling things begin to happen, Jess feels targeted… but by whom, and why?

This was almost a five star, highly recommended read for me. (More on that later.) The beginning of the story perfectly captures how optimistic Jess feels about the future, and what she hopes life will be like now that they’ve successfully embarked on blending their three families. Her inner dialogue about this is self-congratulatory and somewhat smug at times, but (thankfully) it was a tiny segment of the opening chapter and ended before Jess came off as an unlikable character.

The feel-good part of the story didn’t last much longer. Hours after they move in, Jess received a threatening message in a card (which mysteriously disappeared before she could show it to Ben), and she was hurt when she discovered Ben, Rob, and Carol decided (without her input) to take down the fence between the two houses. Things continued to go downhill from there, and Jess became increasingly suspicious of everyone around her.

This was my favorite part of the book—all those little things that seemed to have reasonable explanations kept happening, and I was heavily invested in trying to figure out who did it. I’d go back and reread the chapter (more than once, at times) to try to pinpoint who had the opportunity, and who was most likely to have been the culprit based on previous conversations and interactions with Jess. The closer I got to the end, the more invested I was, and when the Big Reveal came I was stunned—I’d considered every angle (I thought), but that one never occurred to me. The immediate aftermath of the Big Reveal was every bit as satisfying, especially one well-deserved moment of comeuppance for the culprit!

If the book had ended shortly after these events took place, I’d have given it 5 stars and tagged it as highly recommended… but it didn’t. The final chapter shifts perspective, with the Villain briefly taking over the narrative, and all the unanswered questions are given answers. Now, ordinarily, this is exactly the kind of thing I want to happen. Knowing who did it isn’t enough; I want to know why, as well.

Unfortunately, even though the answers were satisfying, the situation that led to them fell completely flat for me.

The setup felt contrived right from the start. All the mental gymnastics I’d gone through earlier trying to figure out the culprit’s identity were no longer necessary. I knew what was going on the instant the setup was introduced. All the mystery, nuance, and clever distractions that were such a treat for 99% of the book were suddenly, inexplicably gone. I was horribly disappointed. If I’d had a physical copy of the book in my hand, rather than my tablet, I’d have chucked it across the room in disgust. I had to content myself with raving to an empty room about convenient plot points and characters doing stupid things that didn’t make a lick of sense.

Given this strong reaction, and despite how much I loved the rest of the book, a three star rating is all I can give.

That said, I have a feeling most people will strongly disagree with my thoughts about the final chapter. Please bear that in mind if you’re considering reading this book. I loved 99% of it, so my dislike of the final 1% shouldn’t be given any undue emphasis.

I received an advance reading copy of this book courtesy of Bookouture via Netgalley.

I love Rona’s novels and this one is no exception. Another great read, believable characters and a great plot with enough twists to keep you guessing!

Again, maybe I just need a break from this genre for a bit because this was another just okay read for me. I did enjoy it and never lost interest but it was just an average read. I think what alot of it was, was the dialogue. It was bit ridiculous. Someone gets stabbed and the other person says, "hmmm, now why would this person do this? Let's go talk the them". That's not a direct quote but just an example of how it seemed to me. Along with the amount of times someone says "hmmm" out loud. I know it's not real life, but I with dialogue, I want to feel like it's how people actually speak. Again, maybe it's just me. I'm not trying to be malicious and I could never make the accomplishment of writing a book, but I just didn't care for this one too much. I'm giving this two and a half stars rounded up because it still held my interest as well as the mystery. Three Stars.

Thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture for this ARC.

This was such a gripping psychological thriller that I have read that put me at the edge of my seat!

Jess and Rob are divorced but are seeing different partners--Rob is seeing Carol, a single mother to a boy named Mo and Jess is seeing a man named Ben who has a teenage daughter named Ruby. They decided to move to next to each other--their houses right next to each other. Everything seems to go smoothly until Jess finds a threatening note. Soon, things start to escalate and someone clearly is not happy with the arrangement.

From start to finish, it was really engrossing. I like how the climax starts building towards the middle of the book, when Jess's son Toby shows signs of bruises, prompting the social services to take Toby away. Jess seems to suspect everyone and her relationship with Carol turns sour. I do like the bit of family drama that is in the story coupled with the twisted thriller in the book. The story itself was quite unputdownable and fast paced. The ending was unexpected and I do like the sort of cliff-hanger in the end, wondering if there might be a part two or not and what is going to happen next! Overall, I actually enjoyed reading this fast-paced thriller and would recommend if you like a thriller with bit of a family drama in in it. Worth 4.5 stars!

Many thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for the ARC. The review is based on my honest opinion only.