This book was getting a lot of buzz, so when I was offered a widget, I accepted. Domestic drama is always hit or miss for me, and unfortunately, this one was a miss.

Alexis and her husband Sam buy a neglected home in a pricey suburb. Sam is on track to make partner at his law firm, Alexis is pregnant with their second child, and they receive a warm welcome to the neighborhood from their neighbors Teddy and Blair. But when Blair is found murdered, Alexis does everything she can to comfort Blair. Is she comforting a grieving widow or someone else?

The minutiae in this book was excruciating, and I hated Sam's character. There was a lot of unnecessary bickering about the state of the house, the repairs that needed to be made, and Sam's barbs at his wife for choosing a less stressful firm to work at. He came across as cold and unsympathetic, and I hated the chapters that she was in. There was really nothing that set the female characters apart as they seemed stereotypes of any suburban housewife.

Even though this was a miss for me, many readers have enjoyed it, so check it out! Thank you to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the early copy. This title will publish June 20, 2023.

Whoa!! You just never really know who your neighbors are. Desperate Housewives is the perfect description for this debut domestic thriller by Melissa Adelman. What the Neighbors Saw was filled with twists, turns and plenty of neighborhood scandal. The surprise ending was just the icing on the cake. This was a very well written page turner that I will recommend to others. I can’t wait to see what else Melissa Adelman writes.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this ARC of What the Neighbors Saw.

A couple, Alexis and Sam, moves into an old house they can't really afford in a prestigious neighborhood, when one of their neighbors is murdered. Many shenanigans and questionable behaviour runs amok here.

This is most definitely a page turner, so it has that going for it. The nosiness of Alexis was truly appalling, as well as her timid yet poke-the-bear relationship with her husband Sam. Blair was quite the bitch, yet no one ever mentioned it. None of the new neighbors seemed to be friend worthy, including Alexis and Sam. Some of the plot was predictable, no massive surprises here, except for Blair's family. The ending, however, was quite satisfying, so thank you for that!

Thank you Netgalley.

Fern Michaels and Janelle Brown are two of my favorite authors. Their books are full of everyday, seemingly normal people but there is always a twist. A whodunit with a surprise ending. Melissa Adelman has joined the list of my favorites. What The Neighbors Saw is a wonderful, creepy, you didn't see that coming book! The story leads us into a world where everything seems perfect. Large houses, beautiful cars, wonderful marriages but looks are deceiving. Throw in a murder and suddenly the neighborhood is full of shadows. I loved the details and the character development that Adelman gives. I honestly thought I knew who the murderer was but as usual I was wrong! I look forward to reading many more books by Melissa Adelman. I voluntarily received a copy of this book from Netgalley.

Looking for a deliciously, scandalous domestic thriller? Look no further because this book will put your neighborhood gossip to shame. When we see a wealthy neighborhood we often think that these people have it all. But if you could look inside those houses you would realize that they are no different than anyone else. Alexis and Sam had finally moved up into the world of wealth they had always dreamed of when they moved into the prestigious River Forest subdivision. As they got to know their neighbors they realized the wealthy have their secrets too. These secrets were slowly revealed and lead to an explosive ending. I enjoyed this thriller from the first page to the last.

Told from the perspective of two neighbors. Alexis and her husband Sam who have just moved to the neighborhood with their small children. Blaire with her husband, Teddy, and their older children are established in the neighborhood and seem to be the perfect family.

The murder happens pretty early on in the book and you get to meet the other neighbors and peep in on their sordid histories.

Engaging story. There's a lot going on, but it's all easy to keep track of. Some great twists!

I enjoyed What the Neighbors Saw and it was a quick read.
I liked the interactions with the neighbors and there is just enough tension and mystery that it will keep you reading. Each household has their own story that intertwines with each other. This is definitely a new form of a Neighborhood watch and I would not want to be a part of it!!

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review! Alexis and her husband, Sam move into a house that's falling apart in a prestigious neighborhood. They got the house for a steal but it was still out of their price range. They think it will be a safe place to live with 2 small children but 6 months after they move in one of the neighbors is murdered. The premise for the book is great, but it just fell sort of flat for me. I did not like either of the main characters whose POV the book goes back and forth between. Alexis is whiny and so concerned about being judged but other neighbors but she is super judgemental. She's also nosey, but I'm not sure why the book is titled What the Neighbors Saw because when it comes to the murder that the story is centered around, no one saw anything.
Blaire (2nd POV) is one of the perfect rich ladies in the neighborhood but she's judgemental and fake (although she is nice to everyone's face to keep up appearances I guess?)
I feel like I got more information than was needed about most of the other neighbors, and that made the book really drag in the middle. However, I did not see the twist coming and I really enjoyed the last 15ish% of the book.

A young couple moves into an affluent neighborhood. and they search for their place in the existing dynamic. As their dream fix-er-up house is repaired, their relationship begins to show cracks. Although the neighbors are friendly, there are secrets behind every door. Even the closest friendships have layers of deceit. When one of the husbands is murdered, the rumors and suspicions run rampant. This is a great psychological thriller/mystery. I gotta say that I am actually partial to the to the guilty party - I loved that character (no spoilers). I loved the many layers to each character - a great read!

When Alexis and her husband Sam move into an exclusive neighborhood, they think they’ve hit the jackpot. Sure, the house needs a little work, but how often do houses in this neighborhood go up for sale? And at a price they can afford? (But just barely—-as Sam likes to remind Alexis).

But when their neighbor is brutally murdered in the picture perfect neighborhood, Alexis starts to have regrets about moving to the suburbs. Can she really trust any of these people? Is this all a facade?

This novel gave dark suburbia vibes and I loved it. Not only is this an amazing and twisty thriller, it also has amazing character development. Each neighbor has their demons, but our main characters really let theirs shine. You grow to love or hate each character with passion. I enjoyed reading every chapter of this book and it kept me on my toes at every page turn. I give this book a full, glowing 5 stars.

Special thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s publishing for an Advance Reader Copy in exchange for an honest review.

I did not really enjoy this book. I could not relate to any of the characters as they were all a bit flat and self absorbed. There were a few twists which kept me reading, but overall it was not very engaging. The build up toward the end was intriguing but I did not like the ending.

This was a pretty solid mystery...right until the end. I took a deep dive into the darkness behind the wealthy neighborhood façade and raced through the pages to try to figure out "Who Done It." Unfortunately, the "reveal" just felt rushed (but not implausible), which was somewhat disappointing. These characters are not likeable (they are actually pretty awful), but they completely worked for this type of book---developed enough to be believable, but scant enough to keep the reader from becoming emotionally invested. Overall, this was a fun quick read. Thank you to NetGalley and publishers for providing a digital ARC for review.

You have a loving husband, a child with another on the way, and you have just bought your dream house in a perfect neighborhood. Could it get any better? Not really. The house is a money pit, a neighbor is murdered, the neighbors are strange and your marriage is is taking a hit from it all. It was an interesting story with a strange twist at the end. Alexis is a little much. Kind of caught up in her entitlement. But then all the neighbours are.
Thank you, NetGalley. Another good ARC suggestion.

Domestic thriller at its finest. Sam and Alexis have all sorts of problems in their new house. Rot, mice, nasty neighbours, abuse, infidelity, murder. This was an edge of your seat thriller with an ending that packs a punch. My favourite combo in a thriller, an ending you done see coming. Must read for thriller fans. Book releases June 20/23

Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for the arc of this book.

Alexis and Sam jump at the opportunity to buy the worst house on the block in an exclusive DC suburb. Alexis is pregnant with their second child and the list of projects that need to be done soon overwhelms her. When a neighbor is found murdered in their perfect neighborhood, Alexis wonders if she made a really bad decision buying this house. Sam is consumed with work and Alexis spends any free time trying to uncover the neighbors secrets and find out who murdered Teddy. Will the police figure out whodunnit first or will Alexis?
This store exposed a lot of things that go on behind closed doors in this affluent neighborhood. Not really a spoiler, but the wealthy are just as messed up as regular people! I had my guess, guesses and more guesses and just couldn’t quite figure out how my favorite theory could work. The ending at first underwhelmed me,but there was still more “what”moments to come.
I was truly surprised by the final twist. I really liked Alexis and as for Sam, he was not my favorite character at all. Selfish and self-centered describes him well.
A real page turner they kept my little gray cells working overtime.

There was wayyyyyy too much going on in this book. I couldn’t keep everything straight. It has good bones, but there’s too much in between. And the ending fell super flat. I actually gave this 2.5 stars but upped to 3, which is generous in my opinion.

I received this ARC from NetGalley for an honest review . This plot seems like it’s an ongoing soap opera. Alexis and Sam go over their heads to buy a broken down estate in a very exclusive neighborhood in DC. The neighbors all have deep, dark secrets and many infidelities occur frequently. When Teddy is murdered while jogging on the trail in the neighborhood, the police are having a hard time finding the murderer. The couples in many of the homes are described to the point of confusion . It was hard trying to remember who was sleeping with whom! The book seemed to drag on until the very end when the murderer is revealed .

What the Neighbors Saw
A Novel
by Melissa Adelman
What a very crazy, wealthy world they live in.Not great character development; lacks a satisfying ending. It just never really took off . Very slow, and at the end, after a very long, drawn out I find it just crazy how everyone in this street was insane.

Thanks to NetGalley for a honest review. Very entertaining story with surprise turns. Thank Desperate Housewifes.

For her debut novel, author Melissa Adelman has given us “What the Neighbors Saw,” a domestic mystery set in an upscale bedroom community just outside Washington, D.C. Readers looking for a story filled with admirably diabolical characters—not to mention some completely unadmirable ones—should have fun with this.

Alexis, her husband Sam, and their two toddlers have just moved into what they hope will be their “forever home,” a large Cape Cod amidst safe streets and other affluent homes overlooking the Potomac. The house is a fixer-upper and a financial stretch, both in terms of its purchase price and some nasty home-repair surprises. But Sam hopes to make partner at his law firm soon, so all should be well.

And then they meet their neighbors. Affluent those neighbors may be, but they’re not particularly welcoming. Yes, they bring housewarming plants and baskets of muffins. But still, they seem standoffish. Alex wonders: Is it me? Is it my dark skin, or that I still have pregnancy pounds to lose and no chic clothes to wear, or that my home isn't as nice as everyone else's, or that, even though I graduated from Yale, my background is working class? Is it because my husband is white? Or is there something else going on in this neighborhood filled with American success stories?

And then next-door-neighbor Ted, the nicest of all of them, is found murdered in the river. ‘Who did it?” and “Why?” are the questions that drive the rest of the plot. I found the answers—revealed towards the end—surprising. As is the relationship that develops between Alexis and Blair, Ted’s widow. Indeed, this story is as much Blair’s as it is Alexis’s. Each chapter is told from either Alex’s or Blair’s point of view.

Ms. Adelman is an excellent writer. Her prose and dialogue are straightforward and a pleasure to read. She has created two complex female characters in Alexis and Blair. Through them, and some unlikable male characters, she explores various modern-day issues including racism, sexism, spousal abuse, income disparity, class division, the pressures attending marriage and parenting, and the never-ending struggle to find a balance between work and family life. That’s not to say that “What the Neighbors Saw” is an issue-driven novel or that Ms. Adelman is grinding a particular axe. What she has given us is a solid entertainment that portrays current-day situations many readers may recognize and even identify with.

Readers should be aware that this is not a fast-paced novel. It includes digressions into backstory and characters’ thoughts, emotions, and motivations. Nevertheless, they all serve the plot and help to pull everything together and make sense at the end.

My thanks to NetGalley, publisher St. Martin’s Press, and author Melissa Adelman for providing me with an electronic ARC. The foregoing is my independent opinion.