Gilly Macmillan is an author I love to read and her Manor House is another win!

First sentence: I'm so lucky, Nicole tells herself.

Nicole and Tom Booth have just received a windfall. After winning the lottery, they create their dream home made of glass and call it the Barn. It seems like a dream come true until Nicole finds Tom face down in their pool and everything starts to unravel.

Gilly MacMillan has crafted a twisty, well-plotted, multiview point mystery. It reminded me of the book, "And Then There Were None." Her Manor has suspicious characters, hidden passageways, twists, turns, redherrings and a wonderful subplot of the unreliability of smart home technology.

Look for gaslighting, manipulation and webs upon webs of deception. There were so many plot twists, I didnt see them all and was indeed shocked at the ending. This is a book for all who love a good mystery.

Many thanks to NetGalley,and William Morrow for keeping us invested in who killed Tom!

Tom and Nicole have been together since grade school, they’re happily married and living in a small cottage when Nicole joyously shares with Tom that she won the lottery!
Now they’re living in a brand new, extravagant, technologically enabled Glass Barn on a beautiful slice of land that they bought from their neighbors at The Manor House.

When Nicole arrives home one afternoon, she finds Tom floating face down in the pool and she’s terrified! She takes off running towards her neighbors at the Manor House where she breaks down and tells them the horrifying news of her husband’s demise. Sasha and Olly run down to the Glass Barn while Kitty, the housekeeper, stays to console Nicole.

Who killed Tom? Why would anyone harm him, and what were their intentions after Tom was out of the way? Is Nicole in danger too?!

This was a well constructed thriller littered with characters that were sketchy AF. I loved that the book was narrated through the eyes of Nicole, Sasha, Olly, Kitty, police investigators, and Tom on the day of his death. This was a great whodunit mystery that kept me guessing until the very end.

I really enjoyed this book! It was kind of all over the place but it was easy to follow. There are 8 different characters who narrate, so it switches often, but they are all main characters. Gilly Macmillan did a great job twisting and turning the story and closing all the loop holes. It left me guessing throughout the whole story and there are more murderers in the book than I would have ever guessed.

3.5 stars
My first book by Gilly Macmillan and it was a very interesting read. I will say that it was a slow start and kind of confusing at first, but the pace of the book catches up through the middle to the end of the book. There are twists and turns that you hooked and guessing what happens next. If you won the lottery, what would you buy?

Thank you NetGalley and William Morrow for this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for this opportunity to read this intriguing book. From start to finish I was anxious to get to the end and see how the 2 stories come together with a satisfying conclusion. The characters were all flawed and very well written. The chapters were short and most ended on a cliffhanger. There were no time jumps and the story flowed very well. It's a story that starts out with a death and a mystery as to accidental or murder. There's manipulation, blackmail, mind control, gaslighting and murder. All together it's a compelling story and well worth the time to read it. I really enjoyed it and highly recommend it.

Synopsis: Tom and Nicole are a normal, happy couple - until they win the lottery and build their dream home in the countryside. What starts as a dream turns into a nightmare when Nicole comes home to find Tom dead. Was his death an accident, or has their newfound wealth made him a target?

Thoughts: This book started off slow, but with a strong concept and great atmospheric setting, I had high expectations. While I was surprised by some of the twists, some felt a little too far beyond believability for me and it fell a bit flat. That being said, I did not dislike it and would recommend reading it if any of the tropes listed below pique your interest!

Read this if you like:
⛲️ murder mysteries
⛲️ psychological thrillers
⛲️ unreliable narrators
⛲️ multiple pov
⛲️ diary entries

I loved this! It was very fast paced. It's about a couple who win the lottery and build their dream home. I loved the characters. I loved the way it went back and forth between the characters different story lines'. This book is chock full of twists and turns. This has murders, lies, deceit, betrayal, you name it this book has it. This book had me confused and guessing at who the killer was. Detective Howell was my favorite.

Slow burn of a twisty mystery. Lottery winners in a new fancy house - what could go wrong? It was a bit hard to get into this book as I didn't feel compelled to learn more about the characters. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC. #sponsored

If you're on the hunt for a thriller that will leave you guessing until the end, I recommend checking out The Manor House. I also loved the atmospheric setting for this novel, mixing both old gothic architecture and a house on the same property with a new, futuristic design. Both houses are central locations to the story.

With each chapter, I found the story added another layer I didn't expect coming. I thought of this one like an onion, peeling back to discover the next complex section. The second half of the book takes off like a rocket, and I could not put it down. The ending was fantastic, and I definitely did not see it coming.

Definitely check this one out. It's a good one.
Thank you, William Morrow and NetGalley for the eARC!

The Manor House was quite the ride! Like all Gilly Macmillan’s novels I was absorbed into the story immediately. There was many twists and turns and I found the setting to really add to the atmosphere and build up. It read or played like a movie in my head it wasn’t like I was reading at all. I have always enjoyed Gilly’s book and I was very excited to be asked to read this as an early release. It was the perfect mystery to curl up with my two Great Dane “nurses” as I healed from surgery.

I would like to give a big thank you to, Gilly Macmillan, NetGalley and Killer Crime Club and Kristina Jagger for the opportunity to read this advanced readers copy.

My reviews can be found on:
Goodreads: Nikki- Hedwig’s and Hopes
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hedwigsandhopes/

Thank you so much to William Morrow for this digital ARC! I wanted to finish it before it published last Tuesday, but life happened! It was definitely not because the story was lacking!! I really enjoyed this one, it sounded so interesting to me. Domestic thrillers are one of my go tos when I’m looking for something that will draw me in and keep me engrossed in the story. This one definitely succeeded in that! From the beginning to the shocking end and all the in between! There were some moments that were truly jaw dropping and I never could have predicted a lot of the twists! I thoroughly enjoyed the way it is written with varying viewpoints, along with journal entries from the past. Highly recommend this one for any thriller lover!

When Nicole and her husband, Tom, win a large sum of money in the lottery, they go from have nots to have a lots! Is that even a thing?? 🥴 They decide to be smart about their money and not be one of those couples that blows all their money and end up broke. Building the Glass Barn with top notch technology and security is one of their few indulgences. When Nicole comes home one evening to find Tom floating facedown in the pool she runs to her neighbors at The Manor House for help. Olly and Sasha jump into action along with their housekeeper Kitty, who sits with Nicole until the detectives come. Detectives Hal and Jen are determined to figure out if Tom’s death is accidental or a homicide. Their job is made incredibly difficult as everybody involved is hiding something and telling lies to cover themselves. As all their lives become intertwined and secrets are revealed, you are kept guessing until the end!

🤯 Holy moly, the twists in this book were spectacular!

Nicole & Tom win the lottery and build their dream home, the Glass Barn, on the picturesque grounds of the Lancaut Manor. Unfortunately, one day Nicole finds Tom dead in the swimming pool. Was his death an unfortunate accident or was he murdered?!

This book published this week and I highly recommend it if you enjoy British psychological thrillers.

Thank you @williammorrowbooks for allowing me to read this book ahead of publication in exchange for my honest review.

(This review was posted on the the Barnes & Nobles website)

This author is growing on me. Her books usually begin slower than I'd like but keep reading! She comes up with some top-notch, gripping stories and interesting characters. Nicola and Tom are childhood sweethearts. They grow up, get married and win a huge lottery and buy a gorgeous home with all the trappings. The home is built on a nature preserve. Nicola comes home to a dead Tom. What happened? Is it her? The weird neighbors? What follows is a dual-timeline story with numerous twists and turns. Great setting, I understand Lancaut Nature Preserve is a real place and this story made me want to add it to my ever-growing Bucket List. Look forward to more from this author!

Thank to #NetGalley, Gilly Macmillan and William Morrow for this ARC! All opinions are my own.

The Manor House is not at all what it seems initially. Gilly Macmillan creates a novel, which begins with a murder and then wraps around a group of characters, who are not what they seem. At the center is an elaborate con created by a dangerous and experienced con artist. The plot is masterfully created. There are many levels of complexity and what seems straight forward is anything but a simplistic story. As readers read the narrative, bits and pieces begin to unfold, but then suddenly, readers discover what they did not see coming, and The Manor House becomes a compelling read that is difficult to put down..

I am not going to offer up spoilers. The series of mysteries here are too delicious to reveal. Readers need to take apart the multiple layers of plot. No character is what he or she seems. There are places where the story is heartbreaking, but also places when a plot detail makes readers wonder if that is how she or he might behave. I enjoyed this novel. Don't give up if at the beginning a digression seems to have no purpose. Every sentence has a purpose. The ending is masterful and exquisitely clever. I laughed, which I believe was what Macmillan hoped for her readers.

Thank you to the author and to HarperCollins for providing this ARC for me to read and review. The comments above are exactly my opinion.

WOW this was a twist filled domestic thriller. The book is an easy and gripping read, with each chapter told from the perspective of a different character. The characters are well-developed, and the story is well-described, making it easy to picture the modern glass house. The mystery part was definitely creepy. I really enjoyed this book and I can't wait to read more of her book. I would recommend this book.


Thank you NetGalley and William Morrow for allowing me to read this ARC in advance for my honest opinion.

When newlywed Nicole returns home to find her husband, Tom floating face down in their swimming pool, she is devastated by what she believes to be an accident. Tom and Nicole are recent lottery winners and have built a high tech home near the Manor House where Olly and Sasha live with their housekeeper, Kitty. Once the police determine that Tom’s death was no accident, other characters become involved and suspects and motives are explored but almost no one is who they say they are and the truth is obscure. Nicole and other characters are in danger as detectives Hal and Jen race to follow leads and learn interesting facts about each character’s background.
I found this thriller to be just the perfect mix of character development, surprises and great storyline. There weren’t too many characters so they were easy to keep track of and I enjoyed the ways their background stories were revealed. The detectives were presented as very human and made mistakes but were thorough in their investigations and were very likable. There was also just the right amount of drama and some heart pounding scenes in which characters came close to danger. This is a thriller that is hard to put down and had me guessing until the end. I enjoyed it overall but wished for more explanation around certain aspects that seemed to play important parts in the story, such as why Nicole’s high tech home had “glitches”. This was mentioned frequently and seemed important at times but got lost in the storyline.
#NetGalley #WilliamMorrow

Unfortunately this book was not for me and I ended up DNF-ing around 65% I still want to thank William Morrow because I’ve been a Gilly MacMillan fan in the past and still am.

The book opens with Nicole’s husband Tom found dead in the pool. The two have newly come into money after winning the lottery. Their neighbors, Sasha and Olly seem to be up to no good.

The book is well written, I have no complaints with that at all, I just could not get into the story to save my life. There is not enough character development, and it feels like we are supposed to know what these characters are up to and all about without actually knowing them.

The book flips between present time and a diary kept by the owner of the house Sasha and Olly are living in rent free. It’s clear that they took advantage of that situation.

Overall, my biggest issue is that I couldn’t connect with the characters, I was bored, and I just couldn’t get into it.

I think that fans of slow burn thrillers and mysteries will really enjoy this one, and I don’t want to discourage anyone from giving it a chance.

Nicole and Tom are just making ends meet, until they win the lottery. They build a beautiful home on the grounds of Lancaut Manor. They are enjoying the finer things and getting use to their new status when tragedy strikes. Tom is found dead in the pool. Nicole is heartbroken and lost without him. She has nice neighbors who are happy to help her sort things out, or so she thinks.

This story is crazy; full of manipulation, jealousy, deceit, lies and murder. No one is what they seem, trust no one. Ms. Macmillan does a wonderful job of leading us down different paths at the same time. Just when you think you know where this is going, plot twist. And then a few more to keep you turning the page. Enjoyable read but towards the end I was ready for it to conclude. Characters are so realistic, some you just hate, some you’ll feel sorry for and others will totally surprise you. Told from many points of view but very easy to follow. Shorter chapters add to the suspense and keep the story flowing.

Thanks to William Morrow and NetGalley for this ARC. This is my honest opinion.

Oh my goodness! Gilly Macmillan is one of my favorite authors, and The Manor House did not disappoint! I love how developed her characters were, from Olly and Sasha, to Nicole and Tom, to Anna and Kitty, to the two detectives, and Patrick and the vagabond. With a huge cast of characters, it would be easy to lose track of the story, but each chapter is from a different perspective. I really appreciated how the day of Tom's death was seamlessly woven in detail by detail to create a suspenseful whodunit mystery. The only part I didn't love was the secret from Nicole's past - I almost wish that had been left out as I think the ending would have been even more satisfying. There definitely were a few loose ends that could have been tied up, but overall, I loved this book!

Nicole and Tom Booth have literally hit the jackpot when they win the lottery. Nicole carefully manages their winnings, but the couple does build a custom house located on a peninsula between England and Wales. The neighborhood is upscale, and their glass home is next door to the Manor House that Nicole knows from her childhood. All their money can’t keep tragedy from striking, though, and one day, Nicole finds Tom dead in their swimming pool. She turns to her neighbors at the Manor House, Sasha and Olly, and their housekeeper, as well as an old friend of Tom’s. However, it seems like several people are keeping secrets, which could put Nicole in danger.

I love the premise of this book. The first few chapters start slowly but set up a tense, foreboding atmosphere. The story is told from multiple points of view, mixed in with journal entries from five years in the past from a woman with an unknown tie to the current events. Everything eventually all comes together, but as you’re reading the book, the journal entries interrupt the flow of the narrative about events going on in the present. Things continue to slowly build, but then things pick up when several plot twists occur. The author does a great job in creating characters so vivid that I had a strong, negative reaction to a few of them. This shows how skilled the author is. However, I still found some parts of the story hard to get through because the actions of a couple different characters are so appalling. The ending is surprising and satisfying in this imaginative thriller.

~ Christine