God, I love an isolated thriller so much! They bring me so much joy. This was a fabulous read with many twists and turn. I really thought I knew who was behind it all and I was not correct which makes for a good book. Singh writes an atmospheric thriller that really pulls in the reader. I felt like I was in the burned wing of the estate while reading. I will be checking out more of her books now!

There Should Have Been Eight is a slow-burn atmospheric psychological thriller that took me on a wild ride in the book's second half. I've not recovered yet from all the twists and turns. However, I have managed to pick my jaw up off the floor.

The first half was difficult for me. I loved the gothic-like atmosphere of the old house full of hidden rooms and passages, but the slow pace almost had me giving up. Then I reached the halfway point, and things picked up so rapidly that there was no looking back. I love a wild ride, and this story did deliver that. I mostly predicted the ending, minus some details, which disappointed me. Still, more twists and turns came, and I quickly forgot about that disappointment.

Of course, the less I say, the better for your reading enjoyment, so I will stop here. I will end with the fact that even though I struggled with the slow pace of the book's first half, the book's second half was everything I could have wanted and more.

A new to me author but will be seeking more of their books.
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This thriller starts off slow laying the groundwork. A group of friends, minus one they lost tragically, get together for a reunion at an isolated location. A storm is rolling in. Strange things start to happen, including the appearance of a creepy doll!
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The tension builds. They all suspect each other. But no one can figure out what’s going on. You feel the creepiness in the old mansion. Great twists! Kept me guessing until the reveal!
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Thanks to NetGalley and Berkley pub for an ARC in exchange for my honest review!

4.5⭐️ Seven friends reunite at a family estate to remember the one who is no longer with them. As a blizzard isolates them from the rest of the world, these friends are forced to confront the secrets of the past.

I am leaving the synopsis short and sweet because There Should Have Been Eight is the type of book that you really want to go into blind. This insanely atmospheric story took me by surprise in the best way. I was captivated from start to finish, not just with the story itself, but with every single one of the unique and very flawed characters, each carrying a multitude of secrets. It was as though Singh was slowly peeling back the layers of this story, giving us just what we needed to know at any given time, and no more. If you are a lover of locked room mysteries, add this one to your radar.

ʀ ᴇ ᴀ ᴅ ɪ ғ ʏ ᴏ ᴜ ʟ ɪ ᴋ ᴇ :
•locked room mystery
•secluded estate
•set in the alps of New Zealand
•single POV with ensemble cast
•atmospheric suspense
•Lucy Foley and Ruth Ware

Thank you Berkley Pub for my gifted copy in exchange for my honest review.

If I would only use one word to describe this book it would be atmospheric. While I haven’t read any of the author’s romance or fantasy books, I love her slow burn thrillers. She really knows how to set the mood. An isolated house. And of course a storm. A group of close friends, well they used to be close, but they don’t see each other anymore. And not that we need anymore mood, but the MC is losing her eyesight, so I was never sure how reliable she could be.

There was the mystery that went along with the shady things happening at the house, but there was also a mystery surrounding what happened to one of the group. I felt the cold, I felt the MC’s isolation between her being single and the other couples and the eyesight.

I kept getting and then there were none feels which started with the name but also the vibe of the book. I could not figure out where this one would end and all my guesses were not correct.

This definitely needs to be on your radar if you are a fan of slow burn atmospheric suspense novels with deep characterizations.

A pretty good read if not a bit longer than I would have liked. I like this new look on this author. She is making her way into thriller/suspense genre and I'm not mad at it.

Overall, There Should Have Eight was an entertaining read and I look forward to seeing how far this author ventures in the genre.

This was a great read and I really liked the uniqueness of the main character, Luna, who had no partner and axes to bury, but who was also losing her sight. I kept wondering if it was a metaphor (along with her name) while I was reading.

If you like psychological suspense with a slight paranormal twist, don't miss this one!

Thank you for my e-copy!
(full post on my blog)

As a devoted fan of Author Nalini Singh's Guild Hunter series, I couldn't wait to crack open her first offering in the suspense thriller genre. THERE SHOULD HAVE BEEN EIGHT is an intense, locked room style mystery set in a partially burned-out gothic mansion in New Zealand during a storm that strands the cast with no contact with the outside world for the duration. We're talking secret panels and tunnels, mysterious attacks, people who disappear, murder. Are you spooked yet?

Nine years ago, a tight group of eight teenagers were the best of friends until Bea, the girl everyone loved, died, and the group drifted apart. Bea's sister, Darcie, organizes a reunion of the seven remaining now adults in her family's old, isolated mansion - an opportunity for the group to catch up with each other and reminisce about Bea and the good old days. Luna, our narrator, is a photographer who's just received devastating news that she has a genetic disease that will steal her eyesight over time, a diagnosis she chooses not to share with the others - a decision that elevates the tension and drama to come as readers soon learn. It's through her eyes and camera lens that readers learn about each of the other individuals in attendance along with their sordid affairs and dark secrets. Luna hopes to gain answers to troubling questions surrounding Bea's death as well as the shocking decision by Darcie to have her sister cremated before any of her friends could say goodbye. There's a lot of resentment, frustration and rage festering between members of the group, and it's soon painfully clear someone is seeking revenge. When a fall down the stairs results in one dead from a broken neck and a blizzard cuts off communication with the outside world, it becomes a game of survival. One of them is a murderer . . . who is it?

THERE SHOULD HAVE BEEN EIGHT is a chilling, highly atmospheric gothic suspense thriller that keeps readers on the edge of their seats as they're charged with sifting through the multitude of secrets, lies and strange happenings to unmask a murderer. Singh excels at building intriguing, beautiful yet deadly worlds that take on the role of another character as is evident in the setting of this story. While some may feel the pace moves a bit slow in the beginning, I appreciate the author's diligence while introducing each player and setting the scene, affording readers a good feel for each character and their stake in the deadly game playing out. Readers will find it nigh on impossible to put this book down as the pace and tension increase dramatically as members go missing or suffer mysterious accidents and the full extent of their dire, life or death situation becomes a reality.

Author Nalini Singh has penned an intriguing, super atmospheric locked room mystery in THERE SHOULD HAVE BEEN EIGHT. Strong characterizations, a tension laden plot line and spooky setting are all inducive to a creepy, gothic style who-done-it mystery. I'll admit to being surprised at the big reveal in an explosive climax that's sure to leave readers stunned, and I'm looking forward to seeing what else Singh will release in this genre. Highly recommended to fans of locked room mysteries and suspense thrillers.

Special thanks to Berkeley Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC of this book.

There Should Have Been Eight was a good book, nice writing style. Especially for a book that has a plot that has been written over and over, but this book was more fresh. The plot was a group of friends from the past, minus one who had passed away. The place they picked for their reunion, was of course a secluded place, where weather conditions kept them from leaving.

The first half was slower, but the second half was much faster paced and had some pretty good twists and turns. All in all, I would've given this a 3.5 because this plot has been done over and over and so I'm tired of this plot, however, I enjoyed it, especially the last half. 4 stars.

Luna and her friends are reuniting at a remote estate, getting together after years apart, but one of them isn’t part of the group. Bea Shepherd, Darcie’s younger sister, died eight years earlier and it still doesn’t make any sense to Luna. Bea was a bright star in the group, with her magnetic personality, everyone loved her. Luna can’t forgive the way Darcie handled her death, brushing it and the details under the rug.

Luna has struggled with the loss, but now has an added reason to finally get answers about Bea’s death. She’s going blind and wants to be able to look her friends in the face, see their reactions to her questions. She wants the truth, even if her questions stir up anger and bitterness.

Their meet-up turns dangerous as a winter storm cuts them off from civilization, trapping them at the estate while things start going wrong. Tensions grow while they struggle to survive long enough to escape.

Oh, this was a twisty, atmospheric mystery! It took a little to get into it, getting to know the characters and history, but as soon as strange things started happening, I was hooked! The characters stuck together at a gothic-like, creepy estate upped the tension! There were a couple of surprises as all is revealed! I’m still thinking about the story!

This is a sort of "locked room" mystery. A group of friends are stranded on a remote estate in New Zealand due to unexpected weather. As unexplained things continue to happen, the narrator starts suspecting her friends and the one outsider among them, but what if there is someone else on the estate? What if the things claimed by the sister of their dead friend are untrue? And really, who is torturing all of them?

This may be slightly predictable if you've read a lot of these, but I don't think it takes away from the story. I definitely recommend it.

Nalini Singh is famous for her romantic fantasy novels but this is her second foray into the mystery genre. It hit all of the thriller/mystery notes. Eerie mansion in the mountains, mysterious death of their friend Bea, the psychological unwinding of her sister Darcie, romantic entanglements, and yes, even death. Unlike Ms. Singh’s first foray into the genre, this novel moved at a quicker pace. The main protagonist, Luna is the sleuth the reader relies on to take them through the plot and we see each action through her eyes. However, Luna is also suffering from a disease that is taking away her eyesight so she doesn’t trust some of the things she is seeing. Her suffering causing her to hallucinate or at least cause some mental hijinks that gives this story an even more eerie feel.

There were so many relationship entanglements that at first I had trouble keeping up. As I turned the pages those entanglements became a bit more clear and I was able to focus solely on the plot and not who did what with whom nine years ago making it easier to get wrapped up in the eeriness of the setting and the thriller dynamics that were in play. This was truly a fun book to read and had the feel of an old Nancy Drew mystery, although our heroine was a bit older and wasn’t quite so wholesome.

I think fan’s of Nalini Singh’s other novels would feel very satisfied with the change in genre’s and the cast of characters. This was a really interesting read that held my attention through every page. I’ll admit that I did guess the mystery but it took me a little bit to do that and I enjoyed the process of eliminating my suspects.

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for an honest review and it was honest!

Thank you to net galley for an advanced digital copy of thus book.

A group of college fans reunite for a weekend at a remote house where two of the group spent their summers growing up. At first, things go well. A lot of catching up on everyone's life. But soon, thoughts turn to the missing member of the group. One of the sisters, who was always the life of the party, is no longer with them. She killed herself unexpectedly a few years ago, and no one got a chance for a farewell, as her sister had her cremated and scattered her ashes before anyone even knew what had happened.

So there are questions. What happened? Why did she do it? And why did her sister do what she did?

But these questions are soon overshadowed by the strange things that are happening. Someone is pulling pranks against the remaining sister, and a few unexplained incidents also involve others. Is someone just playing pranks, or is it something more sinister? When a storm closes the only road in or out, the action accelerates.

There are a lot of people to keep track of, and some of the history seems extraneous, but it is a worthwhile read. And the ending will leave you wondering.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for gifting me a digital ARC of this novel by Nalini Singh and allowing me to take part in the book tour - 4.5 stars rounded up!

Seven friends gather at a crumbling mansion in New Zealand for a reunion of sorts. They were all the best of friends years ago but much has happened in the interim. They are still mourning the loss of Bea, and being back together and at the mansion where Bea and her sister Darcie spent time just brings everything to the forefront. Then strange things start happening and no one knows who is responsible or who they can trust.

I love a locked room mystery and this one hit all the right notes - creepy mansion, half burned, remote location, a snowstorm that keeps them locked in. There was even a creepy doll and hidden passages! I also really liked Luna's character - a photographer who is losing her vision. You could sympathize with her and feel her fear about her prognosis. There's a lot going on here and I thoroughly enjoyed every bit!

In this psychological thriller, childhood friends convene for a reunion that turns out to be a whole lot more. I've read quite a few of these "locked-room-mysteries" this year and this one does not disappoint.

The story centers around Luna, one of the group who happens to have a medical situation that she's struggling with. She hasn't told her friends about it at all. And she's going to be critical to figuring out just what is going on at that remote mansion where the reunion takes place.

I really liked the pace of this story. The story gradually reveals not only what's going on in the present, but what happened years ago to one of their friends. There are the usual twists and turns as the story is revealed, and I didn't see all of them coming at me.

As is usually the case, there's plenty of diversity and locations that I'm not familiar with and that is a definite plus. I thought this thriller was an entertaining read.

There Should Have Been Eight is a tense, claustrophobic thriller that is incredibly addictive. I have mixed feelings about the mystery, but I have to give Nalini Singh high marks for making this a real page-turner. Her writing is dark, evocative, and the mystery is compelling though your milage may vary on how you like the resolution.

Luna has had the same group of friends since she was a teenager, but now the group of eight is down to seven. Bea, bright, shining, beautiful Bea who Luna was obsessed with is long gone. At a get-together in a remote estate, things start to go wrong. And as they’re trapped, the past comes rearing back to life as secrets, betrayals, and a twisted web of deceit comes to life.

Luna is an interesting narrator. Her obsession with Bea remains strong, even years after her death. How she views her remaining friends – Darcie, Ash, Nix, Kaea, Aaron, Vansi – plus Aaron’s fiancée, Grace, isn’t quite objective. She’s a photographer, and though the lens gives her some distance she isn’t unbiased and her obsession with Bea makes her dig into old wounds. Luna is also losing her sight, and the impending loss of her vision has her questioning what she sees in the shadows, in some expressions. The questions she has around Bea’s death come raging back during this trip as the ghosts of the past are stirred up.

Luna isn’t the only one fixated on the past. Things start happening, pranks that escalate to true harm, as the storm that locks the group in at the estate rages on. Some of the group are blameless, some are not, but all are in harm’s way; no protection of innocents in this story. Singh starts off easy then ratchets up the tension until the climax. The revelations come fast at the end as the tale spins slightly out of control. For such a tightly written novel the way everything came together (key in a mystery) felt a bit off. The ending didn’t quite work for me, but that could be chalked up to reader preference.

There Should Have Been Eight drips with gothic mystery and Singh’s talent for writing an engaging thriller is on display. Not every bit of the story worked for me, but I found it wholly compelling nonetheless.

I anxiously swarmed NetGalley in search of this book.

I found it
I requested
I prayed…

Denied

Then, in a major plot twist…
I was sent an email with a pre-approved widget

🤭

Maybe it was a mistake
Maybe it was fate
Maybe it was the book fairies finally falling in love with me

Doesn’t matter, I finally had my most sought after book and I was so ready to dive in.

What a naive little soul I was. I actually thought I’d start prepping for Thanksgiving.

There Should Have Been Eight

This book right here is one you need to push all plans aside for. Once you start you will not be able to stop. The flipping of the page became a compulsion.

A little bit locked room thriller with a dose of dual timelines. The only ingredient left for a perfect thriller is some unreliable characters and this book is not lacking in that department.

What happened to Bea?

Check out this teaser :

Seven friends.
One last weekend.
A mansion half in ruins.
No room for lies.
Someone is going to confess.
Because there should have been eight. . . .

They met when they were teenagers. Now they’re adults, and time has been kind to some and unkind to others—none more so than to Bea, the one they lost nine long years ago.
 
They’ve gathered to reminisce at Bea’s family’s estate, a once-glorious mansion straight out of a gothic novel. Best friends, old flames, secret enemies, and new lovers are all under one roof. But when the weather turns and they’re snowed in at the edge of eternity, there’s nowhere left to hide from their shared history.
 
As the walls close in, the pretense of normality gives way to long-buried grief, bitterness, and rage. Underneath it all, there’s the nagging feeling that Bea’s shocking death wasn’t what it was claimed to be. And before the weekend is through, the truth will be unleashed—no matter the cost. . . .

Reminiscent of the book TEN LITTLE INDIANS by Agatha Christie, THERE SHOULD HAVE BEEN EIGHT by Nalini Singh is a chilling thriller that will have amateur sleuths at a loss for words and unable to solve the mystery.

Reviewed by Annetta Sweetko for Fresh Fiction

Complete review: https://freshfiction.com/review.php?id=84708

4.5 Stars

Nalini Singh thrills and chills readers in There Should Have Been Eight.

Wow. This story is full of surprises, twists and turns and is a slow burning page-turner until the end. There were some parts I couldn’t believe what I was reading! I can’t say much without giving stuff away but I think readers are going to thoroughly enjoy the book. I know I did!

Thank you to the publisher #partner & @netgalley for gifting me an e-ARC! Thank you @prhaudio for the audiobook version!

What could possibly go wrong when old friends holding decades-long grudges with the host all meet up at the host’s secluded mansion filled with dark history that remind of said grudges? You get this book.

Eight childhood friends were thick as thieves but one of them, Bee, dies by suicide which some of the friends strongly suspect, because Bee was the friendliest of the lot and the life of the party. The friends are also weary of the way Bee’s sister, Darcie, disposed of Bee after her death. Now when Darcie is hosting the friends’ meet up in her family mansion, strange occurrences happen and bodies begin to drop.

Read this book if you love…
✔️Slow burn mysteries
✔️Thriller set in New Zealand
✔️Locked room mysteries complete with poorly conducive weather
✔️Sisterly jealousy
✔️Strong friendships
✔️Wild ending

I’ll bet you money you didn’t see that ending coming!