A group of friends gather at an estate to spend quality time together. The eight from the title refers to Bea, a member of their group who committed suicide years ago. As they meet up, they become snowed in, and with the snow comes a reckoning with their past, one that just might reveal the truth of what happened all those years ago.

This book is an absolute rollercoaster ride, full of moments of happiness interspersed with tragedy, lightness with scares in the dark. There are so many twists and turns, I didn’t predict a single part of this book. I would recommend this read.

📚 There Should Have Been Eight by Nalini Singh delivered a secluded lock-door mystery set in a once-glorious mansion straight out of a gothic horror novel. Friends, secrets, and creepy happens await you in this twisted thriller. Grab a cup of hot mocha coffee and check out There Should Have Been Eight.

I enjoy Singh’s books, whatever the genre, and devoured her last mystery thriller. The story slowly builds as we get to know the friends, the hosts and stories from their past. The group are friends who went their separate ways when one of their own, Bea, took her own life.

The story takes place in the remote alpine region of New Zealand at a home belonging to Bea’s family estate. The seven of them gather as a storm rolls in, cutting them off from the rest of the world. As strange things happen and Luna wonders why Darcie, her sister, handled the death so strangely, we question everything we’ve been told.

The first part of the story began slowly as we get to know the characters and take in our surroundings, but as the storm rages, an accident occurs and things unfold. Twists, turns and unholy happens left me flabbergasted. I couldn’t set this down as I made assumptions and waited for the truth to reveal itself.

I love Singh’s writing style from the pacing to the tightly woven tale. She hooks reads from the first page and never lets go.

A compelling thriller, perfect for the first snow of the season. Grab a blanket and curl up with There Should Have Been Eight.

My gosh! I was on the edge of my seat for the entirety of this book! Fast-paced with an edge of creepy unease made for a truly pulse-pounding experience. Nalini Singh is a force in the writing world and she keeps getting better with each release. Amazing read!

A reunion for a group of university friends turns into much, much more in Nalini Singh's latest psychological thriller, There Should Have Been Eight.

Drifting apart after graduation is normal even among a tight group of friends, but what cracked this group was the suicide of their group's center, Bea. A young woman who loved life, light, and people, her disappearance and subsequent suicide, and losing the chance to have a funeral for her due to her sister Darcie's choices, have always haunted the group- especially main character Luna. She's hoping to confront Darcie and get some closure at the reunion on Darcie's family estate. But things are odd almost from the beginning, and soon accidents are happening with increasing severity. As a freak snowstorm traps the group inside, past and present collide and Luna will have to discover the truth before it's too late to save the innocent.

There's nothing better (for me) than a locked house mystery where you know not everything is what it seems, and some people are lying- but you aren't sure who is lying and whether their secrets are personal or deadly. Nalini Singh hits all the perfect notes in There Should Have Been Eight: a group of people who think they know each other, a crumbling gothic mansion providing its own atmosphere of neglect and ghostly terror (complete with past family secrets of madness and murder), and then a snowstorm to add an extra layer of being cut off from the world. Luna's personal secret, that she is suffering from a disease that is causing her to slowly go blind, adds a layer of personal panic and claustrophobia from the narrator's perspective that ups the emotional atmosphere for the reader.

This was a slow-burn thriller in the beginning, as Singh brings her characters into the mansion at the edge of the world and the hints and red herrings begin, then mind-tricks and incidents ramp things up to the subtle yet shocking conclusion. I thought the pacing and writing was brilliant, the story and characters haunting me long after I'd finished reading. This incredibly powerful book is one I'll be recommending to thriller/mystery fans and rereading many times!

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

I... was so ready to get invested in this one, but sadly, I never really got sucked in like I wanted to! the first third of the book was more of a friendship / family drama rather than a mystery, and I was super bored by the unnecessary plot points. it just seemed like the group was trying to hang onto old memories, including their unalived friend, instead of making new ones and trying to mend.

other than kaea, I also felt that the characters were superficial in a way that we never really got to know the heart of who they were ... even the narrator had an unnecessary storyline about her health that literally never panned out in the slightest. I just didn't understand what the point of backstories are if they're not utilized.

once the thriller portions of the story started happening around the halfway mark of the book, I just didn't really care anymore? and in my opinion, the person behind it all was super obvious just based on process of elimination - so that the "shocking" ending wasn't shocking at all. I just wanted more from this one!! it had so much potential to be good, but sadly, it fell victim to the overused thriller tropes and too obvious plot twists.

thank you to netgalley and berkley for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!

rating: 2 stars
wine pairing: napa valley merlot

Thank you Berkley and Penguin RandomHouse for the book tour invite and review copy for There Should Have Been Eight by Nalini Singh. PRH Audio for the audiobook (though I did not yet listen to this since I read the book instead).

This is a slow burn homage to Agatha Christie style locked room mysteries and that aspect is well done. The pace is a bit slow at the start but the twists and mystery development are well done and the later part of the story comes with some well placed reveals, though it takes time for twists to be explained.

What took away from the book, for me, was the main character's processing of illness and feeling that characters were hard to like, the slow pace and the internal experience of the main character kept me feeling distant from the story and not drawn in.

I still recommend this for fans of locked room mysteries, I know there will be fans of this plot and the story!

This thriller has a familiar trope of people trapped together in an isolated house during a vicious storm that prevents them from leaving or getting outside help. The similarities to other books with this premise ends there, as six long-time friends and one new friend gather in a large mansion for a reunion. There should have been eight, as their other friend Bea is not there, having committed suicide eight or nine years back.

As one by one the friends are targeted during their stay, it's clear they are in danger from each other or from something unknown in the labyrinthine old house. The suspense slowly builds up and becomes so intense, I had to put the book down at one point to resume later.

The ending becomes complicated, the plot overworked, but still a good suspenseful read.

This is an atmospheric read set in a gothic mansion with the locked in mystery trope. A group of old friends come to together for a reunion. There are secrets from the past and in the present strange things start to happening.

It was suspenseful but for me it was a very slow burn. At beginning there was a little too much descriptions of the setting and development of the characters. The pace did pick up towards the end and it was filled with action and twists. What I did enjoy was that all the characters were untrustworthy and suspects, and I wasn’t expecting the ending.

If you enjoy atmospheric thrillers, then I suggest giving this one a try!

This review was originally posted on Books of My Heart


Review copy was received from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

3.5 hearts

I really enjoy this author and the different series and now standalone books she writes. Nalini Singh brings a lot of diversity and highlights settings in a part of the world I don't know. There are slight cultural aspects which are not in my region. I would call this a psychological thriller having read it and my success with them is mixed.

A group of friends who haven't spent much time together in the past 10 years but were very close in college get together for a reunion on a remote estate. We get the point of view of Luna, a photographer, who is not part of a couple. Luna is struggling with a medical diagnosis and hasn't told even the closest friends. She is also still grieving for Bea since they never really got closure with a funeral or anything. yes, they start dropping one by one with illness, injury or death.

Luna struggles to document everything for the authorities to determine if things were accidents or criminal in nature. But as more of the group is affected, it seems obvious it's intentional. The mansion is huge with multiple wings, secret rooms and hidden passageways. The suspense builds as Luna tries to find and protect and treat everyone. Eventually, even with the abysmal weather conditions, she has to go for help. Surviving the conditions is another trial.

I enjoyed learning about the characters and the slow reveal of what had happened to Bea. I cared about Luna and some of her friends. The pace was engaging and there was a good mix of Luna's reflections and the action of events. I would have appreciated a bit more at the end as far as the outcomes, particularly for those who survived.

Nalini Singh's latest thriller presents a chilling and atmospheric tale set in the remote Southern Alps of New Zealand, where a reunion among seven friends takes an unexpected turn. The premise of a decaying mansion, once glorious but now half in ruins, adds a Gothic touch to the narrative, creating an evocative backdrop for the unfolding drama. The exploration of the characters' evolution from teenage friendships to complex adult relationships is a strong point, with the passage of time revealing both kindness and cruelty. I really appreciated the atmospheric setting of this one!

There Should Have Been Eight gives all the Agatha Christie vibes, but for me, it fell short. I loved the premise of friends gathering at a remote gothic mansion in the mountains to reconnect, and even the typical "get snowed in" trope. Locked room mysteries are my jam. But this one moved far too slowly for my taste. The beginning is a slow burn, which is fine, but I didn't really feel like it ever picked up pace. Sure, twists happened, and bad things started occurring, but things happened in fits and starts.

The big twist at the end kind of came out of nowhere, and while it is explained at the end, I felt more confused than shocked when it did occur. I found myself flipping back to pages before to see if there was more explanation about what was happening.

There's a lot of internal dialogue with the main character, Luna who is facing a life-altering illness that is essentially a ticking time bomb in her body (don't worry - this all comes out in the first couple of chapters so it's not a spoiler) and at times, I found that her grappling with it really overrun the story itself. I know now that the darkness of the mansion could also be an analogy for her impending blindness, but there were times it just didn't feel relevant to be bringing up. Sure, at times when she was having trouble seeing it made sense, or when she was behind her camera, but there were other instances where it just felt like why is she bringing it up now?

Anyway, this book was fine. I enjoyed parts of it and I plowed through it to find out the outcome. It wasn't my favorite thriller of the year, but it wasn't bad either.

Thank you Berkley Publishing and NetGalley for the eARC!
3.5 stars

Thank you to Berkley for letting me read THERE SHOULD HAVE BEEN EIGHT. This one publishes on November 21.

Secluded locked room story with a super awesome atmospheric setting. This one had me up super late at night flipping pages. I loved the characters and the impending doom of the entire book. Bravo! Get your preorders and library holds on this one, friends!

Friends gather at a century-old estate to reminisce about old times but run into trouble when the weather turns harsh and mysterious forces begin taking them out one by one. If the group wants to survive their reunion, they’ll have to get past old grudges and trust one another…even as one of them could be a murderer. Author Nalini Singh takes a little too long to build the suspense but keeps it tight after the halfway mark in her latest release There Should Have Been Eight.

Luna Wylie can’t wait to see her college friends and is also dreading the get together at the same time. Although she went to school with the rest of them in New Zealand, since then Luna has built a life for herself in London as a professional photographer. They stay in touch, but she feels far removed from everyone.

She also brings back a secret. Luna has been diagnosed with a disease that is causing her to go blind. She’s managed it so far, but she can already feel the disease’s affects. Even with her best friend, Vansi, coming to the reunion, Luna hasn’t told anyone.

It’s not just for feeling embarrassed or ashamed. This is the first time the group has gathered since one of their own, Bea, little sister to Darcie, died nearly a decade earlier. Luna is still angry at Darcie for the situation’s outcome. One day everything was fine; the next Darcie contacted everyone to say Bea had committed suicide, Darcie had had her body cremated, and she’d already spread the ashes.

Determined to confront Darcie about the decision, Luna arrives at the half-destroyed mansion that’s been in Darcie and Bea’s families for generations. Darcie and husband, Ash, another member of the friend group, volunteered the location to help save money on the stay. After hearing about it for ages, Luna’s been curious to see it for herself. Now more than ever, that seems important.

Vansi and her husband, Phoenix, are there along with friend Kaea and Aaron with his new wife, Grace. Grace is the sole outsider, having only heard about the group through Aaron, but Luna likes her right away. She’s sweet, considerate, and respectful of the deep relationships the others already share.

Those friendships help everyone settle into a comfortable groove, but Luna still feels uncomfortable with Darcie’s decision about Bea. Then strange things begin to happen in the house that make Luna worry about everyone. Hiking expert Kaea’s boots are sabotaged while he and some of the others go on a hike; then he starts to suffer a bizarre case of food poisoning. Darcie gets lost in one of the secret passages in the house. Other members of the friend group slowly start to suffer even worse occurrences.

Someone is targeting them one by one, and Luna fights to make sense of it all. What’s worse, she can’t shake the feeling that the spirits of the original owners are still around. There’s a history of madness in Darcie’s family. What if it’s not history but reality after all?

As Luna and the others fight to stay alive and also deal with worsening weather, they’ll find themselves confronting one another on sensitive subjects that some of them thought they’d laid to rest. Luna knows they need to figure out pretty quickly what’s happening, or else their secrets might drive them apart. Worse, not all of them may survive the weekend at all.

Author Nalini Singh takes a little too long to introduce the friendships in the first half of the book. The writing is solid, but the pace is slightly sluggish in places. Readers with a little less patience might not want to wait until the halfway mark for the story to start moving. Those willing to stick it out will be rewarded with a thriller that will keep them guessing.

Singh’s steadiness in building the mystery of who is attacking the friends and why will keep readers engaged from the middle of the novel to the end. While some seasoned readers might be able to guess who is behind the attacks, there are several surprises that will delight fans of the genre with each reveal. Singh’s choice not to make Luna’s impending blindness a focal point of the mystery grounds the book in reality. Not every personal issue a character deals with has to connect to the main plot, Singh seems to say, a slightly risky choice for a thriller. Here, the choice works.

Those wanting a book true to its genre, even if it takes a little time to build, will make a good choice to pick this one up.

They met as teenagers and they are reuniting as adults. But as they get together none can forget about Bea. An unexpected snow storm brings isolation and death, but who and why will leave you guessing.

I enjoyed the premise of a tight circle of friends seemingly turning on each other, but the ending was over the top and confusing for me. With that said, I did enjoy the book, it's definitely a thrilling read.

I received this advance review copy from NetGalley & the publisher for my honest review.

There Should’ve Been Eight by Nalini Singh is a stand-alone mystery thriller. The story revolves around 8 best friends as teenagers, and now as adults, the group decides to gather at Darcie’s crumbling family estate to reminisce about the one they lost 9 years ago. There Should’ve Been Eight is entirely told in Luna’s perspective. With the group slowly falling apart, Darcie (Bea’s older sister) got them all to gather at the estate to reminisce and try and heal their grief. Bea the one who died all those years ago, was Luna’s best friend, and she wanted to get more answers about why Darcie buried Bea in secret. Bea was the most popular of the friends, with all of them loving her.

They are all happy to be together, but in a short time things begin to change, drastically. A terrible snow storm moves in, leaving them stranded, with no phone signals; soon accidents start happening, with danger and mistrust arising. Of the 7 friends, Luna, Darcie, Kaea, Ash, Nix, Aaron, Vansi and newcomer, Grace (Aaron’s girlfriend) was the 8th person. First Kaea hurts his foot (sabotaged boot) when a few went hiking; then someone puts Bea's old creepy doll is on Darcie's bed, freaking her out. Is someone secretly out to get them?

They are all stuck, with no way to get out, as the snow gets worse. Then Nix falls down the stairs and breaks his neck. The tension escalates and no one knows who to trust. Soon Ash is missing, with Darcie desperate to find him, with Luna and Aaron helping search for him. Once they find Ash, who is injured with stab wounds, they rush him to the main room where they all are gathered, only to see that Kaea, Vansi, Grace and now Aaron have been drugged and Darcie is also wounded. Luna suspects between two people who might be behind the attempts and drugging, and is desperate to find a way to get the injured help. Can Luna get them to safety, and will she learn who the real culprit was?

In the last third of the book, it was a wild, exciting and shocking thriller, with so many twists along the way. Without giving any information, since it would ruin the book for you, I was unable to put the book down, especially with the surprising twists. Luna will learn more about Bea’s shocking death and the truths will be unleashed.

There Should’ve Been Eight was a fantastic compelling thriller that was so very well written by Nalini Singh. If you enjoy mystery thrillers, with surprising twist as we reach the end, I suggest you read There Should’ve Been Eight.

Luna, a young photographer is slowly going blind. She has not yet told anyone about this. Now she and her group of best friends, Darcie, Vansi, Vansi’s husband Phoenix, Kaea, Aaron and Aaron’s fiancé, Grace are gathering at Darcie’s family’s remote New Zealand estate for a reunion. The friends lost Darcie’s sister Bea to suicide some time ago and Luna seems to blame Darcie for that. Luna is also fairly obsessed with Bea. There’s no cell service at the estate and a storm is rolling in. Naturally. Soon the storm has caused a road blockage which traps the group at the house. Naturally. And bad things are afoot.

Luna, as a narrator, is one great big mess. She does nothing but take pictures, helps no one do the work at the house and basically moons about Bea all the time. “Bea’s joy had been mine. Nothing had made me happier than seeing her shine and laugh and live a life glorious. I’d loved her beyond breath itself, but it wasn’t the kind of love most people understood. It had no need for the physical, and no desire to possess.” OK, yeah, we get it. You were crazy obsessed with her. Creepy. Luna does manage to redeem herself, weirdly, but the whole thing with her is just….odd. And I think most people will figure out the twist. But the book was still decent and kept my interest.

I received a gifted copy of THERE SHOULD HAVE BEEN EIGHT by Nalini Singh for an honest review. Thank you to PRH Audio, Berkley Publishing Group and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review!

THERE SHOULD HAVE BEEN EIGHT follows a group of friends having a reunion in a remote and run down estate in New Zealand's Southern Alps. They have been friends for years after meeting as teens, but following the death of one of their own, they've drifted apart. Now, reuniting as adults, it is time to confront old memories and hidden secrets. When they get cut off by the remoteness of the setting and the looming storm outside, their reunion seems to be cursed by danger and not everyone will survive.

This book had a lot of big buzz words for me. I thought that the isolated setting was well done with a good reason for why the friends were gathering here in spite of the not so great amenities. I really enjoyed the main POV character Luna, someone who was really central to the friend group and able to easily give us insights into the characters and their relationships. She is also dealing with a deterioration in her eyesight, a tragedy for anyone but especially for her as a photographer and someone who has always had a fear of the dark. The friend group as a whole felt well done with a strong bond between them even as things are far from perfect.

There is a lot going on in this story, though it is somewhat of a slow burn to start with. I didn't get as hooked into the minor historical family subplot as the rest of the book, but that was such a small part of the overall story that I didn't mind it. I did guess a few of the twists and turns, but certainly not all of them and I enjoyed the ride even when I did make good guesses.

This is the story of a group of friends who reconnect several years after the death of one of their friends. Bea was one of the center of the group, and they all miss her so much, and while reminiscing about her, they end up getting snowed in despite coming there to escape and relax. While they are talking,secrets begin to unravel and Bea’s mysterious death begins to come front and center with some new developments from the group, especially a new friend named Grace, who seems to have known Bea at her lowest. The tension really ramps up when a series of creepy pranks and accidents begin to occur while the group is trapped with no cell service. No one confesses to the pranks and the group begins to unravel from the stress of it all and they all question what other secrets the others might be hiding.
There are a lot of characters to keep track of. And our main character, Luna, is slowly losing her vision, which adds another level of instability to her and as she is uncovering some secrets about the families past, you wonder what she is seeing compared to what is actually there. The story moves slowly at times, and there’s a lot to digest at points because there’s so much history between the characters but if you like a locked room, slow burn mystery, you may enjoy this one.
Thanks to Berkley and NetGalley for this eArc in exchange for my review.

I have to say that I was disappointed with this read. The twists were predictable and I only continued to read it to see if I was correct in my assumptions. I found it to be mediocre as a thriller.

I enjoyed this book more as an audio - it helped hold my interest and manage the names of the characters better than when I read the book.
7 friends and a fiancée reunite at a remote Scottish family estate. Weather forces them to remain locked inside, together. Memories. Friendly banter. And death.
Good plot - though predictable. I wanted more of an unexpected culprit.