I did enjoy the cult element as well as the multiple points of view and dual timelines. The storytelling was interesting, and the final twist was clever. However, I did have some difficulty getting into the plot, and I just didn’t really connect with the characters. I enjoyed the read, but sadly not as much as I’d hoped to.

My thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Years ago, I watched Pretty Little Liars and decided to give one of the author's other series a chance f as a read. It went fine, but I wasn't convinced, so I chose this newest one to see if I'd want to read more. Overall, it was good... just didn't pull me in as much as the tv show. I think watching a show first spoils the ability to go back and read a book. That said, the plot here was good, but I kept thinking along the path... go here.... make this happen.... what if this person is actually this other person... and so, it was the kind of books where I enjoyed some but couldn't stay deeply connected. Everything was fine, nothing bad or a turn-off. It was so vague and never really explained why people behaved the way they did, which meant the author was contriving more that creating. I did really like how we thought something was playing out in one scene but then you get the perspective of the other person chapters later and realize key things you were missing. All in all, readable and something to make you think a lot, just not one I'd rush out to grab.

This book grabbed my attention right from the prologue. It gave me a cult vibe and most of the book had this looming sense of doom. However ultimately the way the story unraveled fell a bit short for me, which is why I couldn't quite give it 5 stars.

I enjoyed the multiple povs later in the book, and the alternating timelines. I tend to think that adds layers of complexity and makes for a quicker, more engaging read.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC!

I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Nowhere Like Home was interesting. In it, you will meet Lenna who is an okay character. A little too easy to persuade and maybe a little gullible. Then again, people will sometimes do anything to find their person or to be well-liked. It also doesn't hurt that she's going through a sort of depression after having her baby and seeing her husband being a little distant at the same time. So, she did what any normal new mother would do - she leaves and goes to a community filled with other women hoping to find some inner peace and learn how to become a better mom.

Which, sure, sounds great and all but ever since she stepped a single toe in this place, I've been highly suspicious. Between the past and the present point of views, things weren't always adding up and just confused me endlessly. I had so many questions forming and was eager to get a glimpse at any sort of answer along the way.

Eventually clues and reveals came my way. I'll admit that I didn't expect one of the twists but then again, it made sense in a weird way. It's hard to explain at the moment but I'm sure other people might mention it once they read it.

In the end, I'm happy that I got the chance to dive into this. It's just a little sad that I'm not even sure how I feel after reading the last page. Might have to simmer some more on this.

I've been struggling with this book now for weeks and it finally came time to just say I'd DNF it and maybe come back to it in the future. As a reader, I just did not connect with the story or the characters (in particular the motherhood aspect) and the mystery aspect was not compelling enough for me to disregard the total lack of connection I had with the story. I've always enjoyed Sara Shepard's writing - both her YA book series as well as her YA and adult standalones - so I will continue to read her work, but this one just didn't work for me and rather than force it to give it a bad rating, I'll just respectfully say it wasn't for this reader and hope it others enjoy it.

This was a DNF for me. I made it 30% and just couldn’t take it anymore. This is suppose to be an adult but it reads so YA and that’s not my genre.
The three main characters are 28, 29 and 33 and they act like they are 18. Also weak woe is me females just make me grind my teeth. I’m sure there’s an audience for this but it isn’t me.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the advanced copy in exchange for a honest review.2⭐️

"You might be fooling some, but you're not fooling me."

I love author Sara Shepard. She writes great female friendships and the drama that can be laced within them. This story is about friendships - how they can be good or they can be toxic. How it can be hard to start making new friends in your 20's.

The story has dual timelines - so there's a story of before a story of now. Now, they are older - with significant others and kids. Previously, they are new friends to new co-workers. It's a few friendships and it takes a minute to see how they all fit together.

This story did reach a point, however, where I had to suspend my disbelief but I just didn't things would work that way. But it was a nice mystery, an interesting look into these friendships and fun twists and turns.

A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

Nowhere Like Home is the first book for adults that I’ve read by Sara Shepard. I’ve been a huge fan of her Pretty Little Liars series since high school. PLL was one of the series that inspired me to write YA thrillers. I was lucky enough to receive an eBook ARC from NetGalley. Thank you to the author and publisher for the free copy.

In this book, the main character, Lenna, is invited to a “mommune” called Halcyon by her old friend Rhiannon. Lenna is overwhelmed with her new life as a wife and mom of a newborn, so she decides to go.

As Lenna gets to know the other women and has flashbacks about her friendship with Rhiannon, the puzzle pieces begin to connect for the reader.

This thriller was so compelling that I didn’t want to put it down. I highly recommend it! I’ll definitely be reading Shepard’s other books.

Nowhere Like Home is available for purchase on February 20, so pre-order it now!

This book started out with so much potential. I really was reading it and thinking, “man I haven’t read anything like this before. “
Then it just got kind of weird and twist. I didn’t hate it, but I can’t say I loved it either.
The book mostly follows Lenna (however there are two other POVs). I’m nervous to go into too much a synopsis so I don’t ruin anything. But basically this is a tale of friendships gone wrong and communes.
It’s was an interesting read for sure. ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC

As this story goes back and forth between 2 years ago and now, you are able to slowly put together this twisty tale. Definitely a surprise ending!

Honestly I didn't finish it. I was so confused with all the back and forth between tense and characters. It drug on forever and just didn't grab my attention.

So many secrets equals lots of drama in this story.
In this book, you follow Lenna and her story flips from present and past. However, it doesn't get confusing the way that it is written.
Lenna gets a call from her old friend, Rhiannon. She's surprised that she called her because she disappeared years ago. She's also surprised to learn that she has a son.
Rhiannon lives in an all women community that is off the grid. She invites Lenna to come visit them. Lenna decides to go because she's a fairly new mother whose baby cries a lot and she feels like a change will help her. She also goes because she hopes to repair her relationship with Rhiannon.
As they drive to the desert and her cell service gets weaker, she starts to wonder if she made the right choice. A padlock gate with a code and being in the middle of nowhere has her trapped.
She stars wondering if she made the right choice. She's also worried that secrets from her past will come out.
I really enjoyed this book and I liked the way it all came together in the end.

DNF @ 50%

This takes no new friends to a whole new level.

I was initially drawn to this because of the cult/commune aspect and I was excited when anxiety and mental health was talked about in the beginning. But it quickly became clear that anxiety was just a crutch to blame the unhinged behavior of some of the characters on. It was also a bit repetitive and I only made it to the 50% point.

Thank you Netgalley and Dutton for providing this ARC to me!

This book had an interesting concept based off of a cult-like environment called a "mommune", which is a great concept for single women, who want to thrive and not need to be in a relationship. Sara Shepard has two different times that allow for backstory for the characters and current events that they are dealing with.

Lenna and Rhiannon started their friendship rather quickly and become major parts of the other's lives until it slowly begins to unravel and events lead to mistakes that continue to haunt both women. Due to Lenna's past mistakes she is not able to live her life with her husband and new baby so when her old friend reappears and wants to fix their relationship it's all Lenna can think about. She decides to leave her husband with their child and look at this "mommune" and see if this solves all her issues.

When she gets there it begins to show that there is something wrong with the commune and all the women that reside within. Lenna can't figure out why it feels wrong but begins to be suspicious of why she was brought to the commune.

Shepard shows her ability in creating twists and turns within a story that lead to an overall understanding of why things happened. This story looks at the complicated relationship between friends and the trauma that can affect those relationships especially into adulthood.

This parts that I found difficult to completely love this book was the lack of connection with the characters, and these full adult also behave like young adults. I struggled with this aspect since the beginning of their relationship and behaviors seemed to be high school-esque, but they are supposed to be working women.

I am excited to see what she writes next and how much more Sara Shepard will grow as a writer as she continues to write adult thrillers. I love seeing authors, who I read in my youth, moving up in the age categories to grow themselves.

Thank you to NetGalley and Dutton for the early review copy!

I received a gifted galley of NOWHERE LIKE HOME by Sara Shepard for an honest review. Thank you to Dutton, PRHAudio, and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review!

NOWHERE LIKE HOME follows Lenna, a young mother who is struggling with a fussy baby, an unsure future with the baby’s father, anxiety, and guilt. Her old friend Rhiannon reaches out to her after she had suddenly disappeared from Lenna’s life a couple years back. Rhiannon now has a son of her own and she lives in a commune of women completely off the grid.

Lenna needs a change in her life, so she accepts Rhiannon’s offer to visit. The commune of women seems welcoming, but the locked gate with an unknown code, the remote location in the middle of the desert, and some strange occurrences quickly raise Lenna’s suspicions. Still, she also has secrets and a need to unburden herself to repair the relationship with her old friend.

I didn’t know much about this book going into it, but I enjoyed Sara Shepard’s thrillers in the past, so I was excited to check this one out. It promised complicated friendships and big twists and it did deliver. We are following Lenna in the present and the past, learning about how she and Rhiannon met and how they separated all those years ago. We are also getting snippets from a third woman sharing her interactions with the main characters on an online forum which provides an interesting different perspective on what we’re reading.

I didn’t especially like any of the characters right off the bat, but that didn’t make them any less interesting to read about. There were plenty of moments where I got frustrated with the decisions the characters were making while appreciating that them getting themselves into awkward situations made for a more interesting read.

Overall this book took me a bit to get into as it slowed down a bit after the really strong prologue, but it did keep calling me to pick it back up. Once the action really starts, then it was hard to put down. The author does well at peppering in hints about what is really going on beneath the surface to up the intrigue and there were some twists I didn’t see coming which I really appreciated.

I had a lot of trouble getting into this, it just could not keep my attention. The storyline was a bit confusing because of the back and forth time lines and the fact that I kept putting it down from disinterest. I wanted to love this but it just wasn’t there for me.

This was one of the better thrillers that I've read in a long time. I had no idea where this story was going most of the time. There were times I hated all the characters, and then later I felt sorry for the character I previously hated. In true Pretty Little Liars fashion, I never knew who to point the finger at! I thought I had figured this out several times but was wrong every time. This was a well rounded story from start to finish. I always really enjoy when a story wraps up nicely in the end.

3.5 stars
Lenna is struggling with motherhood and takes up an offer to visit a now distant friend in a mother’s only commune, however her visit turns out to be anything but relaxing. Told from multiple points of view and a timeline of now/two years past, this thriller delves into issues such as social anxiety, motherhood and navigating friendships. I did not see the shocking thriller final twist coming, which was a welcome surprise.
This cover of this book is phenomenal! The play between the cool tones of the room and warm tones of the desert sky coupled with the sinister and ominous snake. Love it!

If there is one thing I can count on when it comes to Sara Shepard books it's that I am going to be totally invested in all the drama and twists and turns. NOWHERE LIKE HOME fully delivers all the best Shepard-isms that I need in books like this. It's got culty commune realness, issues with motherhood from all levels and layers, and some of the most toxic, manipulative, stress-inducing, gaslighting "friends" I have ever encountered. People just need to either not make friends in their 30s+ OR, better yet, just not tell straight up lies, act like 15 year olds, and be honest about who they even are and what their agendas are... like... LOL! Anyway... this book had me screaming and going off... and the finale was definitely a twist I never saw coming! It was really interesting to me, too, how Shepard did use the multi-narrative alongside the multi-time period when telling this story... sometimes, especially lately, it has not been used correctly and adds to the confusion of a story. But Shepard nailed it... and I also loved how there were random IG posts scattered throughout with comments, etc that really helped bring to light some of the extreme absurdity and toxicity to one of the characters. YIKES!

Great book!

I saw multiple bad reviews when I first requested them ARC, but I still decided to give it a chance. Readers, I should have listened to them.

I admit to being intrigued in the first half of the book, with its themes about female friendships and mental illness. But then it took a turn for the worse. This book read like a bad lifetime movie, and that’s being kind. I have read many a twisty thriller and they can and have been done well. I can’t say the same for this book
The characters were underdeveloped, the plot was contradictory, convoluted, and completely unbelievable, there were scenes that outright made no sense whatsoever, people argued and made dumb decisions instead of calling for help, there were too many words italicized for emphasis, and the villain explained their whole scheme to their captives (because that totally happens IRL and is my biggest pet peeve). I have read the author’s Pretty Little Liar series but did outgrow them after awhile, and it appears her writing style hasn’t matured either. This felt like an adult PLL book, in the worst way.

Also, did I miss what happened to the dog after the scene in the cave? If they didn’t save it then I’m giving this another negative 100 stars