I give it 3.5 stars out of 5.

Lenna is a young mother with a small child who seems to cry constantly. She is anxious and distraught. When an old friend, Rhiannon, who she hasn’t heard from in a couple of years, reaches out and tells Lenna of this wonderful “mommune” she lives on and suggests Lenna come for a visit to experience having help for a few days. Lenna thinks about it, and after a couple of days decides to take her son and leave early in the morning to go visit. She leaves her husband, Daniel, a note with not much explanation and never talking to him about it and never disclosing things from her past that affect her decision.

As Lenna and her son travel to the commune in Arizona, she realizes how isolated it is and how she’ll be cut off from cell service, etc. Her anxiety is further heightened by the locked gate on the property that requires a code to open and only one woman seems to have the code. The women on the commune appear friendly, but Lenna is wary of the rules and how no one is supposed to talk about their pasts or ask questions of others’ pasts. Lenna desperately wants to talk with Rhiannon, to try and clear the air about their past, but never seems to be able to get her alone to do so.

Someone else from Lenna’s past shows up at the commune and Lenna feels strongly that something else is going on here and decides she needs to leave - but can she?

The story moves along well. It was a quick read and had me interested to see where it was all going. The characters were not very likable, I have to admit it was hard to cheer for any of them. It was difficult to understand the draw different characters had for one another when there were so many red flag moments.

Thank you @netgalley for the e-arc of this read!

3 ⭐️⭐️⭐️

First I want to thank NetGalley, Penguin Group Dutton and Sara Shepard for a digital ARC of Nowhere Like Home.

Nowhere Like Home is a pretty good mystery/thriller book. When I finally found out what was going on I was stunned, didn’t see it coming whatsoever! It kept me on my toes.

Lenna is a first time mom to Jacob who cries constantly and doesn’t seem to have much help from her husband, Daniel. Lenna gets a call from her old friend, Rhiannon, who previously disappeared into thin air without a word. Rhiannon lives off the grid at a women’s only community or “mommune” called Halcyon and invited Lenna to join the community.

Lenna takes Rhiannon up on her offer and is a state away via airplane before her husband is even awake. When she arrives, she’s not sure what to expect and has regrets about going. It isn’t until Sarah arrives back at the community from her IVF treatments that Lenna desperately wants to leave and never return.

Nowhere Like Home is read in a past/present format and in three parts so you get to know Lenna, Rhiannon and Sarah. You find out what got them to where they’re at now and why.

Ooooooo...I love a great locked room (or in this case locked hotel) mystery where the ominous weather is its own character. There are so many people not to like in this story and they all pretty much have the potential to be the bad dude(s) of the story. Oh, I figured out most of what was going on pretty easily, but that's because I read lots of thrillers/mysteries and I can now pinpoint why a character has been included. It was fdefinitely un to see it all play out anyway.

I was really excited for this book after I read the description - a mysterious friend, living on an all women commune, reaching out to her old friend out of the blue - sign me up! I enjoyed the book, especially the first few days when Lenna, the protagonist, arrives at the commune and we’re introduced to the eclectic clan that lives there. However, the book becomes a bit tedious with flashbacks and over-explaining character backgrounds. I do love a good twist, but found the plot and twists in this book to be so far fetched and unbelievable that I quickly lost interest in the story.

The commune itself is an interesting setting for a book, and I was looking forward to reading more about it, but the author included too many flashbacks and focused on trying to create too many twists and suspense. The opportunity to build a super cool setting around the commune was missed entirely. And I found the author wanted to raise awareness about social anxiety in a book but over did it with Gillian’s character, which paints social anxiety in a very negative and skewed way. I also found the constant paragraphs about Lena’s child constantly crying very odd too. If you want a book to distract you, this might be for you but don’t expect it to be a fulfilling read. Thank you to Sara Shepard, Penguin Group Dutton, and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy so I can provide an honest review.

I love a good thriller, especially one about "cults," so I was immediately drawn into this story! It was my first novel by Sara Shepard and definitely won't be my last. While the main character Lenna was pretty unlikable for me, I couldn't help but root for her to find a solution for her little family! I thought all the characters were very intriguing but quite a lot to keep up with throughout the story. While the ending was wild, there was one particular part of it that I found kinda strange and unnecessary? I enjoyed it overall, but it wasn't a love!

The author of pretty little liars, yes please. This book is written from four different characters point of views. It’s a thriller featuring unhealthy toxic friendships and an interesting take on a commune/cult. This book was suspenseful and had a couple of good twists. Our fmc Lena takes her son and leaves to visit her friend when our story is beginning. Things are a little more complicated as Lena is visiting her friend at this commune.

I gave this book 3 stars.

This one started out strong for me--addictive! I loved the story line and thought it was unique--but about two-thirds in I started losing interest. The book felt like it was dragging on a bit--but again, solid start!!

Thank you to Dutton Publishing for letting me read an early copy of NOWHERE LIKE HOME. This one is out now!

I really devoured this book and it kept me entertained for hours. Did I like all the choices the characters made? No. Did I enjoy the twist? No. Did I see it coming? Yes. Overall did I still enjoy the book? YES. I never read PRETTY LITTLE LIARS but I did gobble up the TV series so I was excited to pick up a book by Sara Shepard. This book wont change your life, but it will entertain and distract you from the real world for a little while.

When I saw that "Nowhere Like Home" by Sara Shepard was available I jumped at the chance to read this new book by the author of "Pretty Little Liars." This is the story of friendships, with all the twists and turns that life can take. The main character, Lenna, reconnects with a friend that she has lost touch with. Rhiannon is living in a commune-like community of women, and Lenna & her infant son, go for a visit. The book is very suspenseful and has twists you don't see coming!

Well, we have my first disappointment of the year. I found myself extremely frustrated with Lenna as I wanted her to really stand up for herself and be stronger. She stressed me out!

I do love the touches on the cult and the ending did make up for a lot of mishaps along the way. However, a lot of the character development missed for me and I really struggled with connecting to any of the 4 POVs.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishing team for the free e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this eARC.

Sara Shepard, is the brilliant mind behind the iconic Pretty Little Liars series, takes a daring leap into the realm of adult fiction with her novel, Nowhere Like Home. Buckle up, this is not your typical cozy mystery—it's a psychological drama that will leave you questioning everything you thought you knew about friendship, secrets, and the desert.

Lenna Schmidt, our enigmatic protagonist, receives a call from her long-lost friend Rhiannon, who disappeared years ago. Now she has returned, with a son in tow. The son is a member of the Halcyon community.

Ultimately, Lenna drives to Halcyon. The women of Halcyon live off the grid, bound by rules that would make any conspiracy theorist raise an eyebrow: no outside phone calls, no probing into each other's pasts, and a padlocked gate guarding the way out. It's a place where secrets thrive, and trust is as scarce as water in the desert sun.

But Lenna has her own skeletons rattling in the closet. Secrets she'd rather bury beneath the shifting sands. As she navigates the peculiar dynamics of Halcyon, she realizes she wasn't invited here by chance. There's a purpose—a dark one—behind her arrival. And when a newcomer stumbles into their midst, Lenna's worst fears are confirmed. She's a pawn in a dangerous game, and the stakes are high.

Shepard weaves a web of intrigue, pulling us into the minds of these complex women.

Even the most treacherous paths can lead us home.

I never read or watched Pretty Little Liars so I wasn’t sure what to expect from Sara Shepard. It seems to be a popular trope these days to run off to a commune of sorts to escape your past. This is a decent novel but I felt like so much more could’ve been developed, especially with the side characters outside of Lenna, Rhiannon, Gillian, and Sadie. The characters motives were kind of weak and I kept expecting more to happen, especially at the end. The buildup was great and effectively disconcerting, but the follow through was a little disappointing. It was a solid read though, and maybe I will give her PLL series a shot since I’m actually not spoiled.
Thank you to NetGalley and Dutton for providing this arc in exchange for my honest review.

This story really had me guessing about the past of these ladies and why Lenna was leaving her husband. A community off the grid that keeps people out and doesn't allow you to talk about your past or contact people on the outside should seem suspicious to anyone. Shepard really kept me on the edge of my seat with all the twists that I didn't see coming at all!

Impossible to put down! I enjoyed the time jumps & different characters POV. From the mind of PLL's this isn't one to miss!

I liked this book but I was a little strange. It’s interesting how people can so easily be sucked into these cult type situations. Lots of twists in this book. I did like the multiple perspectives. I found most of the characters hard to relate too. Good twist!

Unfortunately, this was too triggering for me to finish. (Trigger warning to anyone who can't deal with babies in stressful situations!) I love Sara Shepard though!

The book delves into the interesting concept of running away from home and forgetting all your troubles by joining a commune. Communes take care of all your needs without any interference, or communication, from the pesky outside world. But sometimes, they have other plans for you besides just retreat and respite.

The main character here runs away from home to visit an old friend who she just reunited with. Her baby is several months old and severely unhappy/colicky - constantly crying. She feels her husband is running away from the house to avoid the baby and she's exhausted. When an opportunity arises to visit a friend on a commune of ONLY women with children, she jumps at it. But is she jumping into the fire?

I did give this book a good go, but really couldn't become invested in the main character. Perhaps the build up was a bit too slow for me, but I lost interest 1/3 of the way in. Not to say I won't reach out and try again later, there's always the chance it was not the right book for the mood and moment. Giving it a four as it was well written overall.

Elle was best friends with Riann and one day Riann went missing so when she gets in touch with Ell again right after Elle has given birth to her son Jacob she convinced her to come visit her in the group of ladies she lives with in a cult like setting in the desert. So in order to find out what went wrong with their friendship and the incident on the mountain El abandons her husband Daniel and takes her cranky baby Jake up to the desert to a place that will tell you when it’s time to leave. Even before she leaves her home L is second-guessing herself as she does the whole way there but goes anyway. After arriving she meets everyone except for one lady who is in town having IV treatments because essentially whoever lives at the commune and wants to get pregnant can do that. L has many questions for Riann but that first cannot bring herself to ask but even when she does it seems Ryan is still skillful and dodging questions she doesn’t want to answer. The book is pretty full with drama but win Sarah comes back from getting artificially impregnated Elle already knows she cannot leave the commune but the arrival of Sarah tells her so much more. By the time L thinks Ryan cannot be trusted it seems Ryan will need her help oh will she? This book is big on semantics and Has a high school like drama atmosphere. I rolled my eyes so many times while reading this book for example when the stuff starts to fly they criticize L by saying she handed her baby to a complete stranger even though most people when being introduced to their friends friends would let one of them hold their baby not knowing them by trusting their friend I found this book ridiculous on many levels but head some really skillful twist I didn’t see coming and trust me there is a lot of 360s in this book. I would like to say I didn’t like it because of that but found myself not being able to put it down I do think it would’ve been better aimed at a younger audience but regardless I still recommend it and want to thank penguin group Dutton and Net Galley for my free arc copy please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

A unique and interesting story of uneasy relationships. It was thought provoking and I thought the setting was ominous.
Many thanks to PENGUIN GROUP Dutton and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Slow burn, cult vibes. I liked it. I think I would give it 3.5 stars. Thank you to the pub for my gifted ecopy.