The Barclays are a seemingly perfect family with a life many would envy- beautiful, poised mom, Beth; hard-working, handsome dad, Ian; thoughtful, protective grandmother to Rose, and Ian’s mother, Harriet; and precocious daughter, Rose, who is experiencing traumatic mutism after a tragedy befalls the family’s nanny. But appearances are not what they seem as guardian ad litem, Stella, begins to assess the family to determine the best environment for Rose once her parents’ divorce is finalized. What happened to the nanny? Who is to blame? And can Stella emotionally handle the ways in which Rose’s case mirrors her own traumatic experience as a child?

As usual, Sarah Pekkanen delivers a story with twists and turns that keep the reader on the edge of their seat. The anxiety and unease that Stella begins to feel as she studies the Barclays is palpable, and just when Stella starts to relax, the tension is ratcheted up another notch. The writing is paced in such a way that the reader remains engaged in the story, playing detective right along with Stella as she tries to unravel what is really in Rose’s best interest.

The conclusion of the case, and thus, this book, may come as a bit of a surprise to some readers, while others may be able to decipher the clues to find out who was involved in the nanny’s death long before that information is fully revealed to everybody else.

Will both Rose and Stella find a measure of peace that will allow them to move on and process their individual traumas? Who knows? That’s for you to find out, dear reader.

#SarahPekkanen #NetGalley #mystery

House of Glass reeled me in from page one. The author’s writing style flows articulately and effectively into an unputdownable, suspenseful masterpiece.

Stella Hudson specializes in representing children as a Best Interest Attorney. Her most recent case is not one she would accept under normal circumstances. But because of her unique experience as a child, suffering from trauma related mutism and at the request of a Judge and good friend, Stella accepts the assignment.

Her new client is Rose Barclay; the 9-year-old daughter of Ian and Beth Barclay who are divorcing and battling over sole legal and physical custody of Rose. There are speculations surrounding the family due to the recent death of Rose’s nanny who suddenly fell from a Barclay residence window to her death. Rose is suffering mutism after the incident.

It quickly becomes clear to Stella that the Barclays are not being truthful. As Stella spends more time with Rose and the Barclay family, she begins to see the cracks in their stories. What exactly are they hiding?

Stella also grapples with decades old skeletons in her closet. The parallels between her current case and her childhood trauma open old wounds and resurface unanswered questions.

Stella vows to stop at nothing to help her client and find the truth. Even if that truth implicates Rose in the murder of her nanny.

This intensely brilliant novel will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very end!

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and Sarah Pekkanen for the opportunity to read this DRC.

STFD! Bolt it, too. I know…the books I love, my reviews often begin as such. Or “wow”, “dude”. I’m just not as gifted as the authors I most enjoy. And this is Sarah Pekkanen🤷🏼‍♀️. Domestic thrillers r my fave. Hubby, wife, kiddos & crazy thrown in from whichever corner. Be it Mom, Dad, Sidepiece, Grandma or Kid….so many choices. Makes my scattered, domestic life look rosy, while simultaneously entertaining & giving me a bit of escapism. Five solid stars for a wonderfully entertaining escape that blew my mind. So crazy, creepy, wild & immersive. Awesome.

I am a big fan of Sarah Pekkanen, and her books always go to the top of my to-be-read list. This one was solid from start to finish and was a true slow burn (but with a little too much emphasis on the slow). Tension-filled and psychological, I always appreciate a book that can layer and masterfully build on the dark side of humans across all ages, from children to the elderly.

Thank you, NetGalley for this advanced copy! I ran to download and read through this one as quickly as I could.

House of Glass is sinister, circling around 9-year-old Rose, her young nanny's death, and the parent's ensuing divorce. Stella is the attorney appointed to determine the best interest of Rose and is immediately drawn to the case due to her tumultuous family history. Rose is suffering from traumatic mutism, which Stella dealt with after finding her mother's body when she was around Rose's age. Rose's mother, Beth, is extremely put together -- a stoic, pointed, extremely wealthy woman -- but claims a fear of glass following the nanny's death, meaning everything has been replaced with plastic in the house. Ian, the father, is laid-back and rugged, overseeing a failing landscaping business. It's known that he was having an affair with the nanny, and everyone seems to be a suspect. Woven in are other characters like a bizarre, lonely piano teacher, Ian's mother who has been living with the family while recovering from knee surgery, and a parental figure who isn't who he seems from Stella's past; making this a true page-turner where you're unsure who to trust. Especially Rose, who as a child prodigy is far more intelligent than she may let on -- what does she know? Is she also a suspect? When she's caught collecting sharp objects, you can't help but question her intentions.

Overall this book kept me hooked, especially from the beginning as the "who-dun-it" theme built up. I really enjoyed the thoughtfulness put into each character's development, but think it could've been wrapped up a bit quicker than it was. I appreciate Sarah's writing always and will continue to reach for her books, but the slow burn on this one caused the story to lull toward the latter half and end of the book. The ending left me fairly satisfied, though I wish it wrapped as sinister as it started.

Wow! 🤩 Sarah Pekkanen wrote an amazing thriller that I could not put down! I was hesitant on how this book would play out, as one of the main characters was suffering from traumatic mutism, so how would she participate to the story line? Of course, there are other ways for authors to be descriptive and tell the story other than conversation amongst characters!
Stella is what’s called a ‘best interest attorney’ for Rose, a child in the middle of a divorce/custody battle who just lost her nanny to a terrible death in the family home. To make matters worse, the way the nanny passed away is unsolved and ruled a cold case, leaving so many things in the air.
I appreciated the amount of characters that Pekkanen included, not too many but enough to make the story line make sense and interesting!
I have read many books by Pekkanen and Greer Hendricks, this was my first “solo” book by Pekkanen and I was NOT disappointed!
Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press and, of course, Sarah Pekkanen for this eARC publishing August 2024!

Thank you #netgalley for this advanced copy of House of Glass by Sarah Pekkanen.

This was my first book by Sarah Pekkanen and won’t be my last. I finished this book in one sitting, def a fast read.

A Troubling Tale of Trauma: A young girl named Rose struggles with mutism amidst her parent's messy divorce and her nanny’s death. Court-appointed worker, Stella, must navigate through family dynamics as unsettling events unfold around them all.

This book is a "WOW!" The last 10% is amazing and intense! There are so many parts of the story where the writing is worth highlighting. The star of the book goes to Stella! She is so strong considering her recent divorce and the death of both of her parents. Stella's job as a best interest attorney takes her to the Barclay family. The nanny for this family, plunged to her death while watching Rose, their 9 year old daughter.

Evil isn't merely a word. It's a tangible, dimensional thing. It slithers through the air, shifting molecules and displacing energy as it considers various hunting grounds. Once it homes in on a target, its malevolent arc of electricity affixes to its prey.

I loved Stella's friendship with Charles, much is revealed in the book toward the end. One of the best parts is Stella scooping up Rose. Stella says the words she yearned to hear when she was a child. The best words she could ever utter to Rose. "You're safe."

Stella will carry Rose's words in her heart forever. "Thank you," she whispers.

Intense, Past Secrets, and Brilliant! 5 stars! I highly recommend this book!

Many thanks to NetGalley for the advanced copy! This book will be released 8/6/24.

I really enjoyed this book. The characters were well defined and interesting. The various characters stories came together in a seamless way. It was creepy enough to make me nervous for the protagonist but not enough to cross over into true horror. The writing was good and it kept my interest. My only suggestion was that it could have been a bit shorter. Otherwise, recommend.

This is my first time reading this author and she did not disappoint. What a page-turner! The person you least expect turns out to be the culprit… and the plot twists in Stella’s personal life… I did not see that coming at all. I was secretly hoping that her relationship with Marco would turn around, I was sad that she kind of switched lanes and decided to give herself a chance with someone else.
Other than that, this was a very satisfying read.

This book was filled with twists and turns. It was captivating! I was hooked from the very beginning. I loved the main character, Stella, and the way that she related to her client. I loved her relationship to her father figure, Charles and the back story there.

The story was told perfectly, very fast-paced. It was creepy and chilling at times. Definitely a page turner. Loved the ending. Very twisty and not what I expected!

First thriller of the year was 5 stars! I’ll be diving into more of her books very soon.

A really good suspenseful book!! It keeps you guessing who killed the nanny! It has a variety of characters that makes you wonder which one is capable of murder. Worth the read!!

An edge of your seat thriller that has it all - a creepy mansion occupied by a strange and repressed family; a child, old before her time, who is truly unsettling; a murder (maybe?) tied to a mystery; and a first person POV heroine who is female, authentic and has her own traumatically tortuous past to deal with.

Stella Hudson is a “best interest attorney” who represents the voice of children and teenagers in controversial custody cases. When Stella takes on the case of Rose Barclay, a solemn red-haired nine year old in the midst of a bitter parental divorce, who is also a child witness to the suspicious death of her Nanny, she is forced to battle her most difficult adversary - herself - as the case quickly becomes triggering into her own deeply unsettled childhood.

Stella’s unpacking of the fabulously wealthy Barclays, and their suspiciously murky behavior, quickly escalates to personal danger, as well as emotional crisis, as secrets, lies and longings revealed may threaten the collapse of all that Stella holds dear.

A fast and suspenseful read, hard to put down, this tense and twisty story had me reading deep into the evening. With an ending that was both satisfying and only partially predicted by this reader, this book is recommended for lovers of domestic suspense, thrillers and/or anyone who enjoyed “The Push” or “The Perfect Child”.

A great big thank you to the Netgalley, the author and the publisher for an ARC of this book. All thoughts presented are my own.

I haven't read a book written in first person in awhile and I forgot just how much I love it. I devoured this thriller.

Stella Hudson is assigned as an attorney for nine-year-old Rose Barclay. Her parents are getting divorced and it's up to Stella to decide who is best suited to have Rose living with them. To complicate matters, Rose's nanny was found dead after falling out of an upper story window. The question remains, did she jump or was she pushed? If she was pushed who was it that could commit such a horrendous act. Meanwhile, it is discovered Rose is collecting all the sharp objects she can access and has also stopped talking.

I finished this book in one day. It was fast paced and suspenseful. Everyone in the house is a suspect and it seems like Rose may have had something to do with the nanny's death. I never expected that ending! I was totally engrossed in the story from the first page all the way up until the brilliant and amazing twist of an ending. This is a thriller you don't want to miss!

Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for a digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

What a fun read. Every time I picked up my kindle, I had to read some more of this book. I thought I had it all figured out but I was wrong. Quick pace, I couldn't wait to see how it all unfolded.

House of Glass by Sarah Pekkanen is a great entry in the Mystery/Thriller genre. I was making " The Bad Seed" comparisons in my mind while reading this, but there is so much more going on in this book. This one does not disappoint. I recommend this book to mystery lovers.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an e-arc in exchange for an unbiased review.

Sarah Pekkanen’s latest, House of Glass, is definitely a must read!

Stella Hudson, a Best Interest Attorney, is assigned to the case of Rose Barclay. Rose is a little girl who witnessed the death of her nanny, Tina. In addition, Rose immediately stopped speaking once she saw Tina fall out of the third story window. Throughout the book, Stella tries to determine what’s best for Rose, while also trying to figure out if Tina’s death truly was an accident. With Rose not speaking, it only makes Stella’s job more difficult. Who can Stella trust?

I throughly enjoyed this book. I kept trying to figure out the ending as I read, but I was wrong every time. This book will have you questioning what and who to believe!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this ARC. House of Glass will be available for purchase on August 6, 2024. Until then, add it to your TBR shelf.

The storyline revolves around the suspicious murder of a young nanny, Tina de la Cruz, who was taking care of 9-year-old Rose. She had an affair with her father, Ian Barclay, and got pregnant. She's pushed down from the window, or she accidentally fell down. There are four people who witnessed the incident, as the case is presumed an accident.

I expected some more huge twists. but they never came. I hope I'm going to love her next book more. She's one of my fav thriller authors.

I really enjoyed this book and the twists. I was surprised by a lot of what happened as the story wrapped up. I would highly recommend it

I LOVED this book. If psychological thrillers are your thing then you HAVE to read this book. It’s filled with secrets, lies, families, amazing characters and I couldn’t put it down!!

House of Glass did not disappoint as my first Suspense read of 2024! The Barclay's nanny falls to her death from a window at the Barclay's mansion. The Barclays are a uber rich couple currently in the midst of a divorce and a custody battle over their daughter Rose. Stella Hudson is the attorney designated to represent Rose during the custody battle.

So was the nanny murdered? and if so, by who? In an attempt to make a custody recommendation for Rose, Stella is forced to try and find out what happened at the Barclay's mansion.

There are many twists and turns in this novel. I thought I had it figured out more than once and in the end I was (mostly) wrong. Everyone is a suspect in this one and the story keeps you guessing until the end. You will not be disappointed when you get to the big reveal!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for this ARC. I fully recommend you read House of Glass when it's released on August 6, 2024!