Member Reviews

I ended up putting this book down and coming back to it. It gave me the vibes of a few other books like None of this is true and The Perfect Marriage wrapped up in a bow. If you love Sheri Lapena, Lisa Jewell, Jeneva rose... You will easily love Seraphina's writing in this novel!

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Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me an advance reader copy of this title in exchange for an honest review.

This was a title that the description kept catching my eye so I decided to give it a try. The premise was very intriguing. It took me a while to find a groove with this one, because the story moved a little slower at times. But towards the end I was devouring the remaining pages. Will try more of Glass's works!

Description
When Anna Hartley’s husband, Henry, calls her with a terrible, guilty confession, she can’t believe what she hears. It has to be a bad joke—the mild, predictable artist she married would never hurt a fly, let alone commit murder. But her confusion turns to horror when police find his body washed up on the banks of the Rio Grande.

Desperate for answers to the millions of questions his untimely death has raised, Anna checks in to The Sycamores, the run-down motel turned apartment Henry rented as an art studio. As she absorbs every bit of gossip the eclectic mix of residents are willing to share about her husband and each other, she begins to piece together a picture of a very different man than the one she married, and the life he led behind her back. The more she learns, and the less sense things seem to make, she finds herself wondering: Did she ever really know Henry at all?

But Henry’s secrets aren’t the only ones; as Anna’s search for clues expands, Cass, the mysterious, jaded motel manager, seems more and more determined to keep Anna in the dark. And when threatening letters start appearing at her door, Anna has to decide what’s more important—the truth, or her own safety.

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I was able to receive an ARC ebook of this title thanks to NetGally! I have read other books by this author, and was intrigued by this books description. The book moved slower than I would have hoped for a thriller, but there was a good twist at the end. At times, it was hard to follow the background on each character, but overall it was a good read.

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🤯 My Mind Is Blown!!
Did I stay up late to read this book?? Yes I did!
This book will definitely be in my top thrillers of the year.
The story told in two perspectives and it did not disappoint!
Cass- Is working as a “handy mam” at a rundown apartment complex known as the Sycamores. She’s barely scraping by since her wealthy ex boyfriend of five years left her for a much younger woman he cheated on her with. To make some extra money she’s decides to try something less than savory! It’s all well and good…until some events go downhill and she begins to fear for her life.

Anna- She is recently widowed, so she decides to move into the Sycamores that was used by her husband as a paint studio . She cannot get her husband's haunting last words before his suicide out of her head “I killed someone!" Anna knows the Sycamores holds the answers and she’s suspicious and determined to uncover what led her husband to kill himself. As she begins to investigate she comes to the conclusion she may never have known her husband. As each new clue she finds she becomes adamant that her husband's death was not a suicide, and starts she begins questioning Cass she feels she’s hiding something.

As we we read we soon see it doesn't take long before things get complicated and both woman’s lives intersect! Can Cass keep her secrets hidden? And Anna will stop at nothing to hunt for the truth?
This book had me screaming at saying this is the book I’ve been waiting for! The mystery and the complicated lives of each character! The mystery and suspense were everything!!

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Thank you HTP Books / Netgalley, #partner, for the advanced e-copy of The Vacancy in Room 10 in exchange for my honest review.

This is my second time reading Seraphina Nova Glass and I can’t believe I haven’t read her other books. You can be sure I’ll be adding them to my tbr immediately! Her psychological thrillers are not to be missed!

This book grabbed me from the start and nothing could tear my attention from it until I was finished. From the multiple points of view to the strong female characters to the busy-bodies who know everyone’s business – I was all in! I’ll be honest and admit that I wasn’t sure I even liked the main characters at first, but as I kept reading the book, there was just something about them that grew on me and I needed to know more about them. And then ever so slowly, the secrets started to come out and I was hooked!

This book is so much fun, despite it being about a murder! It’s sinister and devious and I loved that the characters ended up surprising me in so many ways. I love a book that manages to surprise me and this one definitely did just that. It kept me on my toes wondering just what was going on and the twists and turns really kept the tension at a high all the way through.

This would be the perfect book to add to your summer reading list if you haven’t already read it. It’s such an addicting read!

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A woman whose husband dies under mysterious circumstances inhabits the rundown apartment he used as a studio and seeks to find answers about his demise. This was an ok read but there was nothing really spectacular that drew me in or anything that memorable. I figured out the twists, so wasn’t surprised by the ending. Overall, just so-so for me.

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The Vacancy in Room 10

This is a clever mystery thriller that takes place in a run down motel turned apartments in Santa Fe, NM.
The story is told in alternating POVs with two main protagonists - two women who end up here for very different reasons.

Cass is a 35 year old who came from the bougie side of town but ended up having to work as maintenance for free rent.
Anna is a 36 year old , recently widowed by a husband who committed suicide. She's desperate for answers and decides to stay at her husband's rented art studio at the same motel.

I felt for both women in their own misery. The desperation, depression, and solitude with glimpses of humanity within each of them. As the story unravels with different revelations and you don't know who's actually the antagonist.

The plot turns sinister and spirals into mayhem but yet there's many moments where I'm laughing out loud because the writing is just that good.

I love how this author has many different characters in the story and yet they all are dynamic characters with different personalities. It wasn't flat at all. This is the first book I've read by this author and now I'm a fan and want to read her other books as well!

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The Vacancy in Room 10 by Seraphina Nova Glass was a riveting mystery thriller. This was the first book that I had the pleasure of reading by this author. Seraphina Nova Glass proved to me that she is a masterful storyteller and I will look for her books in the future. There were times that I found myself holding my breath while reading this tension filled book. I always enjoy a character driven book and this one fit the bill and did not disappoint. The Vacancy in Room 10 was told from the POV’s of several of the characters. It was paced just right and had me engaged from the very beginning to the unexpected but satisfying conclusion.

The Vacancy in Room 10 explored the fates of two independent, intelligent and strong women who were handed forks in the road that took their lives to places they had not expected. Although the circumstances that led these two women to The Sycamores, an underwhelming, falling apart, creepy motel that was bought and converted into apartments were completely different, they were both drawn to it to find important answers to the issues that had impacted their lives and about themselves. Cass, a thirty-five year old woman who was jilted by her long term boyfriend for a much younger woman, found that The Sycamore offered her a temporary place to live free of charge in exchange for becoming its manager. Her position as manager also included doing repairs for the renters.. Cass was quite capable in that regard. She had once operated her own Handymam business. She was quite resourceful and level headed which suited her in running The Sycamore. Anna Hartley had just recently become a tenant. Her husband, Henry, had rented one of the units at The Sycamore as his art studio. Both Anna and Henry had agreed that financially it made more sense for Henry to rent the space at The Sycamore than undergoing a costly renovation at their home to build a studio for him. Anna had just learned that Henry had been found dead on the banks of the Rio Grande. It appeared that Henry had committed suicide. Anna was having a hard time wrapping her head around that determination. Henry had not been depressed nor had he ever exhibited signs of depression to Anna. She knew that they had grown apart over the years but Anna was unable to accept the reasons for his death that the police had provided. Anna decided to put her and Henry’s home up for sale and live in Henry’s art studio at The Sycamore temporarily. Since Anna was not convinced that Henry committed suicide, she was anxious to discover what really happened to her husband. Perhaps Henry’s art studio would hold some clues to what really happened to him. When Anna arrived at The Sycamore, she couldn’t understand why Henry had spent so much of his time in this place. It was not what Anna had expected. As Anna explored The Sycamore and its storage facilities and spoke to the renters the more confused she became about her husband and the life he was leading without her knowledge. Would Anna get the answers she so desperately wanted to know? Would Cass be able to help Anna in her search for the truth about what happened to Henry?

The Vacancy in Room 10 was fast paced, suspenseful, packed with secrets throughout and the ending was so good. Regarding the ending, I never saw it coming until it was in my face. It was brilliant! Be prepared to keep turning the pages as fast as you possibly can. I adored the pool moms who were some of the more colorful characters in The Vacancy in Room 10. Rosa was probably my favorite! I also enjoyed the relationship Cass forged with young “Sinatra”. It was nice to see how Cass’s character grew, changed and evolved over the course of the book. Seraphina Nova Glass skillfully planted a seed of doubt in establishing who was trustworthy and who was not. She totally had me fooled until the amazing conclusion. I really enjoyed reading The Vacancy in Room 10 by Seraphina Nova Glass and highly recommend it if you enjoy mystery thrillers.

Thank you to Harlequin Trade Publishing for allowing me to read The Vacancy in Room 10 by Seraphina Nova Glass through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

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Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for providing me with an ebook version of this story in exchange for an honest review.

Unfortunately, I felt like this story was not captivating. I found the characters to be very basic, the POV going back and forth did nothing for me, and the story was not fast paced. Everything in this book has been done before. I was interested in it enough to finish it, but I was very easily distracted and never had an itch to get back to reading it. I can see this book being placed on a shelf one day and a reader forget they were even reading it.

I'm not sure why this book has so much hype surrounding it, but it did not live up to my expectations.

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If you want a thriller that will make you laugh, gasp, and want to keep reading, this one is for you! This was my first book by Seraphina and it definitely will not be my last! This book will be a constant on my recommended book list!

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This author has become my absolute favorite! She doesn't miss at all! I was in awe the entire time, I couldn't put it down. I loved all the guessing and twists and turns. It's definitely in my top faves of the year!

Thank you for this arc!

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Entertaining but there were several details that didn't make sense to me. Spoilers below so proceed at your own risk...
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Eddie was supposed to be gone on a trip so wouldn't there be questions about why his vehicle wasn't gone? Once the police determined that Henry was murdered, why weren't they at the apartment complex asking questions? Why was Anna so insistent that Cass may have been who Henry was having an affair with when the teenage girl specifically talked about Cass and then described Henry as being with someone she didn't know?

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This book grabbed my attention immediately and had me hooked the entire time!! I loved reading it and all of the twists that it had. I would highly recommend this to anyone!

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I loved this book! It was just so good and original. I loved the characters, the writing, just everything.

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I absolutely loved The Vacancy in Room 10. It was such a delightful mix of murder and suspense as well as comedy and real characters and relationships. It was such a quick and inviting read, as suspense built switching between our two female characters. The motel setting and repertoire of background characters really add to the flavor of this book. Some really memorable and laugh out loud scenes. Great thriller!

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Different. I feel that is an accolade is the congested world of thrillers. Two female protagonists with chapters going between the two. Both with sordid histories with their husbands and now both living in a trashy apartment complex. The complex has a cast of characters including “the pool girls” and a woman who is called uncle fester. There are multiple layers of who dunnit and the ends wraps everything up nicely. Quick read.

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This book felt chaotic to me, as if I was getting catapulted around between characters without plot payoff. It started off strong and promising but as time went on, characters continued to interact or events would happen, but nothing gripped me and I found myself having trouble focusing because there were so many vanilla, B grade characters.
The premise of the book definitely got me initially invested but it was not executed up to par (IMO).
Reviews on this are mixed! People seem to either love or hate it. How I felt reading this was how I felt when I read The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley. Like I was trapped in a game of Clue that I didn't want to play!!

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I’ve enjoyed other books by this author, and maybe I’m just in a bad mood, but I found the characters so irritating I couldn’t care about the story. I’ll read other books and may even reread this later as it could be a moody thing.

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Thank you, Harlequin Trade Publishing, Graydon House for this advance copy in exchange for my review.

I loved this story so much, and I absolutely adore how Seraphina writes.
Her descriptions are done so well that you are fully immersed in the scene as the details play out.

I really enjoyed finding out Anna and Cass’ secrets and how their lives intertwined.
The pool gals were a breath of fresh air with their humour and side stories. How the women banded together throughout and especially in the end was 👩‍🍳💋

I was so excited that Anna in the end got her Ibiza trip and was also very happy with Cass’ ending.

I’m sad to leave these characters behind.

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Will be posted on 4/25/24

📖 Review: The Vacancy in Room 10 by Seraphina Nova Glass
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I ate this one up, it kept me hooked the whole way through! I could not guess the twist at all. I loved this, worth the read for thriller fans!

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This story follows the POV of Cass the handy ma’am and Anna the recent widow. Anna gets a phone call from her husband Henry with an awful confession right before his death. When police rule it a homicide with foul play Anna has questions. She needs to decide if the truth is worth her safety while uncovering dangerous secrets.

Pub Date: April 9th, 2024.
I was so excited to read this one. Thank you @netgalley and @harlequinbooks for this eARC!

#thrilledbythrillers #thrillersbooks #thrillers #readmorethrillers #booksbooksbooks #bookworm #bookstagram #booklover #booknerd #arcreader

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