Sugar or Spice? Would you download an app to help your relationship? Things could get crazy and they do in this book. It's scary how this seems like it could actually happen with how we let the internet & electronics run our lives. I really enjoyed this story. The writing was great and the story was so unique compared to what I usually read. It was a bit too much violence for me. I try to stay away from that usually . I'll be looking forward to the movie for sure. #BookNerd #BooksofInstagram #Books #Thriller #Library #JDBarker #BehindAClosedDoor #Fiction #Netgalley #ARC #BooksAreLife

The 4MK series was so good, this was so different, but I still really enjoyed this book a lot and was enthralled with the pacing and twists and turns the book took

This tale serves as a stark reminder of the perils of hastily clicking on an app without scrutinizing the terms of service—a lengthy document that many of us gloss over. The app in question morphed into a sinister and perilous online game, brimming with suspense and proving to be a compelling read. It's an inventive thrill ride, replete with action, unexpected turns, and a dark narrative that's both stimulating and engrossing. A nod of gratitude to J.D. Barker, Netgalley, the Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), and Hampton Creek Press for providing an advance reader's copy.

Wow...what a book! This one was a wild, exhilarating, and unexpected ride. I highly recommend checking this book out, JD Barker did not disappoint with this title.

A marriage on the rocks...an app that promises to bring couples back together. Enter Sugar and Spice, a popular app that poses just that question to its users. Along the lines of truth or dare, couples and individual users choose from sugars and spices and proceed to answer the question or complete the prompts as the app doles them out. Brendan and Abby meet with a therapist who suggests downloading this app to rekindle their relationship and save their marriage--what they don't know is that the app could also end them.

A thriller in all it's glory--psychological and twisty, smutty and raunchy at the same time---This book has it all. The real world relatability of this book is excellent. I felt like I was living in the book alongside the characters and was forced to make choices right along with them.

#BEHINDACLOSEDDOOR #NetGalley
BEHIND A CLOSED-DOOR: a white-knuckle, R-rated look at just how messed up the world could soon be
Now, before I go any further, I have to say that erotica is DEFINITELY the furthest thing from my cup of tea there is. But I know that this novel was written by J.D. Barker, whose big, bold, brick of a horror love story SHE HAS A BROKEN THING WHERE HER HEART SHOULD BE I absolutely loved. And I was curious to see what Mr. Barker would do with a story like this steaming erotic thriller promised.
And boooy, did it ever deliver!
Abby and Brendan Hollander feel like they need to spice up their relationship, so they download an app which is sort of like an X-rated version of the Truth or Dare game, which has spicy questions for the „truth” part, and extreme challenges for the „dare” part. And when I say extreme, I do mean extreme. This book was a super-surprise to me, to be completely honest. I was expecting it to be excessively sexual, and I thought I would not finish it. But the storyline was so engaging, so twisty, and so topical, with a searing look at our obsession with the online culture, that it kept me hooked to the end. Solid five out of five!

Wowee! This book is unlike anything else I’ve ever read. It’s full of action, crime, surprises, twists, chases, mind games, provocative scenes and more. I could not put it down! 4.5 stars!

It starts with the main characters, husband and wife Brendan and Abby, attending a therapy session because they are struggling to make things work in their marriage. At the end of their first session, the therapist tells them to download an app called Sugar & Spice which will prompt them with questions and challenges to bring them closer together. And here begins the crazy and wild ride! Hold on tight because you will be jolted, shocked, amused and entertained with all the bizarre and strange things that start to happen. It is messed up and goes a bit off-the-rails by the end, but it was exciting and thrilling and drew me in. Beyond a Closed Door would make a great movie! Thank you to NetGalley and Hampton Creek Press for the digital ARC.

Rating of 4.5.

In the mood for a thriller that’s a little more adult than your typical tale of spies and killers? Then make sure to check out the cool new book from veteran author J. D. Barker, Behind a Closed Door, that sets a married couple on a dark path of deceit, manipulation and murder.

Husband and wife Brendan and Abby Hollander are facing marital difficulties as their challenging careers and spiralling personal lives take a deep toll. Desperate to reignite the spark of their marriage, the couple are convinced to download the popular app, Sugar & Spice, which has been taking the world by storm. The app awards points for daring, romantic and erotic activities between the two, and Brendan and Abby quickly find themselves reconnecting through their amorous exploits.

However, not everything is what it seems with Sugar & Spice, and soon the couple find the app manipulating them in ways they never imagined. Forced to participate in a series of increasingly taboo tasks, Brendan and Abby are caught up in a series of dangerous seductions, unwanted encounters and terrible lies that threaten to overwhelm them. Worse, the app begins to request unthinkable criminal acts, the fallout of which paint Brendan and Abby as dangerous killers. Unable to leave the app’s twisted game, the couple’s only hope is to find the creators and shut it down. But with more and more people being dragged into the hype around Sugar & Spice, can the Hollanders escape the insidious evil coming for them?

Behind a Closed Door proved to be an exciting and addictive thriller from Barker that I had an outstanding time getting through, thanks to its unique story, compelling characters, and diabolic scenario.

To see the full review, click on the link below:
https://unseenlibrary.com/2024/05/19/behind-a-closed-door-by-j-d-barker/

For other exciting reviews and content, check out my blog at:
https://unseenlibrary.com/

This was one of the craziest books I've ever read! It's definitely a page turner and so hard to put down! It needs to be made into a movie, like yesterday! I was so engaged. Heart was racing! Like when you are watching a scary movie and you're so fixated on the screen, you forget your surroundings. It made me super paranoid about my electronics. So paranoid that when telling friends and family about this book, I couldn't say the app name out loud, and when writing about it, I can't spell it out either. It will be forever known to me as S&S. It actually instilled a little fear in me. If you ever worry about your devices listening to you, and especially if you haven't really given it that much thought, you need to read this book!

Thank you to NetGalley and Hampton Creek Press for this eARC.

I really enjoyed this book. It started out being a sexy spicy book so I wasn’t for sure where it was going but it quickly turned into a thrilling sexy read. I flew through the pages because I had to see what was going to happen next.

When I saw a new book by JD Barker pop up in my Netgalley feed, I immediately pressed the button to request it. He co-wrote The Noise with James Patterson and is one of the hosts of a great podcast called Writers’ Ink, so I knew I would be in good hands.

And that certainly proved to be the case, although Behind A Closed Door is much different to his usual work.

In this book we follow a married couple named Abby and Brendan, whose love life has gone a little stale. When they visit a therapist and she recommends an app to spice things up a bit, they decide it can’t hurt to give it a try. Can it?

Since this is a thriller the answer is obviously yes, and Abby and Brendan find themselves being lured into doing ever-more daring things for the sake of racking up points on the app.

But when those things cross from risqué to downright dangerous — and the app seems to take on a mind of its own with the information it can mine from their smartphones — Abby and Brendan find it isn’t just their marriage that’s at stake… it could be their lives, too.

I enjoyed this book a lot, particularly the ‘what if’ scenarios that could easily crop up in real life due to the huge amounts of data we blithely give to tech companies via our phones.

The tension was relentless throughout, and I wasn’t surprised to hear that the book has been optioned to become a movie because it would make a great summer blockbuster.

I think Behind A Closed Door would be a good choice for fans of The One by John Marrs, as they both have that tech-leading-to-questionable-outcomes vibe about them — although I think this book is more sexually explicit, so that’s perhaps worth bearing in mind.

All in all I’m glad I gave this book a try and will definitely be looking for more books by JD Barker in the future.

Many thanks to NetGalley UK and Hampton Creek Press for an advance copy of this title in exchange for an honest review.

I fell in love with JD Barker after reading the 4MK Thriller series and this standalone did not disappoint. Engaging and thrilling until the very end. I highly doubt you’ll be disappointed.

Literary popcorn from J. D. Barker anyone? Heck yeah, bring it on! As you can tell, I'm a big fan. This book is a rollercoaster ride all the way through. It kept my glued to the pages. Full of action from start to finish. It all starts innocently enough with an app called Sugar & Spice suggested by couple Brendan and Abby's therapist. It's like Truth or Dare for adults. Only there is something more happening here and that is where all the trouble begins. It will make you think twice about whether you read those Terms of Service before you install an app on your phone or computer - if it doesn't, it should. I know I will be paying more attention because I'm guilty of bypassing those fine-print, boring, lengthy paragraphs.

This is a chilling, gripping thriller for sure and you won't want to miss it! It will definitely cause you some anxiety and tension while reading and after - at least I can't get it out of my mind. And get this: the author got the idea for the book after recommending Bathfitters to his wife and then they started seeing Bathfitter ads on their computers. I would recommend this to anyone who likes thrillers.

My very sincere thanks to J. D. Barker and Hampton Creek Press through Netgalley for an advance copy. I certainly enjoyed it.

Thanks to Hampton Creek Press and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC copy of this novel, which I freely chose to review.
I’ve read a couple of novels by J.D. Barker before, and I’ve enjoyed them enormously. They have complex plots, are quite twisted, and keep you glued to the pages.
I was a bit weary when I read the description of this novel, as I don’t enjoy erotica or sexual content in novels and stories, but I thought I would start reading it and see where it went. And I can say that, although, especially at the beginning, there is plenty of sexual content, there is much more at stake in this novel.
The protagonist couple, Abby and Brendan, are going through a tough time. She wrote a novel in her spare time, managed to publish it, and it did so well that she got an advance for her next novel, and her agent is eager to get more of her work. Due to that, she leaves her job as an event organiser to dedicate herself to writing full time, but then, she suffers writer’s block, the advance is going fast, the financial situation of the couple gets tight, and that has a negative effect on their relationship. Things get so bad that they decide to go to a couples’ therapist, and among other advice, she recommends that they download an app, Sugar & Spice. The app changes things for the better in the relationship and inspires Abby to write a new novel, but they don’t realise how much control it has over their lives until things get beyond complicated.
The writing is very dynamic, and it moves at a quick pace that increases as the story goes and gets pretty frantic towards the end. We get thrown into the action from the beginning, and we not only follow the two protagonists (although the story is narrated in the third person, each chapter is told from the point of view of a single character) but also another couple who go by the names of “Romeo and Juliet” and for whom the word “creepy” could have been invented. There are other characters, some mysterious ones we don’t meet in person until very late, others, like Hannah and Stuckey, Brendan and Abby’s next-door neighbours (and Stuckey is also Brendan’s work colleague) and friends, play an important part, and there are therapists, bosses, work colleagues, FBI agents, and many, many players. I think it is easy to empathise with the protagonists because the situation they get themselves into feels quite plausible, at least in the beginning, and it is impossible to read the story and not wonder what would one do in such a situation.
Despite all that, I am not sure the characters are entirely consistent. Abby changes drastically throughout the story, although this is one of those stories where there are late twists that make readers reconsider what they had read and what they thought they knew. Saying all that, I do like Abby. She is intelligent and strong, and I do have a soft spot for writers. As for the baddies... Here things aren’t as they seem to be —at least not completely— either, but you’ll have to read the story to know what I mean.
I don’t want to reveal too much of the plot, for evident reasons, but I can say that the story deals with our reliance on electronic devices that are interconnected in a way we might not realise until things start going wrong. It also looks at the nature of personal and intimate relationships, friendship, loyalty, the gamification of society, the limits of privacy and personal information, the world of finances, banking and investments, creativity and the writing business, therapy, and more. The book includes a list of suggestions (both Sugar and Spice) for book clubs, and I am sure everybody would find things to talk about because very few of us are immune to the influence of social media and apps these days.
I have mentioned the erotic/sexual content of the book, and there is a fair bit of it at the beginning of the story, although it isn’t extreme or excessively detailed (be warned that the nature of some of it could trigger some readers), and there is plenty of violence (again not the most extreme I’ve read, but I’d say the degree of violence is greater than the sexual content of the novel, with some combination of the two). Readers need to be aware of those two aspects, although those familiar with the author would be forewarned as to the type of stories he writes.
The subject might be familiar, but it is taken to extremes, and readers who prefer their stories totally realistic should avoid this one because the degree of suspension of disbelief required to enjoy it is high. Once the story takes hold, though, it is very easy to keep turning the pages, as there is plenty of action, risky and dangerous situations, intrigue, clues, red herrings, and the stakes keep getting higher and higher.
The ending is satisfying and it leaves a bit to the reader’s imagination and interpretation, but it isn’t an open ending, so those who prefer to have all the loose ends well tied don’t need to worry.
I wanted to mention something I discovered after finishing the book. It seems there is a scandal involving the author and an attempt at organising a publicity campaign that —based on the information I’ve read— seems in very poor taste to say the least. The author’s agent has dropped him, so one has to wonder, but as I don’t have any first-hand information, I’ll leave you to investigate if you are curious about it. The writer has apologised and explained what happened, although his explanation is quite curious, especially in light of the topics covered in this novel. There is an author’s note at the end of the book, where he doesn’t mention the scandal, but he makes an interesting reflection about the nature of writing for oneself, and how that can be refreshing compared to writing for the market. (He has written a successful series with James Patterson, and his previous novels have proved very popular, so he knows what he’s talking about).
If you enjoy plenty of action, a fast and dynamic pace, a story that will make you re-evaluate the world we live in, and are not afraid of dark subjects, you should give it a go. It won’t leave you indifferent.

EXCERPT: . . . the app played its little triple chime and flashed a new message on her screen:
Wow, you're on a roll! As a Bronze member you can unlock special features currently in beta and not available to members of lesser stature. Would you like to unlock those features now?
Abby read the message and realised this was the first time it asked her a question and actually gave her he ability to answer Yes or No. Usually, there was only a single ok button. Maybe that was one of the glitches they'd fixed with yesterday's patch. She tapped Yes.
The app closed, and a small hourglass appeared on her screen as it downloaded some type of update. When the hourglass vanished, the app's logo appeared with v1.1 in the bottom corner.
Would you like to try a Sugar or a Spice?
The font was slightly different, but otherwise everything looked the same. Abby had been sitting with her feet curled up under her on the chair, and her legs had fallen asleep. She stretched out beneath her desk, let out a yawn, and clicked on Sugar.
Would you kill a total stranger to save your partner's life?

ABOUT 'BEHIND A CLOSED DOOR': Would you kill a total stranger to save someone you love?

Sugar & Spice is the latest app craze taking the world by storm, but for Abby and Brendan Hollander, downloading it leads to a dangerous game of life and death. When the app assigns them a series of increasingly taboo tasks, they soon find themselves caught up in a twisted web of seduction and violence.

MY THOUGHTS: Question: Do you ever read fully the terms and conditions of the apps you download? I don't. Or rather, I didn't. But after reading Behind a Closed Door, I many never download another app. In fact, I may even downgrade to a non-smart phone. J.D Barker has scared the living bejesus out of me!

I have often commented to friends that if you search for something online, you are later bombarded with information and products that you have researched. This happens to all of us. But what about when you are simply talking about something? - no online searches, no mentions or likes - just a purely verbal conversation between you and whoever. Increasingly often, this subject/item pops up on your feed. Is your technology listening to you? My honest opinion? HELL YES!

J.D. Barker has taken this premise one step further in this chilling thriller. A seemingly innocuous app that controls the lives of the characters. An app that promises to enhance your life, put the zing back in your struggling/flagging love life. An app that promises to reward you . . . just follow the prompts. How bad can it be? You can always uninstall the app - can't you?

I have loved everything I have read by this author, but all his previous novels pale in comparison to Beyond A Closed Door. This is one wild, but totally believable ride. And because it is completely plausible, possible, it is all that more scary.

For those of you who may be put off by the mention of erotica - don't be. It's really quite tame - definitely no Fifty Shades of Grey, and one heck of a lot better written!

Several hours after having finished reading, my heart is still pounding wildly. I am looking sideways at the smart TV. Feeling grateful I have never selected the option to connect the fridge to the internet, and I never purchased an Alexa. No robot vacuum cleaner. My car with all the bells and whistles? Nah, sorry, but I can't give up my heated seats. NOT FOR ANYTHING!

The best read of my 2024 reading year. Devious, diabolical and very, very frightening.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

#BEHINDACLOSEDDOOR #NetGalley

THE AUTHOR: A note from J.D.
As a child I was always told the dark could not hurt me, that the shadows creeping in the corners of my room were nothing more than just that, shadows. The sounds nothing more than the settling of our old home, creaking as it found comfort in the earth only to move again when it became restless, if ever so slightly. I would never sleep without closing the closet door, oh no; the door had to be shut tight. The darkness lurking inside needed to be held at bay, the whispers silenced. Rest would only come after I checked under the bed at least twice and quickly wrapped myself in the safety of the sheets (which no monster could penetrate), pulling them tight over my head.

I would never go down to the basement.

Never.

I had seen enough movies to know better, I had read enough stories to know what happens to little boys who wandered off into dark, dismal places alone. And there were stories, so many stories.

Reading was my sanctuary, a place where I could disappear for hours at a time, lost in the pages of a good book. It didn’t take long before I felt the urge to create my own.

I first began to write as a child, spinning tales of ghosts and gremlins, mystical places and people. For most of us, that’s where it begins—as children we have such wonderful imaginations, some of us have simply found it hard to grow up. I’ve spent countless hours trying to explain to friends and family why I enjoy it, why I would rather lock myself in a quiet little room and put pen to paper for hours at a time than throw around a baseball or simply watch television. Don’t get me wrong, sometimes I want to do just that, sometimes I wish for it, but even then the need to write is always there in the back of my mind, the characters are impatiently tapping their feet, waiting their turn, wanting to be heard. I wake in the middle of the night and reach for the pad beside my bed, sometimes scrawling page after page of their words, their lives. Then they’re quiet, if only for a little while. To stop would mean madness, or even worse—the calm, numbing sanity I see in others as they slip through the day without purpose. They don’t know what it’s like, they don’t understand. Something as simple as a pencil can open the door to a new world, can create life or experience death. Writing can take you to places you’ve never been, introduce you to people you’ve never met, take you back to when you first saw those shadows in your room, when you first heard the sounds mumbling ever so softly from your closet, and it can show you what uttered them. It can scare the hell out of you, and that’s when you know it’s good.

Barker resides in coastal New Hampshire with his wife, Dayna, and their daughter, Ember.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Hampton Creek Press, IBPA, via NetGalley for providing a digital ARC of Behind A Closed Door by J.D. Barker for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

This book is blend of an FBI thriller, a direct-to-streaming tech horror movie, and an episode of "Black Mirror." What if you downloaded an app to put some spice into your sex life but you didn't read the terms and conditions? Don't be misled by the naughty-themed truth or dare app at the heart of the story; this is not a sexy read. Instead, it's an unhinged, dark thriller that jumps the shark repeatedly.

The writing itself is solid, but the constant escalation of absurdity was a bit too much for me. It felt like the story was endlessly trying to outdo itself. Even the ending, that nice, clean, oh the app DID help their marriage, and hey, even a good chunk of the world was helped..we couldn't stop there. Turns out the wife was super great at python this whole time and now they are escaping to an island somewhere..

That said, there's a certain audience that will like this chaos. Fans of unpredictable thrillers who don't mind a story that leaps over realism and the current limits of technology.

In conclusion. That was wild.

Behind A Closed Door by J D Barker

Abby and her husband Brenden Hollander have been financially struggling as well as having marital problems. Believing that Brenden cheated with a coworker, they agree to see a marriage counselor. When the counselor suggests an App to help them work on their relationship, called Sugar and Spice, they download it. Almost immediately, their relationship heats up in a way that it hasn’t been in years, as the app is a version of Truth or Dare.

But as their Dares become more risqué, so does the game, which has access to their photos, history, and more. What would you do if you were asked a naughty date? Would you do it?

This book was extremely hot, with a mix of thrilling twists and some naughtiness that makes you wonder what is next. I found myself not wanting to put this book down. It was my first read by JD Barker but if this is the way his books are, it definitely will not be my last.

Enveloped in fear this read was. Abby and her husband Brandan find their marriage has lost some spark and want to spice things up to say the least as they did just that. Seeking advice, they download an app that leads them down a dangerous rabbit hole.

Yes, this was a sit on the edge of my seat read for me.

Loved this and would recommend this read to anyone that downloads apps without reading the FINE print.

Thank you NetGalley for the advanced digital copy in exchange for my honest review.

Wow - what a crazy suspenseful ride! This was a literal edge-of-my-seat (or more truthfully, sitting up tensely and rocking when I’d previously been peacefully laying down) read!

Abby and Brenden - trying to reconnect through couples counseling - download their therapist recommended app Sugar & Spice. Their first “challenge” from the app was to purchase clothes for one another before having a romantic dinner at an impossible-to-get-on-a-waitlist restaurant. It was sweet and endearing seeing the two rekindle their marriage and relationship. And their “sugary” date soon became “spicy!”

But then the app, which gives points for completion of the challenges, takes a dangerous twist. Before Abby and Brenden know it they are on the run from the law and a couple, Romeo and Juliet, who are trying to gun them down.

This had sex, lies, murder, and videotapes! It was suspenseful and tense - perfect for fellow psychological thriller fans!

This book was outstanding!! I couldn't get enough of the action, drama, suspense, and intensity. Interesting characters with a lot of fun twists. I can't wait to see the movie that is going to be made from this book!

WOW! This really reminded me of 50 shades but also with a mix of psychological thriller as well. This book was interesting from start to finish. I really loved this book although I am not sure it would be one that I would read again anytime soon.