Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group Ballentine for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 rounded up.

As a fan of escape rooms and puzzles in general, this one was fun for me. I thought the idea was creative and the action scenes were intense and fast paced. The writing was decent and I was rooting for the two main characters.

However the first 40 percent or so was pretty slow moving and I didn't need several of the other character POV's. I also have a feeling that after a few days I will completely forget what this was about.

Overall pretty good and I will likely read others from her.

Oh. My. God. A delicious mix of Steadman’s last book, A Family Game and the crazy train feel of Everyone Is Watching, Look in the Mirror was the epitome of fast-paced. Well, aside from the slow burn start, that is. Even it, however, added to the plot as it built a depth to this novel with poignancy and breathtaking character development. Together with deft plotting, mind-boggling twists, and a wild, twisted premise, I fell in love with this novel hook, line, and sinker. But then, given that Catherine Steadman wrote it, was there ever any doubt?

Speaking of the plotting, with an ever ratcheting level of suspense and palpable tension, the chess-like vibe brought a definite smile to my face. With multiple POVs and two gripping timelines, their ordeals easily kept me firmly in the dark until the biggest of the big jaw-dropping reveals. But the characters easily matched the storyline step for step all things considered. After all, the two central narrators of Maria and Nina were smart, strong, ferocious women who grabbed my attention right from the start. And while the plot was hardly true-to-life (only in the best possible way) every persona in the cast felt utterly genuine—even the villains.

I do have to make one clarification. While I’ve noticed in quite a few reviews that this book has been characterized as horror, I firmly believe it was no such thing. Was it dark? Most definitely. At the same time, I felt it was instead the definition of a psychological thriller. Not overly graphic or even horror adjacent, if you loved either of the books that I named at the start of this review, you’ll surely love this one as well. Now that I’ve addressed that small annoyance, let me wrap up my glowing assessment.

All said and done, I’m still reveling in how this book managed to keep me off balance from beginning to end. With cliffhanger chapters, crystal clear identities, and a sinister feel, the level of unease was absolutely dialed up to ten as the plot unwound before me. All I know is the nerve-shredding dread was seriously no joke. Neither was the mind-blowing epilogue that shocked me when I thought I could no longer be shocked. So if it wasn’t already obvious, I wholly recommend this novel. Addictive, bingeable, and a masterclass in thrills and chills, you don’t want to miss out on this cracking good time. Rating of 5 stars.

Thank you to Catherine Steadman, Random House, and NetGalley for my complimentary physical and digital copies. All opinions are my own.

If you like:
#️⃣ Multiple POV
🏠 Fancy Houses
🔀 Twists and Turns
🔂 Interconnected Stories

Read this book! I’ve really enjoyed Catherine’s other books and this one was no different,

I spent the first half of the book so confused wondering how our two main POV’s were connected when it seemed like there was nothing connecting the two women’s stories but then when I figured it out, I gasped! And it was not at all what I was expecting!!!

And for a thriller, that’s absolutely a hallmark of when I’ll enjoy a story when I can’t put those pieces together until it’s delivered by the author.

Much like Catherine’s other thrillers this one has depth and interconnected pieces and a shocking ending!

Thanks so much to the publisher for my ARC and to PRHA for my gifted audiobook in exchange for my honest review!

I loved this book - it takes the escape room craze to another level. Loved the characters and the thriller aspects and will be highly recommending.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for the free e-ARC in exchange for my honest review,

This is a fast paced thriller that checks all of the boxes! suspense, twists, dark and isolated thriller!!!

Nina’s father recently passed away and he left her a vacation villa in the British Virgin Islands. But Nina had no idea he owned the property. So, of course she travels there to check it out and discovers she is the proud owner of a luxurious, state-of-the-art, smart home on a secluded island.

Maria is a nanny for wealthy families. For her latest assignment, she is sent to a coastal estate but the family never shows?! She continues to stay, and she hopes they show up as she wants to be paid. There is only one rule for this assignment: don't go into the basement!

This is such a rollercoaster ride of a read! I cannot tell you more as you need to go into this one blind but know that its fantastic and you wont be able to put it down!!!

This is such a page turner! This story is told in various points of view. The main is Nina. She inherits a property in the British Virgin Islands from her late father. She has never heard of him talk about this and had no idea he had a house there. The second is Maria she is hired as a nanny for a man and his children. She arrived at the house and there is a set of rules for her to follow. How do these two storylines connect? Read to find out! If you love escape rooms, squid games this is a great thriller fast last book!

A story that revolves around two narratives. The first one involves Nina, whose father died and left her a beautiful property in the Virgin Island that she knew nothing about. The second, seemingly non sequitur, narrative is about Maria a nanny for the uber-rich. The only element of the story that combines both is the house that Maria has been hired to work in is the same one that Nina inherits.
I enjoyed this book and read it very quickly but the meaning of the writing got a bit muddled in the end. I don't want to ruin the ending so I won't explain more.
Worth reading, especially if you like dark novels about escape rooms and puzzles. Keep an open mind.

What an absolute trip of a book. I loved it because the twist at the end was not nearly as page-turnery as the actual rest of the book. I love when the actual plotline can surprise you more than any twist they could throw at the end. I love escape rooms, but sometimes they're taken a bit too far...

Official rating is 4.5 stars.

This was very different and it really worked for me. The twists were great and I definitely did not guess all of them. Several parts had me so stressed! My only small issue is that the ending was a bit abrupt and while there was some closure, I just felt that overall it was missing something. With that being said it's still a phenomenal read and I would definitely recommend it.

I went into this book totally blind! I usually listen to audiobooks, but I read this on my kindle and I just couldn’t stop! I loved that there were few characters, the pace was fast but the whole thing was a puzzle that I needed to solve - seriously - what in the what was going on

The story revolves around two seemingly unrelated women

Nina, struggling with imposter syndrome, inherits her beloved father’s secret Caribbean house - still in mourning and full of curiosity, she travels to inspect her new house

Meanwhile, live in nanny Maria waits impatiently for her new client and his children to arrive at their house. She’s told by the agency to wait and make herself at home, but not to go into the secret room in the basement

I would class this book as a fast paced action thriller - exciting and unpredictable

I enjoyed both women and I relished in their strength and determination. There’s a lack of depth to all the characters, with the focus on the locked door in the basement - this isn’t a horror but it definitely kept my heart racing

I found the reveals unpredictable in some respects and disappointing in others, but unlike Steadman’s previous book, this wasn’t insanely unbelievable (although I did find The Family Game entertaining)

I’d recommend this book to anyone who enjoys puzzles, action, kickass women and a batcrap crazy, unrealistic ride!

Thanks to Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for access to this eBook ARC in exchange for my honest review

Okay friends, so I went into this one super blind and that may have been a mistake because I had no idea what was going on for the first 25% or 30% of the book (I really hope I'm not the only one, ha). But once I started connecting the dots, I was hooked.

Squid games meets survivor meets a very deadly escape room. Look in the Mirror takes a locked room thriller trope to a whole new level and it genuinely scared me in some spots. And the main characters weren't completely stupid which was utterly refreshing. If you like games and riddles, I think you'll really like this one.

The writing style/narration wasn't my favorite but the plot was still well-done in my opinion and I finished in just a few settings. I appreciated the multiple POVS which added depth to the overall plot and it was fun seeing how it all tied together. Again, I was confused at first but once you get into the story, you begin to figure everything out which was fun in of itself. The twists were expertly revealed and weren't so farfetched that it made the story more satisfying.

3.75 stars rounded up

Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review :)

Don’t go in the basement.
Well, surely, someone’s going to go in the basement.

That’s really all I can tell you about the plot, because you need to go in blind. Read this wild ride for yourself, and then come back to discuss it with me because wow!!! I was so stressed while reading this one. I enjoyed the various characters we got to explore and the settings as well. This had all the great makings for a very isolated location thriller. I would definitely recommend!

Thank you to the publisher for the gifted ARC

This was an interesting book. Lends a whole new definition to escape rooms. Well developed story that had you rooting for Nina and Maria. They had already experienced losses in their lives and I wanted to seem them win. I especially liked Maria's character. She had a strength and determination to her that was raw and gritty. This story would make a good movie. Good psychological thriller.

4 ⭐️ Page turner! Had me on the edge of my seat! Wow! Well written thriller, great plot and I loved the ending! Told from several POV, it’s fast paced and engaging!

Nina is grieving after the death of her very successful father. To her surprise in addition to all his wealth she inherited, is an expensive estate in BVI.
All is not what it seems and the tale unfolds alternating between the different characters!

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing group, Ballantine for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book was nothing like what I expected, and I simply could not put it down! Catherine Steadman has become a must read thriller author for me. I adored this insanely dark, twisted thriller and honestly wish I could experience for the first time again. Thank you Random House & NetGalley for my copy.

This is a thriller/horror story that will keep you on the edge of your seat. As Nina is questioning her entire relationship with her father, the reader is trying to figure out what he was hiding.
The two lead women, Nina and Maria are strong, intelligent and human. It is hard to determine what is an illusion and what is real. The horrors of a real-life escape room with live or die consequences makes a great story. Both characters are likeable, and the reader is rooting for them to win.
Chock full of major twists and suspense. I could see this being made into a terrific horror movie.

Originally thrilling! So many times authors fall back on the same old story, but this tale was in a category of its own. Great build up of tension and slow burn of understanding!

I don't want to say too much about the premise of this, because it will give away key surprises, but I absolutely loved it. It felt a bit more like horror than thriller (although not in a gory way), which is completely my thing.  It took a minute to get into the meat of this, but once I did I absolutely could not put it down. *
I did think a few of the plot points felt a tad forced, and the ending was abrupt (both in how it played out but also trying to figure out why it happened as it did), so that's why I couldn't get to 5 stars, but I still very much enjoyed this!

This started out kind of good and went to crazy real fast! Not what I was expecting. Not in a bad way but just not how I thought it was going to go. Thanks to the publisher and netgalley for this copy for read and review

I really like the thriller genre, and this one was unlike anything else I’ve read before. I was completely invested in trying to figure out what in the world was going on! I was very slightly disappointed in the ending, which felt a bit rushed to me. But, still a very enjoyable read. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.