Thank you NetGalley, Catherine Steadman and Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine for granting me access to this book in exchange for an honest review.

What an intriguing, fast-paced, "locked- room" mystery thriller!! I literally couldn't put it down and finished it in one sitting because I had to get to the reveal. Even though I could guess some of the improbable twists and it was a bit convoluted, I still really enjoyed this suspenseful cat-and-mouse game. If you're looking for a totally creepy WILDLY CRAZY ride then this is the book for you!⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Nina is grieving the loss of her only remaining family member, her father, when she is notified he had a secret vacation house in the British Virgin Islands that she is now set to inherit. How could her father keep something like this from her? To try and understand why, Nina hops on the first plane to check out this house. The house itself is a work of art with everything modern and glass. As Nina searches the house she starts wondering is this just a house or a death trap.

I don’t want to give too much away because I love the craziness of what is really going on in this house. It was something I was really not expecting but enjoyed immensely. The multiple POVs in this book made the characters enjoyable and villainous!

Holy COW! This was probably the best book I've read in close to a year. I could not put it down!
The book starts from the point of view of 2 people; Nina who recently lost her father and found out she inherited a vacation home in the Caribbean, and Maria who is working a job that seems too good to be true.
I promise you, wherever you think this book is going, you are wrong. Every time you think you know what's going to happen next it takes a complete left turn.
I HIGHLY recommend this one!

After scaring the life out of me with sadistic, crazy, holiday-loving in-laws (“The Family Game”), Catherine Steadman is back with another family drama. This time, Nina is mourning the death of her father, a mild-mannered civil engineer, when solicitors contact her to say she’s the sole beneficiary of a property in the Caribbean — a place so out of character for her father to own, lest even visit. Curiosity spiked, Nina meets with the British Virgin Island lawyer who is settling her father’s will and discovers a tech-fortified home that’s been carved into the sea cliff with locked underground rooms. Only the unique name of fortress gives her a clue this may have been her father’s. But why? Was he overloading a criminal enterprise, dodging taxes, or installing a second family? And where did he get the incredible amount money for the houses’s construction? Nina eventually realizes the whoever the builder of the house was evil, “because awful, evil people have always existed and sometimes you can’t tell they’re awful and sometimes those people turn out to be someone’s lovely loving clever cuddly dad”.

Steadman terrifically builds the tension and you know in your heart that Nina is being drawn to a concrete Venus fly trap. There’s a second major POV to add that — Maria, a former medical student and now a nanny has been hired to wait for an unknown family to assist them during their stay at the same house. But no family appears and the house tries to swallow her up. You do not know if this storyline happened in the past or future and how it relates to Nina’s story, but it’s equally fraught with suspense and terror. Steadman delivers an amazing twist as the two stories converge. Again, I was terrified (this time with a person in a glass coffin; last time by a pregnant woman lying bleeding on the floor of her in-laws’ house). 5 stars!

Literary Pet Peeve Checklist:
Green Eyes (only 2% of the real world, yet it seems like 90% of all fictional females): YES None in the book, but look at the cover!
Horticultural Faux Pas (plants out of season or growing zones, like daffodils in autumn or bougainvillea in Alaska): NO The tropical beauty of the Caribbean is evoked, but never fully detailed.

Thank you to Random House/Ballantine and NetGalley for a free advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you NetGalley for letting me read this in exchange for an honeys review. 3.5 stars for this book!
I'm not sure what I was expecting for this book but it sure surprised me. This was such a wild story. It was very fast paced and it kept me on my toes. I don't know how I feel about the ending; I think I wanted more. It felt a little too vague for me. Overall though, it was a crazy, heart racing read.

📚 PRE-PUBLICATION BOOK REVIEW 📚

Look in the Mirror By Catherine Steadman
Publication Date: July 30, 2024
Publisher: Random House Publishing | Ballentine

📚MY RATING: ⭐⭐⭐⭐✨
(Rounded up to 5⭐)

📚MY REVIEW:

What in the world did I just read?! 😳😳 This was my first Catherine Steadman book and now I need to read ALL her books so I can see if her books are always this wild and chaotic!

This story started off slowly, added in a little mysteriousness, and then TOOK OFF. Before I knew it, I'd already read half of the book... And I didn't want to put it down.

This book has multiple POVs in short chapters, and the way the story is written is utterly captivating. The tension and uncertainty for each character was palpable and my heart pounded as this story unraveled. The plot of this book really kept my interest and I was never sure what was coming with the start of each chapter!

I don't want to give away any spoilers, and I think it's safe to say this: I thought I had an idea about how this story might be going, and I even convinced myself that maybe it could just be a twisted way to create a kinda happy ending for the book. But NOPE. My idea was a laughable fail on my part. Instead, this book took a turn that I did NOT see coming and was utterly insane. Chaotically, wildly, intensely insane.

If you like fast-paced thrillers, that are a little edgy and a lot intense, I highly recommend you pick up this book when it comes out in just over two weeks.

A huge thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing | Ballentine for gifting me this advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!

#LookInTheMirror #CatherineSteadman #NetGalley #NetGalleyReviews #ARC #bookrecommendations #bookreviews #thrilleraddict #thrillerlover #thrillerreads #booklovers #bookcommunity

I was on the edge of my seat while reading this action packed thriller. I will definitely read more books by this author!

Thank you to the publisher for a copy of this book! I would like to start out by saying that I enjoyed the writing style and will be reading more by this author.

This is a locked door (literally) mystery that follows 2 women. The first is a housekeeper who is cleaning the property and the second is the daughter of the previous owner who has now passed away. In this house there is a locked door that the housekeeper gets trapped behind and the daughter Nina is trying to open… not knowing about each other.

I was immediately intrigued by the premise of this book, but truthfully I quickly lost interest. It very much felt like the premise was too straightforward. I found it quite predictable and thus was hard for me to continue turning the pages. I was rather bored.

Thank you to Ballantine Books and NetGalley, for the free E-copy for review.

I was on the edge of my seat with Look in the Mirror by Catherine Steadman. Nina, grappling with the loss of her father, embarks on a quest to uncover potential messages left by him after inheriting a mansion in the Virgin Islands. However, the mansion her father helped build holds unexpected secrets, challenging her perception.

The narrative unfolds into a claustrophobic locked-room scenario that ensnares unsuspecting women in an involuntary game. I couldn’t help but empathize with the protagonist, Nina, as she struggled to free herself from this unsettling predicament. Her tenacity and calm resolve amidst the unnerving game captivated me, and I found myself rooting for her throughout.
With multiple perspectives, the author skillfully weaved in past events to shed light on the unfolding mystery.

The conclusion delivered a shocking twist, revealing the orchestrator behind the escape rooms, while also serving as a poignant reminder of the harsh reality of the darker side of human nature.

Steadman's new book was a twisty, wild ride!

When Nina finds out that her father owned a house in the British Virgin Islands, she is surprised that she never heard of it. It's a beautiful secluded manor with everything paid for. The only catch: there's a locked room that no one can get into.

There's a dual storyline with Maria at the same house and she does get into the locked room.

Nina gets sinister notes and then, finds a way into the room. It's a room of puzzles/Escape rooms. Throughout the whole book, you are wanting to read about WHY this house is the way it is. It makes you want to keep reading and I thought the ending was satisfying. Just suspend reality a little bit though.

Thank you for the copy of Look in the Mirror. Sadly I wasnt a huge fan of this one. It started off strong but then I started losing interest in the story and some parts were just confusing. If you like a good cat and mouse type of book though this one might be the one to go after with all the stuff going on in the basement.

My Honest Review
Look In the Mirror
A Novel
by Catherine Steadman

Look In The Mirror was super enjoyable & entertaining read with bits of horror & a cat n’ mouse vibe. The twists and turns mixed with secrets, lies, & creepy house really keeps you engaged and captivated. This fresh take on a thriller was delightful. Read if you dare.


📚Expected Release July 30, 2024📚
Thank you Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine Books, NetGalley, & the brilliant author Catherine Steadman. I’m super appreciative & gave my honest opinion❤️

Thank you NetGalley for the early release of Look in the Mirror by Catherine Steadman. I was looking forward to this one but unfortunately it ended up not being for me. I was confused throughout the entire book and felt zero connection to any of the characters. I honestly don’t even really know what I just read….

I love a thriller especially psychological ones but this seemed a bit too action packed for me. Don’t get me wrong I love action in books but this seemed more of a survival book rather than a thriller book. It really didn’t make any sense to me and I’m not completely sure what even happened,,,,this is my first Catherine Steadman book and I want to give her books another chance because I have heard great things but this one just was not for me at all.

This was an entertaining thriller! It was fast-paced and kept me guessing. I came to care about the characters even though the book was mainly plot-driven. It was very mysterious and I was definitely curious to find out what was going on with this mysterious house. The island setting was great for summer too!

Look in the Mirror
By Catherine Steadman

This is the story of Nina Hepworth, a thirty-four year old unmarried British academic who has just lost her father, John, also an academic and a genius. Nina has been raised solely by her father since her mother died young.

In the midst of her grief, Nina finds a letter from a law firm in Roadtown, Tortola, informing her that her father has left her a house and property on the island of Gorda. The problem with this bequest is that Nina had never even known of the property's existence. Thus she sets out to meet with the lawyer, James Booth, in the British Virgin Islands. Thus begins Nina's quest to figure out the mystery involving her father and this property. Little does she know the danger she is walking into.

The story here is suspenseful, but I found it got bogged down with additional story lines and introduced some characters whose place in the storyline was not clearly explained. There were also some deliberate – but obvious – attempts at misdirection that didn't work especially well.

Over all, it was an interesting book and a quick read.

This was definitely a page turner of a book—but it was also incredibly dark, and I felt like it was a bit over the top in its premise. I did enjoy the book, and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a fast-paced thriller.

Look In The Mirror by Catherine Steadman was not what I expected I guess I really didn't know what to expect. Even after I finished reading it I was still wondering what I just read. There are many characters in this book and it was very interesting seeing how they all fit together.

Nina is a thirty something women living in London and just lost her father, and finds herself in the British Virgin Islands and learned she just inherited a beautiful home in Gorda. Nina had no idea that her father has this home with all it's state of the art systems, very modern home that is so not her father. One really burning question is how did he pay for such a house. Nina always though she knew her father, now she wonders what else he has kept from her

Maria is a ex medical student who now nannies for the rich. Maria loves the money and the different places her job takes her to. Maria needs to finish this job and then she will be able to move on with her life and not have to worry about anything. Yet all does not go to plan. Maria's family never shows up. As she waits and waits for them Maria makes herself at home. The one thing she should not do is go downstairs.to the basement. Maria kept thinking what will happen if she does? Should she or shouldn't she? At one point Maria feels maybe I should have listened and not go downstairs.

How does Nina and Maria fit together? Why do both houses have so many secrets? How does Joe fit in and then there is Lucinda. There was a huge mystery going on in this novel. One I did not see coming at all. As I stated before I didn't know what I was going to feel about this novel. By the end of the story I was happy I read it . I couldn't put it down. I needed to find out what happened to both Nina and Maria. What was really going on in those houses. Why were Nina and Maria really brought to those houses? This novel keep me questioning everything up until the end.

Thank you NetGalleyand Random House Publishing/Ballantine Books for the ARC. Thank you Catherine Steadman for a very exciting read.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Publishing for an advance copy of this book for review.

As someone else previously stated.....Wow! What a ride! This book was enjoyable but it is intense and at times down right scary. This book keeps you constantly guessing and wondering what is real and how things fit together. I found myself reading late into the night as I didn't want to put it down! Highly recommend if you are a fan of thrilling reads that keep you on the edge of our seat!

Super tense, fast paced and awesome. The personal stakes these characters go through is harsh and epic. I loved this book!
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

This book is one you won’t be able to put down.

Nina’s father just died and now she has just found out he has a secret house on an island. Going there Nina is not prepared to what she is going to find.

This is a multi POV book that is truly frightening without being a gore filled horror novel.

Nina and Maria must escaped terrifying escape rooms before they are killed. This book is so fast paced and with every turn of the page keeps you going.

There would be some parts of the book where I would gasped out loud. I would want to yell at the characters. This is a must read book for 2024

Pub Date: July 30th, 2024

Genre: Thriller
APK: Ebook
Pages: 304
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Series or Standalone: Stand-alone

Thank you Ballantine Books for providing me a free copy of the book for an honest review.