I really enjoyed Steadman's The Family Game so I was excited to read her new book, Look in the Mirror, 3 stars for this one. Premise was unique and I did get through the book quickly. I felt it got super confusing in the middle, but I think that was due to the far fetched plot. Overall, it was good and kept me decently entertained.

Thanks to Ballantine Books & NetGalley for the ARC!

Another great read by Catherine Steadman! This book kept me guessing all throughout and I absolutely could not put it down. My only complaint was the when I would read before bed, it kept me up later that I should have been! :) Definitely recommend.

A Thriller with a Twisted Premise

3.5 stars

When University Professor Nina inherits a mysterious house in the Caribbean from her recently deceased father, she has no idea what is in store for her.

At the same time, Maria, a young nanny, is eagerly awaiting the arrival of the family she is hired to work for. Her only instruction is not to open the basement door, but will her curiosity lead her into danger?

I can't say much about the plot without giving things away, so I am going to avoid a summary. I went into this blind and had no idea what to expect. I could have never guessed what transpired.

In addition to Maria and Nina, a few other characters play a role in the events, including a mysterious woman named Lucinda, Joe, a local man intrigued with Nina, and Electrician Yang Joon-gi. The house is a character in itself and perhaps is the most powerful. The house is creepy and adds an additional layer of tension and suspense.

While the premise is beyond intriguing, the execution and character development is lacking. Joe and Nina must have had some lunch for what develops between them. I wanted to know more about all of the characters' backstories, especially Lucinda’s. More development would have added more depth and complexity to the plot.

Still, this is a fast-paced, unpredictable read with an original premise filled with riddles that morph into a life-threatening game of cat and mouse. I had a lot of fun reading this because I couldn't figure out what the house was or where the plot was heading.

Have fun reading this, but don’t think too hard, or you will get lost in the plot holes and eye rolls. Warning: This book requires the suspension of disbelief.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine in exchange for an honest review.

Catherine Steadman never disappoints, I absolutely love her books and could not wait to read her latest "Look In The Mirror." This book had so many twists and turns that it kept me reading on to find out what was going on. Highly recommend.

Ballantine eARC
At first, It took me a minute to get into the story because I was curious about how the two POVs would come together - and this is explained at the very end, but I found once I got going I didn't mind this at all because the book was engaging, twisty, and full of suspense. Nina's timeline was interesting because of how it was set up. I went along her journey of wondering what her father was hiding right along with her. And as her story progressed, I was so curious about where it was going. Maria's journey was heart pounding and a page turner. I was so impressed with how the author made the reader think and engage with the book to see if they could suss out what was going on. After The Family Game and now this, I will be continuing to read this author because of her originality and creativity.

Kept me on the edge of my seat. I thought the writing was good and the characters were well defined. I would definitely recommend.

This was a thrill ride basically from the very beginning. I loved the concept too, it felt like a fresh take on some of my favorite thrillers.
Definitely a great read this summer!
Thank you to Random House for providing the ARC

I loved the beginning and I enjoyed the end—but the middle of this novel felt confusing and rather hard to follow. Otherwise the plot and twist of this book was super great.

thank you to the publishers and netgalley for the ARC of this book. all opinions are my own.

I wish I could put into words how much I enjoyed this. What a great book. Highly recommend.

Nina thought she knew her father better than anyone. Imagine her surprise when she is left a property on the British Virgin Islands. One that she had no idea about and that her father never mentioned. How could he afford such a property? When did he built it? When did he go there and who with? These are just a few questions running through Nina's head. On top of dealing with her grief over her father's death, she is also burdened with his secrets. And she's determined to unearth the secret life he lead on the island, and why he never told her about it, no matter the cost. Even if the cost is her safety.

WOW! That's all I can say about this one. It's a fast-paced read that will have you glued to the pages and wondering what will happen next. I wasn't expecting all the twists and turns this story would take, and the ending was mind-blowing!
This is definitely a book I recommend to fans of thrillers. It'll make a great destination summer read.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a really entertaining and fast-paced read! I feel very middle-of-the-road towards it only because it's not the kind of thriller I typically really enjoy, but it did keep me guessing and was fun to read. If you liked her previous book, "The Family Game," or if you enjoy thrillers set around games/competitions you'll probably enjoy this as well.

Thank you for the ACR read.

This book was a tense adventure. I could not guess what was going to happen. I was scared for the characters and worried about them throughout the story. Read like a movie with games and puzzles. I think people who love Saw and other tense thriller/horrors will love this.

Thanks to the publisher and to NetGalley for a ARC of this title. My reviews never contain spoilers and are freely given.
Look in the Mirror is a quick, fun read. The story centers on a woman who inherits a house upon her father’s death that she never knew he owned. She travels to a remote island and her adventure begins. A good beach read.

Quick, fast-paced thriller with the appropriate twists in all the right places. Don't get attached to too many characters, because danger is right around the next door.......The protagonist here seems to have won the littery when she inherits a grand, modern house in the BWI, but her win takes a dangers turn very quickly. The minor characters are as interesting (perhaps moreso) as her, and this makes for an engaging mystery.

Look in the mirror by Catherine Steadman really tries to bring us into a tense thriller with two separate protagonists seemingly unrelated until the story weaves them together. Overall, I do enjoy the overall plot of the book. It’s in interesting concept for a thriller. I’ve read several of books by this author and enjoy her writing style. She’s very descriptive, full of details, and builds her characters well. This book, though, left me so puzzled and confused. Even though I enjoy her writing usually, I found myself struggling to be drawn into caring about these characters and feeling the tension they feel which is what I look for in a thriller. Like I said, the plot line itself seems very original. I just didn’t feel the connection that normally keeps me wanting to turn the pages.

3.5 stars
When I reviewed the other book I’ve read by Catherine Steadman (The Family Game), I commented that I was impressed with the original premise, and I can say the same thing with this novel.

Nina is an academic like her father. They were comfortable financially, but when he passes and she learns he has a home on the British Virgin Islands, she wonders what else he kept hidden all these years. Where did he get a source of wealth to build an exotic home that’s glass and marble carved into a cliff in a neighborhood of the super-rich?

In alternating chapters, we meet Maria. She’s taking time off from medical school to save up money working as a nanny for the ultra-wealthy. She’s waiting for the two kids she’ll watch to arrive, but as days pass and they’re still not here, she hangs out by the pool. The only rule is “don’t go in the basement.”

While this is original and the characters were likeable enough, I never felt the tension or connection I was looking for. When someone goes through an ordeal like Nina and Maria face, I want to feel tense on their behalf. Parts of the ending were good, but I had some issues I can’t go into without spoiling plot points.

NetGalley provided an advance copy of this novel, which RELEASES JULY 30, 2024.

WOW Look in the Mirror was awesome! Incredibly fast paced, great characters and heart stopping action. I could not put this book down!

Nina's father has died and he has left her a beautiful beach island home. As the reader,we are really pulled in to Nina and are rooting for her. The house itself is a character in the book and that was fascinating. I've read plenty of "locked room" mysteries but this thriller has a different take. I could definitely see it being a Netflix movie. Well done Ms. Steadman. I will be adding your other novels to my "to read" list. Thank you Ballentine Books and Net Galley for giving me the opportunity to read it before release.

I finished this book 11 days ago, and I still feel a bit puzzled on how I liked it, but overall, I think it wasn't a book I enjoyed.
This book presents us with 2 main protagonists, but multiple other characters become narrators as the plot moves along. Nina is a British professor, mourning the death of her brilliant father, when she is notified that he left her a lavish smart home in the BVI, a house that she didn't even know existed. Maria is a young woman, making her living as a "vacation" nanny for the ultra-rich, saving money so that she can go back to medical school one day. From the beginning it is not clear how these 2 vastly different women are related to each other, but as told in alternating chapters, their storylines quickly merge.
For me, I think knowing this is the 3rd book by Catherine Steadman that I barely liked, giving all 3 average ratings, I will probably have to quit this author. I don't know if it's because I don't typically enjoy thrillers or the writing style or perhaps both, but while I finished this book... it wasn't for me. Overall, I'm just left still puzzled about what the point was and felt like the plotting was uneven and not well paced.
Thank you to Random House Ballantine and NetGalley for the electronic ARC of this novel for review.

I LOVE Catherine Steadman! She always finds a way to work in the creepiest games... I don't want to say too much but this book is like The
Family Game on steroids. Loved it!

Catherine Steadman is getting high on my list of authors whose work I look forward to every year and this one doesn't disappoint. The setting and plot sucked me in right from the very beginning and this was an unexpected wild ride!

Nina is a academic in London grieving her father who recently passed when she learns she's inherited a luxury home in the British Virgin Islands. This seems highly out of character for her loving father to keep such a secret from her, but transportation has all been arranged so she heads on over to crystal blue waters and white sand to see if she can find some answers.

I was hooked from the very beginning and this was a hard to put down book. While most of her works have been a 5 for me, this one was a 4 given the ending didn't feel as tidy as the others did, but was still very much enjoyable.