This book was written so well and had me wondering what was coming next! It was a concept that’s been done many times before but twisted in such a way that it felt new and fresh. She is a masterful storyteller, but this one was simply exceptional! I had no idea what would happen and that’s a rare and wonderful thing for me. Her writing always keeps me on my toes and I love that. This was a phenomenal read and I loved every single word!

Loved the unique setting and plot of this book! I enjoyed piecing together the story. Another great book from the author. Thanks to Random House Publishing Group Ballantine and NetGalley for the ARC.

I have pretty mixed feelings about this one. It held my attention and it moved quickly. It’s also difficult to share my thoughts on this book without spoiling it.

The book has plenty of intrigue from the start as the story mostly moves between characters Nina and Maria. For a long time it’s unclear how their storylines will tie together.. Further in, some things begin to fall in place while there there are many unanswered questions. At that point I began to worry that the resolution to the mystery wasn’t going to be satisfying or clever enough.

And for me, it ultimately wasn’t. So while I enjoyed reading the book and liked many of the characters, I was disappointed with the ending.



SPOILER: For me, if the answer is that the wealthy are cruel, sadistic and like playing games with people’s live — quite literally — I think it’s an easy out and not strong storytelling. There is very little insight or psychological reasoning for what’s happened in my opinion,

The set up for this thriller is intriguing and I was quickly pulled in. The house, the young women, the mystery were all the perfect set up. However, once I started to figure out what was going on, the book didn't feel so fun anymore. It felt like a missed opportunity. Overall an thriller. Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy in return for my honest review.

Maria is a nanny for the ultra rich and famous, and her newest gig involves a home in the British Virgin Islands with a mysterious locked room and no children to be seen. Nina’s father passed away and left her a home she knew nothing about in the British Virgin Islands, so she goes to see her inheritance and learn more about her father.

This is a book that I’m not entirely sure how I feel about. There were definitely aspects I liked and some I didn’t. It was written (probably intentionally) in a very choppy way that just felt undeveloped and rushed. Without giving much away, I picked up the book hoping for a fun locked door mystery and this is not that. It was completely different than the synopsis leads you to believe. That may appeal to some readers immensely but was disappointing to me. If you enjoy escape rooms, puzzles, Squid Game type stories, then this is a thriller that you should grab!

Thank you to Catherine Steadman, Random House- Ballantine Books, and Netgalley for the opportunity to be an early reader and reviewer.

Very fun! One of Catherine Steadman's best, my favorite since SOMETHING IN THE WATER! I truly had no idea where this one was going next, and the payoff is satisfying and unexpected. Highly recommend!

Wow, this book started SO strong, so it pains me to rate it only 3 stars. I could not put it down for the first 25% of the book, and it was so intriguing. Unfortunately, it began to fall apart for me after that point. I found that the character development was severely lacking, especially for the main character Nina. She came off as so cold and unlikeable, and it made it difficult for me to root for her in the end. Plus I did not understand the "instant love" romance that came out of left field towards the end of the book. Was I to believe these characters had deep feelings for each other after meeting for only a couple of hours and eating lunch together once? I was very confused by what was going on here.

I also felt the ending felt rushed and not well explained. It almost seemed like even the author didn't quite know what was happening and tried to explain it the best they could. I got the main gist but maybe I didn't fully understand how everyone was connected. Oh well. Not my favorite Steadman; her release The Family Game was much better than this one.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for the copy of Look In The Mirror by Catherine Steadman. This was a great read and kept me glued to the pages. It took some time to understand the timeline and how Maria and Nina were connected, but it was worth the wait. If you’re willing to suspend some belief, you will be rewarded with a well-paced and creative story that will leave you speechless. 4.5 stars rounded up to 5.

"Look In the Mirror" by Catherine Steadman is a fun read with twists and turns that the reader won't see coming. It requires a bit of reality suspension by the reader, but not so much that it hovers over the book. There could have been better character development to suit the ending, but still, a twisty read that's perfect for a pool or beach day.

Nina’s father has died recently, leaving her bereft and confused. When she receives a letter from a solicitor telling her she has inherited a house in the BVI. She has never heard her father mention a beach house and can not figure out what seems so odd about the entire situation.

Flip to Maria, an ambitious nanny for the people who live or not at the same house. Only no children or bosses show up. All she knows is she can not go in the locked room. And you just know this girl is nosey and is not going to let a locked door stop her.

A locked room mystery? Or is it a game? And how is Nina’ father involved? Will either of them find out what or who is hunting them?

Excellent!


NetGalley/ RHPG Ballentine July 30, 2024

Wow this one was great! Thank you NetGalley for the ARC! I believe this one had a lot of originality and many twists and turns. Sometimes the different POVs were a little confusing but I'm sleep deprived so maybe it's just me.

A house in paradise.......

Young inhabitants with no ties...................

What could go wrong? The author does such a good job of endearing you to both Nina and Maria with their journeys to "the house". You become invested in seeing the outcome for both of them. I did not see any of the twists coming and enjoyed watching them unfold.

A fast paced page turning thriller, I sped through this in one afternoon.

This kept me on the edge of my seat. I loved this book and rate it 4/5, but I wanted more!! The ending felt a bit rushed? I was looking for more detail in the end. While I enjoyed the epilogue and it gave me a bit more of what I was looking for I still could have used more!

If you enjoy a fast paced thriller, I would still definitely recommend this one! I always enjoy Catherine Steadman and this one did not disappoint!

Thank you to Random House for an advanced copy. All opinions are my own.

JTH

Look in the Mirror tells the alternating story of two women. Nina’s father dies and leaves her a beautiful home in a tropical paradise. He wasn’t well off so Nina wonders where he got the money. Maria, a nanny, has acquired a job in a luxurious home with one rule – don’t go in the basement.
The book goes back and forth between the two women, and I sincerely wondered how in the world these two women were remotely connected. It was interesting but confusing. About halfway through it all comes together and takes off from there.
It keeps building, with a few more characters built in, to an exciting finish that I did not see coming.
This is a good one for psychological suspense!

2.5 ⭐️. I wanted to love this book, I heard that if I liked the ending of The Family Game I would enjoy this one so my expectations were very high. Unfortunately this didn’t work for me at all. Told in multiple POVs, you aren’t really sure about timelines, what connections are and it makes it pretty frustrating to get such little details early on, give me something at some point! The writing is also really weird and abrupt. Chapters start with many details following a present storyline only to end abruptly by telling what happened instead of showing it. My biggest gripe with this book is the unfortunate ending. Knee deep in the action it abruptly ends and time jumps years ahead in the next chapter. What a cop out!

I really did like the premise of this book - yes some spoilers ahead - but the execution fell flat. I wasn’t really sure what was happening in the first 20%, going in pretty blind. It should have been a quick read but I honestly kept falling asleep in the first half. The back half flew by in comparison. I liked the locked room premise, I pieced together how Maria fit in pretty quickly and was shocked by how her story ended. It all felt very squid games but make it an escape room and for some reason this didn’t work as well because it doesn’t dive in deep enough and feels really unrealistic. I’m pretty bummed on how this one worked out and wish it had a better ending with more flushed out characters. Also, I think there are some big plot holes the more I think about it.

Thank you NetGalley, Random House Publishing and Catherine Steadman for this egalley in exchange for my honest review.

This book grabbed my attention and kept me up late from the very first page. A story told in multiple perspectives with an escape room vibe. It started to lose my attention in the back half of the book. But overall very enjoyable and will definitely have me thinking twice about looking in the mirror! 😟 Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for the ARC of this book!

Although it took me a while to get into this book I am sure happy that I did. Look in the Mirror is the twisty tale of Nina and Maria. Nina just lost her father, he is her only family and really her only friend. She’s lonely and unaware of how to move on. She soon finds out her dad had a whole other life. Nina finds out she left him a gorgeous home on a beautiful island and she heads there to check it out. Nothing is at it seems and with each minute Nina is more and more confused. Maria is a nanny she works for the wealthy - having made her way through half of med school and a traumatic past Maria is happy to have a job on an island with 2 kids and a single dad- but the kids never show up. Maria doesn’t know what to do and in the end ultimately makes the wrong choice landing her in the middle of something she never expected. Twisty and thrilling this book had me on my toes. Though I didn’t get into the book until the 25% mark after that I didn’t want to put it down. 4 stars and a big thanks for the ARC.

This is an over the top, off the rails, and completely bonkers popcorn thriller, and fans of Steadman's last book, The Family Game, are going to love this one too!

This might just be my favorite Steadman book so far! Something in the Water hooked me and books like this just keep me wanting to read everything that will come next!. This one kept me on the edge of my seat, riveting!

I loved Catherine Steadman’s book The Family Game so I was excited to get a chance to read Look In The Mirror. This book is told in alternating POV’s, the main one is Nina who has recently lost her brilliant father and is surprised with a phone call telling her she has inherited his house in the British Virgin Islands. Nina travels to check out the house and the necessary paperwork but this trip starts revealing more questions than answers.
The other POV’s are Maria and Joon-gi. Maria was a nanny hired to take care of some kids in this same house a few weeks earlier and Joon-gi is an electrician who has worked on the house.
This book was a quick read with short, well-written chapters but it disappointed me. I feel like I have read books and watched shows so similar over the past few years. I knew immediately what was going on,
There was no suspense or intrigue to me in this book.
Thanks to Ballantine Books and NetGalley for the eARC to read and review.