This is the most attention grabbing thriller I have read in a while! I loved Steadman’s “Something in the Water” debut novel and recommended it to everyone. I will do the same for this title!

The plot is clever and fresh and told from two points of view. Nina, a college professor inherits a tropical home from her deceased father that’s a complete mystery to her. And Maria, a Nanny takes a job at a tropical home where the only rule is “don’t go into the locked room in the basement “. Both women get a lot more than they bargained for in this heart-stopping thriller. Read it! You won’t be disappointed.

When Nina’s father dies, he leaves her a large vacation home in the Caribbean. Nina never knew of this place and how could father afford such a luxury? She travels to the islands and meets the lawyer who assures her this house is now hers.

Maria is a nanny for the ultra rich. She takes an assignment and gets to their vacation home but the family never shows up. She begins to enjoy the house, pool, and spa, not to mention the local beaches. But where is the family?

This book was definitely a page turner for me! Very exciting with some crazy twists and turns and I have to admit I had no idea where it was headed. The author did a great job with character and plot development and giving you just enough info in each chapter to keep you guessing and turning pages.

Thank you to the author, NetGalley, and Random House Publishing for the advance reader copy. This is my honest review. 4.5/5⭐️ publication date July 30, 2024.

Going into this book I wasn’t sure what to expect especially since the synopsis didn’t really give you much to go on. All I can say is WOW, Catherine Steadman did not disappoint! I loved this book so much! It was heart pounding and kept me on edge pretty much the entire time. I’ll never look at mirrors the same. Thank you Net Galley and Random House Publishing/Ballantine books for sharing this book’s digital copy to review. Will definitely be recommending!

This book was absolutely INCREDIBLE. The entire time I was equal parts stressed and curious. I was CONVINCED that I knew how it was going to end, and what the plot twists were going to be, but Catherine kept me on my toes and I was certainly not correct (except for the epilogue hehe). If thriller/mystery books are your thing, you MUST read this book. I will be recommending it to everyone I know and can't wait to add it to my bookshelf!

This was a good read! I felt like it was very unique and held my interest though the book. Nina's father just died and she feels like her life has been turned upside down when she inherits a secret property. Nina feels like she there was so much she didn't know about her father and the only way to get to know the other side of him is to explore this secret property. The house is beautiful and tech savvy, how did her father afford all this? What was he hiding?
Maria is a nanny trying to save up enough money to finish medical school. She takes ones last job in the Virgin Islands. The family is supposed to meet her at the house and in the mean time, she should enjoy the house. She just can't go in the basement. But the family never shows...

Nina is the daughter of a smart and brilliant man. But how well do we really know our parents? When Nina’s father passes away, she discovers he had a house in the British Virgin Islands, which will now be left to her. But she never knew this house even existed before. So what other secrets has he kept from his only child?
As she visits the estate hoping to find answers, she is left with even more questions. Who was her father and why does this sleek sophisticated house have a locked basement?
Cat Steadman takes locked room mysteries to a whole other level in this sinister and heart-pumping thriller.

3.5 stars rounded up

Grieving her father's death, Nina unexpectedly inherits a house she knew nothing about in the Virgin Islands.

Told through multiple perspectives, there is much more than meets the eye in the basement of the property.

Without giving anything away, this was a very wild ride of a book. Definitely outside the box all while enjoyable.

Reviewed for NetGalley:

Grieving her father's death, Nina unexpectedly inherits a house in the Virgin Islands.

Told through multiple perspectives, there is much more than meets the eye in the basement of the property.

Without giving anything away, this was a very wild ride of a book. Definitely outside the box all while enjoyable.

Catherine Steadman has created a compelling psychological thriller in her latest book, Look in the Mirror.

Nina is a loner in London grieving for the recent loss of her father; Maria is a struggling nanny living in New York and hoping to return to life as a medical student. Though they have never met, their lives are about to intertwine in a way they could never have predicted.

When Nina’s unassuming father passes away, she is shocked to learn he left her a secret and extravagant vacation home in the British Virgin Islands. What else could he possibly have kept hidden from her? Meanwhile, Maria has accepted a new position with a family she has yet to meet, and that is not the only thing that seems off. What secrets are her new employer harboring, and is she even safe in their island home?

Steadman does a great job building tension throughout the book, even if the plot requires a suspension of disbelief. Shorter chapters help move it forward, and the puzzles Nina is tasked to solve add a fun element. The alternating viewpoints allow the reader to see how each character is connected, and it is especially easy to root for the scrappy Maria. While the outcome is less than satisfactory, it does leave it open for a sequel.

This would make a perfect pick to bring along on vacation, as it is a fun and fast read.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing an ARC of Look in the Mirror by Catherine Steadman. This was my second book by Steadman after reading The Family Game. I love a good suspenseful thriller, and Look in the Mirror missed the mark a bit for me. I won't talk about the plot here as plenty other reviewers already have. I will just say that I had a very hard time connecting with the characters and believing the situations. I am fairly good at setting aside my disbelief and going with the flow; however, much of what happened i Look in the Mirror was incredibly outlandish. It also felt rushed in some places where Steadman should have built out the world and characters more. Despite all of that, I flew through the book because I wanted to see how it all shook out in the end.

All I can say is wow! I loved this story and will be reading more by Catherine Steadman. She focuses in on two women who spend time in the same house, but this isn't any normal house. The suspense, the puzzles, and the unraveling of the crime all kept me reading. I highly recommend this book! I received a copy of this book from Net Galley.

Whoa! What a crazy ride this book took me on!

Pros: I was on the edge of my seat for the entire second half! You could tell something was fishy in the first half, but I couldn’t figure out the twist(s) personally. I also like the multiple viewpoints throughout, but was having a little trouble with the timeline initially - this got cleared up really well several chapters in. Holy smokes though! What a concept, and to me at least, an original concept. Really well written and thought out.

Cons: I didn’t have any

5 stars/A

I LOVED THIS BOOK!!! It’s a cross between psychological thriller and the Saw movies…if that’s even a thing. If you like puzzles and mysteries and family secrets then you will love this book too!

I really enjoy Catherine Steadman’s writing. The way she just drops you in the middle of everything. Also the short chapters are THE best because she makes you want more and before you know it, you’re done with the book! I loved her other book, The Family Game and I felt some of the same intensity and unreliable some of the characters were. Action packed, thriller, scary and so much more. I really enjoyed this book and I’m so exciting to keep reading more from Catherine Steadman. Thank you NetGalley, Catherine Steadman and Ballantine Books for this digital copy!

Could not get through this one fast enough!! I was so intrigued and on the edge of my seat the entire time. Looking forward to more!
(Unfortunately this title is not eligible for an Amazon review).

This book was very compelling. It was hard to put down! I found the storyline very interesting, the pacing was also well done. The ending was a little abrupt, but I think it worked. I appreciated the twists at the end. I would definitely recommend this book to others.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book. I have enjoyed Steadman's other works so I was excited to read this one. I was hooked from the beginning when the MC finds out she inherits a secret house that she didn't know about on an island. What ensues is a frightening escape room mixed with the movie "Saw". Read to find out if she makes it through. I absolutely devoured this one! Definitely recommend.

ARC releasing 7/30. Nina's father dies and she finds in the will that he left her a luxury home on an island that she never knew existed. Upon entering the home, she is met with a house of horrors. This was slow and I had a hard time making much sense of it. It was various character POV that I felt unnecessary and didn't feel like anything was explained well. This had great premise but poor follow through.

Woooo this kept me on the edge of my seat! The second half of the book I was having heart palpitations. This was a very fun read. I am a little confused by the last chapter but still a great read.

I read "Something in the Water" and thought it was an interesting story, fast-paced, but a bit outlandish and predictable. I feel similarly about Catherine Steadman's new book, "Look in the Mirror." It captured my attention right from the start, and I didn't want to put it down. I liked both main characters (something I didn't really feel in "Something in the Water), and I enjoyed the back-and-forth between their storylines. Sometimes, alternating narratives can be confusing, but the format really worked for this book.

Nina is 34, a Cambridge University professor, and grieving her father's death, when she discovers he left her an estate on Gorda, part of the British Virgin Islands. She is shocked because there is no way he could have afforded this. He was a civil engineer, academic and crossword puzzle creator. And why didn't he tell her? Especially since she had been living with him for years and they were very close, as her mother had died after complications from childbirth. She flies to Gorda and the BVI lawyer, James, takes her to the spectacular glass and steel house built into the rocks. But as she looks around, she is comforted by things her father had owned, including a special book, “The Waste Land,” that her mother had gifted her father years ago. Wandering throughout the house, she finds a locked door in the basement, but James has no idea what is behind the door.

The other protagonist, Maria, is a medical school student who put her studies on hold to earn money as a nanny for wealthy families. She shows up for a two-week job at the house on Gorda – the reader later learns this was before Nina’s trip to the island – but the house is empty. The woman who arranged the nanny job, known only as “the woman with the too-tight chignon,” tells Maria the family will show up any day and to maker herself at home. Maria is only cautioned against trying to open the locked door in the basement. Hmmmm, what do you think happens?

At first, I thought the story would progress in one direction, but there were twists and turns that, while difficult to believe, at least made the plot exciting. I won’t give anything away, but there are definitely white-knuckle moments that will keep you reading!
A good summer vacation read if you can overlook the too-convenient plot twists.

Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for this ePUB ARC.

#LookintheMirror #NetGalley