3 stars. Vanessa and Aaron are married. Vanessa came into the marriage with one son as did Aaron, plus they were blessed with a baby of their own. The house next door sells and a family moves in that Vanessa and Aaron are fond of. They have a teenage girl, Rachel, the same age as Vanessa and Aaron's boys. Plus they have a younger son. Things are going along fine until one day tragedy strikes and Rachel falls out the bedroom window onto concrete. Will Rachel recover and be able to tell everyone what happened? Because in the meantime, Vanessa and her family are the ones being blamed for the fall, especially Vanessa's son Jacob.

Vanessa and Aaron's marriage starts to unwind. Aaron has secrets of his own. Can they stay hidden? I love this author. I've read other books by her and loved them. This one, not too much. This was a very slow burn. Very slow. At times, it felt repetitive to me. The concept was great, but the delivery was lacking. Even the ending felt flat.

Thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture for the ARC. I greatly appreciate it. I do recommend this book, as I have issues with slow burns, but others don't and they shouldn't miss a good thriller.

Couldn't put it down! A really original.stoeyline, well written characters, so many twists and turns and I was just so invested. The characters are perfectly brought to life and its all just so true to life and realistic feeling that its easy to get completely lost it. I loved it

Wonderful suspenseful story. Well written characters. Vanessa has had a lot to deal with in her life, everyone else has secrets galore including her husband, the teenage boys and the girl next door.
In my opinion you can't go wrong with anything written by Karen Kind.
My thanks to netgalley and the publisher for my copy.

Girl Next Door by Karen King is a tense whodunit that kept me glued to the pages.

Vanessa and Aaron have a cozy domestic life with their three children. Jacob is Vanessa's son from a previous abusive relationship, and Lucas is widower Aaron's son. The two have blended their families and have together added daughter Erin. When a new family moves in next door, fourteen year old Rachel makes quite an impression on her new neighbours, with the two teenage boys fighting to win her attention. But when Rachel falls from her bedroom window, it is Jacob who takes the lion's share of the blame. Vanessa knows that her loving son would never hurt the young girl, and as tensions mount within the two households, suspicions and accusations fly. Just what happened to Rachel, and why does it seem as if everyone knows far more than they are letting on?

I can always count on Karen King to deliver a compelling tale and this latest certainly kept me guessing until the very end.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for an ARC.

I read Girl Next Door by Karen King in one sitting. I really enjoyed this book. It had some good tension and twists, and I couldn't figure out what would happen next. There were lots of good red herrings. The book is a psychological suspense novel, and it did not disappoint.

The book's plot is based on the strength of family ties and events that really do test relationships and loyalty.

The ending was shocking and jaw-dropping. I would recommend this book and this author. A solid read. I will read more by this author if her books are as good as Girl Next Door!

#GirlNextDoor #NetGalley @bookouture

📖 Girl Next Door
✍️ Karen King
🗓️ Jul 09 2024
✍️ Bookouture

⭐️Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for my advanced copy. All opinions are my own, I was under no obligation to review.

Vanessa and Aaron are living a second chance at life and love. Vanessa’s last relationship did not end well and Aaron’s wife passed away years ago. Now the couple blended a family together and were blessed with a daughter of their own.

The house next to them has been empty for a long time and the family is happy when Carl and Suzy move in with their kids. Vanessa and Aaron’s boys hit it off with the daughter, Rachel. One day tragedy strikes and Rachel falls out of a window. Vanessa’s son, Jacob, gets the blame. Will Rachel recover?

That’s the kind of story that I enjoy. Karen is a wonderful author and I’ve read a lot of her books. Went blind into this one as I know I can rely on her for delivering a story! I liked the characters and the story. The beginning took me a moment but I got into the story super fast. I had to know what really happened. For me, the pacing worked.

All on all a very enjoyable thriller that I inhaled! Thank you, Karen ❤️

Thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for this Advanced Reader’s Copy of Girl Next Door by Karen King due to be published July 9, 2024.
Vanessa and Aaron are thrilled when Carl, Suzy, and their daughter, Rachel, move in next door. She is a wonderful friend to Vanessa’s son, Jacob, and Aaron’s son, Lucas. She also adores their daughter, Erin. That all comes to a halt when Rachel falls from her bedroom window and her parents think Jacob pushed her. As Rachel fights to come out from her coma, Rachel’s parents blame Jacob for her fall. Did he push her, or did she fall on her own?
This started out slowly, and I honestly wondered how after 20% when I found out who pushed Rachel, would take 80% of the book? Luckily, the book picked up and I finished it in no time. I was totally hooked and couldn’t wait to get to the end so I could find out what happened. I was not disappointed and was shocked at the end of the book! I would definitely recommend this book if you want a great thriller!
#NetGalley #KarenKing #Bookouture #GirlNextDoor

I just love Karen's books. The only thing about this book that annoyed me is using the names Erin and Aaron. Of all the names out there, she couldn't choose another one so they were not the same name. Confusing. So I do think the entire plot behind this girl (like the very ending) is a little far fetched, I did enjoy the different characters and all the secrets that were revealed. She did a great job of bringing the relationship/feud between the brothers to life. This book held my attention and I was so excited to just power through it. It was another great book by Karen!

This one really did keep me guessing all the way until the end. I was so sure I'd figured it out at the start but the ending really surprised me in a good way. Once the story really got going I couldn't put this down, I absolutely raced through it. I was never really sure which characters could be trusted.
In terms of the structure, I enjoyed reading multiple POV's and I liked the short chapters.
I did find the set up in the first couple of chapters a little bit awkward. Sometimes it felt like there was unnecessary spoonfeeding rather than letting the reader figure out the dynamic and atmosphere for themselves. I also found Aaron too unlikeable. Nevertheless, overall I enjoyed this and look forward to seeing more from Karen King.

This talented author has written a page turner, a cannot put down novel of mystery and intrigue. Family and friends. Secrets and red herrings kept me guessing. This story moves quickly with realistic characters...even the title is intriguing...the girl next door could be anyone...the girl next door could be innocent or not...the girl next door might be a friend or not...Thanks Netgalley...

Whether you read a romantic comedy or a thriller, this author excels in both genres. Romantic comedies are in the past for me, but I devour thrillers like there is no tomorrow and then of course my list would not be complete if I would not include this author's books. I would not miss them for the world, so I try to read every crime book she publishes.

After been dealt with a serious blow,in  life smiles at Vanessa again. Happiness is there one moment but can vanish in the blink of an eye. She tries with all she has to keep everything together, but it feels like she stands on one side of a mountain, whilst her partner Aaron stands on the other side, separated by a deep ravine. 

When the lies pile up, is there a way back or will they go their separate ways?

I felt like I was watching a volleyball match. the ball symbolised the suspicion being passed from one suspect I had to the next. 

Needless to say I did not have a clue and was shocked by the outcome. 

Loved the book and the author for the fun I had trying to guess the name of the culprit. 5 stars

Thank you