Best House on the Block is a suspenseful, domestic, mystery set in an upscale neighborhood in San Francisco. When a woman in the neighborhood gets killed, everyone on the block is a suspect. This is a good mystery but I felt aspects of the book were too far fetched..

This was my first thriller by Ragan, and really enjoyed it. I loved the plot and not knowing who to trust in the neighborhood, the characters, the twists. Will be recommending it!

This book started really well and was fast-paced, which I loved. I found the story a bit confusing the more I read. It felt like I was being given a lot of information- a lot of different plots and storylines. It was all just a lot.
The story is a really good one, but I can't seem to put my finger on what exactly it is that didn't feel right. I noticed that sometimes the tone of certain characters didn't seem true to who they were being portrayed as- or didn't have a consistent tone at all.
There were some surprises that didn't quite make a lot of sense to me. I'm not sure if I may have missed something, but it was definitely a surprise.
If you love fast-paced mysteries with lots of twists, this is the one for you!
T.R. Ragan does a great job at tying up loose ends so the reader has no questions at the end of the story.
While this may not be my favourite, it is worth a read.
Thank you to netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book in advance of its publication date (Nov. 2024) in exchange for my honest review.

Was a great mystery to read! However I predicted the ending around halfway through, but I still liked how everything played out. The characters were all interesting and the secrets were juicy. Everything tied up nice and neat at the end. Definitely look forward to reading more from this author.

Thank you NetGalley for the ebook in exchange for an honest review.

Prologue was very good and so was the summary of the book, I was excited to get started. I felt this fell flat. I liked the setting of the Fab Forties, and the little community, but despite the book being short, I still thought it felt slow and did not feel that it lived up to the hype. I get that the point was to make everyone a possible suspect but to me it felt predictable. I can’t say much without spoiling, but I was expecting a nice twist related to the plot that I did not get. There was a twist unrelated to the main plot, felt very random and out of place, so not to my liking either.

Nothing is better than reading a book written by an author who knows what they are doing.
The author literally said, I'm going to take every cliche or stereotype of the genre and make it into something you'd like. She promised and delivered.
At the beginning, the book started a little bit slow, I thought the author focused so much on the relationships between the neighbors unnecessarily, the setting of the affluent neighborhood felt like a bubble, it was as if the characters were the last people on earth.
However, as I kept reading, everything just fell into place, it all started to make sense.
Rosella gave the interconnected ties between every household credibility. It wasn't just a miniature society where people's existence was limited, on the contrary, it was more of a closed circle of events either started by Rosella or ones she was privy to.
The plot and pace were so well written, I was literally consuming the words not just merely reading.
The ending was satisfactory, I was kind of expecting more but I wasn't disappointed. It gave the desired impact and offered closure.
Highly recommend.
*I received an ARC of this book through netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review*

T.R. Reagan is a master at twisty thriller writing. This was an exciting quick read that got me out of a funk.

WOAH! This book has one hell of an opener!

This is another one of those super binge-able reads, I couldn't put it down. It flowed well and I really just HAD to know everything. Look, l'm one of those people who wants no drama in my. own life but really wants to know everyone else's, OK? And this book, with its "did you hear what the neighbors did" vibe really scratched that itch. But with a murdery, who-done-it bonus. What more do you need??

This one isn't super thriller-y, or a big thinker. You'll probably know who did what. But it's a fun read on a lazy day and we all need that sometimes.

Wow! I did not know what to expect going into this book but it exceeded whatever expectations I did have.

Rosella Marlow was a renowned journalist who watched her neighbors and kept their secrets to use against them. She created many enemies in her neighborhood and one day she ended up murdered because of it.

This was a classic, fast paced who dunnit story that kept me guessing from page 1. I did not know who the killer was going to be and the twists throughout made this an amazing read.

Captivating from start to finish. This felt like a slow burn thriller and I am not complaining.
The twist and turns. I was SO sure I knew who did it but boy was I surprised. It was a little confusing trying to keep track of all the characters and their secrets but it was satisfying to see them all be peeled back and revealed.

I liked this book and I also didn’t. M not sure if I’d be as bitter and I really tried to understand the point of view. To have so much dirt to those that are happy around you, how?!

3 ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Pretty good domestic mystery. Kept my interest the whole way through. I predicted the ending around halfway through, but I still liked how everything played out. This is my first TR Ragan. I think I’ll be checking out more of her books in the future!

Resentful and bitter after the recent death of her son, Rosella Marlow began taking her anger out on those around her but especially those with the seemingly happiest lives. A retired journalist, now living as somewhat of a recluse, she has all the dirt on all of her neighbors and she is determined to make them suffer just like she is. She sets out to accomplish her plan with the help of the unknowing Shannon Gibbons, who, as an aspiring journalist, is under the impression that she is receiving mentorship from Rosella. When someone turns up dead, this otherwise quiet and quaint neighborhood begins to implode.

This book is full of drama drama drama! Just when you think you have it figured out, the rug is pulled out from under you. There are a lot of characters and everyone has motive.

There are a few instances where character names are used incorrectly so I hope an editor is going to comb through this again before publication. Some of the dialogue is unbelievable or seemed a little too cheesy for me and it took me out of the story.

I would recommend this if you are looking for a domestic, suburban thriller.

Thank you Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for the digital copy in exchange for an honest review. Available 11/05/2024!

This book held my interest but wasn’t my favorite. It centers on Shannon, an aspiring journalist who moves to a fancy new neighborhood to work with an aging journalist named Rosella that she has always respected, only to find that Rosella is not what she imagined. Rosella is suspicious of all her neighbors and wants Shannon to help investigate, but Shannon can’t figure out if she is delusional or if there is really something sinister happening. When a murder occurs, Shannon is thrown right into the middle of all of the secrets people are trying to hide.

This all sounds very interesting but felt like a bit of a slow burn. There were a ton of characters to keep straight and some of their secrets were more interesting than others. It takes a long way through the book to even hit on the kidnapping that happens in the prologue. I found Shannon to be somewhat of a likable character but she came off as a bit gullible to me and it didn’t fit with the wannabe journalist persona that she was supposed to have. The storyline held my interest and I think the ending worked, but the author deliberately didn’t tie up one loose end and I wish she had, as it seemed a little fantastical to me and I wanted a rational explanation.

Overall, this was a decent read but I don’t think it’s super memorable within the genre. Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Intense and complex neighborhood mystery. Posh neighborhood, close knit, but secrets within secrets as all the families hidden side come to light, unravel as the mystery unfolds. The strength of hatred and obsession and the larger strength of love and family found. A good read as always!

Best House on the Block by new to me author T.R. Ragan, published by Thomas & Mercer is a slow burn, complex and complicated read that had me in suspense from the first page till the last sentence. Twisty and full of unexpected turns, a pageturner of its finest.
Blurb: Aspiring investigative journalist Shannon Gibbons and her family have moved into a beautiful house in the Fabulous Forties of East Sacramento, where Shannon finds a fast connection with a new neighbor. Renowned journalist Rosella Marlow appears to have a genuine interest in giving Shannon’s own career a boost—as personal assistant on Rosella’s new project. Appearances are deceiving.
Bitter, resentful, and consumed by grief, Rosella is obsessed with exposing her neighbors secrets. In Shannon, Rosella has a trusting and unwitting accomplice. But Rosella is being watched, too. And when someone is found dead, everyone on this quiet block is a suspect. Because everyone has a motive.
With the help of a friend, Shannon begins an investigation into a person she just met. As neighbor is pitted against neighbor, the truth is much scarier than anything they imagined.

I am in my thriller era! This book was a perfect fit. I thoroughly enjoyed it and highly recommend it!

This book was kind of all over the place. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't the normal tone of T.R.'s writing so that threw me for a loop. I had a hard time getting with the fact that she would just tell these random strangers all the facts about the case. She knew one of them had murdered the lady but she just blabbed stuff all around. It truly was a mystery how she didn't get killed herself. She was kind of difficult to connect with as a main character, for some reason she and the rest of the cast of characters just all felt very superficial. I didn't love or even hate any of them they were just kinda meh. it was going for Stepford wives meets murder but didn't quite get there.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4 Suburban Blissful Murdering Stars !!

Y’all this book totally surprised me , in a good way!

Best House on the Block is a combination of Desperate Housewives meets Murder She Wrote .

“Most outsiders who strolled down her tree-lined street would believe the inhabitants were living the American dream ….But they would be wrong 👀 “!

Read this if you like :
🔎 Multiple POV
🔎 Suburban Settings
🔎 Lots of Characters
🔎 Mystery
🔎 Binegable Reads

I raced through this book , it starts off so strong as we learn of a man who kidnaps a little boy and then we find ourselves in present day in the perfect little neighborhood. Or is it ?

Shannon and her husband have just moved to the block and Shannon has the opportunity to work alongside a journalist she idolizes Rosella .
Rosella hand selected Shannon , and the crazed woman shares information with Shannon that she thinks someone is out to get her. 😮

Then suddenly Rosella is found murdered and it seems everyone on the block has a motive 😳

As the story unfolds Shannon puts her sleuthing expertise to work with the help of her nosey neighbour Chloe . The two of them together find themselves caught in a dangerous position that could cost them their lives , so they must tread carefully…. But beware could the murderer be their neighbour, their spouse or could it be one of them ??

This was such a fun bingeable fast paced read that also had some charm to it. It does have a lot of characters so could get the reader tangled up at times , however I was able to navigate and couldn’t wait to see how it ended !!

I really think fans of Freida McFadden Jeneva Rose and B.A. Paris will absolutely devour this read !

This is my first time reading this author and will not be my last !!

Thank you NetGalley , Thomas & Mercer and T.R. Ragan for this great mystery digital ARC 🙌🏼

Respectfully Another Read by Angie

3.5 / 5

This was a good mystery filled with a cast of many suspicious characters and loads of secrets that were worth killing in order to keep. It started out with a bang but did lose some of its intensity along the way. It wasn't slow and I wasn't bored. It just wasn't as nail-biting as the story progressed, and I was able to predict the killer early on. The characters were all interesting and the secrets were juicy. Everything tied up nice and neat at the end. All boxes ticked. I was hoping for it to be darker and more intense like the author's previous books. It was still an enjoyable read. I love Ragan and I will continue to read anything she writes. If you are looking for a fast-paced mystery, I would recommend this one. I'm more partial to her series, which are darker and more geared to the thriller junkies. Strongly recommend all of them!!

Thank you to the author, Thomas & Mercer, and NetGalley for granting me digital access in exchange for my honest review!