Gina and Owen have been seriously dating for seven weeks when they go to meet/visit Owen’s parents, Marta and Grant, for a long weekend.
And no spoilers! This was a good book, a page turner. It was a fast read and I was immersed in it; it’s a good book for the beach or a snowy weekend. This is the first book I’ve read by Emily Shiner, and I look forward to reading more of her books.

This book was truly great. I couldn't put it down!!! The twists and turns just made me not want it to end. Can't wait for this to hit the market!

This book was a 4.5 star read! The twists and turns in this book were incredibly executed, and the writing style just gripped me. The plot line was very well constructed, and I liked how realistic the characters and their emotions felt. Such a good read!

Meet the Parents by E. Shiner, published by Bookouture is a masterpiece at writing goosepump inducing crime/thriller.
A fantastic read that had me right from the start.
Blurb: The Stay-at-home mother Marta lives in her successful husband’s shadow, overlooked by him ever since her darling son Owen went to medical school. She’s not about to let the beautiful Gina take Owen away from her. Marta will play nice, get Gina to trust her. And then she has a plan of her own.
The Owen is already certain he wants to marry Gina. She’s perfect. They just have to get through this weekend and then he’ll propose. Sure, his mom can be overprotective. But Owen knows why. He knows what she’s hiding.
The Ever since purposefully running into Dr Owen Whitlock at the hospital, Gina has been playing the doting girlfriend. She didn’t mean to fall for Owen’s charms for real… Now she’s finally meeting his parents at their sprawling, secluded home. Gina knows all about the terrible secrets this family is covering up. And she’ll do anything to make sure they never find out who she really is.
By the end of the weekend, the Whitlock’s beautiful house will have burned to the ground. And someone won’t make it out alive…

From the start, we see that Gina is with Owen for revenge, and that Marta knows something about Gina’s past. Though they’ve just met, they already have a horrible, and unspoken, bond - the question is, who will crack first? These women both want to kill each other, and only one will be victorious. The event that binds them is surprising, and the surprises keep coming all the way to the final page, even after the Whitaker house burns to the ground. This was a really fun thriller - it was suspenseful with some dark humor sprinkled throughout - or maybe that was just me laughing at how deviously delicious this story is!

Overall: 2.5⭐️

To preface, I'd like to note that I was initially super excited to read this book because I am a domestic thriller girlie, through and through. Anything that has to do with domestic thrillers, complicated relationships between an FMC and her husband/boyfriend, and hair raising family dynamics, are my jam. Unfortunately, as someone who spent the previous year reading nothing but thrillers, this book did not meet my expectations, despite the novel premise that originally drew my interest.

Beginning this review with our FMC... I have truly never been more angry at the stupidity of a main character before in my life. She knowingly puts herself in harms way time and time again, despite knowing EXACTLY what the most dangerous situation and outcome is and having literally all the knowledge available at her disposal. Not only does this happen recurrently throughout the book, she also shows all of her cards / tells the main antagonists that she's onto them and their shady plans from the very beginning.

I also did not like how we were told the plot of the entire book within the first 3 chapters. By the time chapter 3 was done, we knew a) how the book was going to end, b) could deduce what the main plotline of the story would be, and c) nothing throughout the rest of the book came as a surprise. There was so MUCH POTENTIAL that was squandered, and the author definitely could have built the tension gradually over time without info dumping every single character's main motivations (including spoilers for their own plotlines) in the first three chapters.

Lastly, I found Marta and Grant to be incredibly one dimensional and the dialogue stilted and unnatural. Marta was the stereotypical, emotionally incestuous, overbearing boy mom and Grant, a shady father who clearly had something to hide. I think the story would have benefited from Marta not being such an OTT (over-the-top) caricature, and I wish her her cunning nature and cruelty had been more gradually demonstrated over time. There were so many moments where her interactions with Gina could have been more nuanced in a way that left both Gina AND the reader truly guessing, but instead she was relegated to stereotypically childish quips in exchanges with her son's girlfriend, and cringey predictable lines.

Overall, I'm super disappointed and was not at all shocked by the twist, especially considering all signs pointed in that direction throughout the entirety of the book. Nothing was left to the imagination, and as someone who reads thrillers with the hope of ending the book totally mindf*ked... that's the whole problem.

A fast read with a riveting plot but the writing was repetitious with a bare bones style. A few scenes took me out of the story, like when the main character threw up because her cell phone charger was missing and she made stupid choices, like going off alone with a known predator. The ending was great with several twists.

this story follows Gina And Owen who have been dating for awhile and Owen decides to take Gina to meet his parents. He is very close with his mother Marta . His parents are Marta and Grant who have this sorta cabin in the woods vibes but it’s a mansion Gina just wants to start fresh and close the bad chapters in her life away but Marta knows something isn’t right . This was a great thriller and I was at the edge of my seat to know what happened.

Five stars for Emily Shiner! Couldn’t put this one down, I had it done in 24 hours!

In the first timeline, Gina is in accidentally in love and is meeting her boyfriend’s parents for the first time. What could go wrong? The second timeline takes us back to Gina’s childhood, including the murder of her beloved aunt.

This thriller has moments of suspense with dark humor sprinkled in throughout.

Thank you to NetGalley, Emily Shiner, and Bookouture for this ARC!

I have previously read Emily Shiner's books and loved them and this was no exception. Thank you for the opportunity to review. I could not put it down what a fantastic read full of twists and turns

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for providing this book, with my honest review below.

As if Meet the Parents wasn’t tense enough with the plot following three characters with something to hide - girlfriend Gina, Mother Marta, and Father Grant, this thriller gives you an absolutely masterful twist at the very end.

The writing was great even if the plot dragged just a bit in figuring out what each person was hiding and was going to do about it. But again, I can’t gush enough about the ending and third act of the story. I could visualize it all and absolutely loved how creepy this was. Recommended for the end alone!

Meet The Parents by Emily Shiner is a stellar novel, surpassing any previous notions i had. You’ll find yourself throughly enjoying this book if you love Freida Mcfadden or Daniel Hurst. This book is fast paced, descriptive, and captivating. The story line is unpredictable and randomly funny. I was never bored.

This is an ARC review! ⭐⭐⭐⭐

This book was so fast-paced and I devoured it in a day! I loved the writing style with short and twisty chapters. It kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time, and the ending was super unexpected!

I will definitely be reading more books by the author.

Thank you to Emily Shiner and NetGalley for the ARC! ⭐

I received an ARC copy of this book and it was my first book by this author and it's left me wanting to read all her other books. It kept me on my toes and when I thought I had things figured out it turns out I did not ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This was a cat & mouse type mystery/ thriller. It was a quick and easy read. I enjoyed the plot of this book, but I did find a few things a bit OTT. I was still engaged and I actually did not guess the ending!

Gina is meeting her boyfriend Owen’s parents for the first time but it soon becomes clear that they know alot about each other already.

Although I found the storyline to be ok, I really didn’t like Marta as a character at all and I found her parts rather cringey. It was a quick read with short sharp chapters with a slow drawn out build up until the ending which was quite good.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this ebook in exchange for my honest review.

Such a good book!

Gina and Owen have been dating for 7 weeks when Owen asks Gina to go home with him to meet his parents. They’ve fallen head over heels for eachother so meeting the parents is a big deal!

Grant & Marta (Owen’s parents) are not what they seem. Marta despises Gina and Grant seems aggressive and secretive. What will the weekend hold for them all?!

This story was one that kept me wanting more! A fabulous thriller that will keep you intrigued and interested until the very end.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this arc in exchange for my honest review.

Meet the parents will be available for purchase 8/28/24.

Loved this thriller. I had suspicions and the storyline kept my on my toes. I love that it didn’t go back and forth too much and the dual POV is perfectly fitting. The author perfected an epilogue that wanted me wanting more.

Podcast will be live August 24.

I was excited to read Meet the Parents. The minute I saw it was by Emily Shiner, I was in. The cover is also intriguing.

Gina and Owen have been together for a mere 7 weeks. They are already so head over heals in love, that it's time for Gina to "Meet the Parents"! So Gina and Owen take a trip to visit Owen's parents. It was supposed to be a little cabin in the woods, at least from what Gina understood, but upon arriving Gina is taken by surprise by this amazing mini-mansion of a house!

All-the-while, Gina is haunted by her past. There is a connection between Owen, his parents, and Gina's past. There is constant tension in the air. Marta, Owen's mother, seems to be a bit obsessed with her son, constantly pointing out the incredible bond they have. Owen is also very close with his father, Grant. Why are Marta and Grant constantly testing and challenging Gina? ...and why does Gina seem to being doing the same in return? Read and find out!

This book will make you tense, build your curiosity, and keep you guessing. The ending will certainly throw you for a loop!

Wow so this dark thriller had me on the edge of my seat not knowing who was the bad person in the story and what actually happened when Gina was a young child. As she sets off to meet her boyfriends parents little do they know that she knows exactly who they are and is there for answers, however it appears they also know who she is and have also been organising it so that she ended up exactly where she is now. Should they be scared or should she and what exactly happened all those years ago.