Gina and Owen have only been dating for seven weeks when Owen a renowned heart surgeon decides to bring Gina home to meet his parents because their whirlwind romance has been heading towards wedding bells and fast. Marta and Grant Whitlock adore their son and have never met any of his previous girlfriends so they are very intrigued to meet Gina but Marta strongly dislikes Gina from the moment they meet and Gina does everything in her power to win the women over. Do you believe in fate, or was this chance meeting the result of a tragedy that happened twenty years ago?

Meet the Parents by Emily Shiner was freaking mind blowing. It kept me entertained as well as wanting to see as what would happened next. Very fast paced. Marta definitely borders creepy, incestuous and obsessive. Grant pretends to be the caring, innocent father and then his true character starts to come through. But then is Owen who he says he is?!

Thank you Bookouture for letting me get this ARC!

This pov was such a pageturner full of suspence and tention. The characters were. Well written and I loved the way the story evolved as did the characters . The true nature of revenge was skillfully revealed as the story played out. The ending was perfect loved th.e twists. This story was focused on the female pov Gina the girlfriend and Martha the mother. I would love a few chapters from grants point of view and owens. Their story was told via their interactions with the women.
This was a joy to read I was gripped to find out the truth there were so many questions and a lot
made the story more prevailing. . This is pwrfect for anyone who loves a goid thriller . Highly recommended. Thank you netgallery and publisher and author for this 5 star read. It felt a quick read.

Now this was a psychological thriller I couldn't put down. Right from the start the pacing and introductions of each character is perfectly laid out, with twists and a backstory that kept me page-turning nonstop! The secluded location just made this book way more eerie as the more we learn about Ginas backstory and the house she's in. Fun and twisted thriller that would be great on paperback!

MEET THE PARENTS by Emily Shiner
⭐️ rating: 7/10

read if you like:
👩‍❤️‍👨 romantic thrillers
💁🏻‍♀️ disapproving parent tropes
⏰ past and present narratives

summary:
This book is about Gina, a seemingly perfect girlfriend of Owen’s, when the two of them head to Owen’s parents house for the weekend. Immediately upon arrival (and I mean immediate), tensions arise between Gina and Owen’s parents, Marta and Grant. While both sides are harboring long buried secrets, the question is — why does Gina want to meet Owen’s parents? And why do Owen’s parents hate Gina so much?

This book gets off to a VERY quick start — almost abruptly so, so much that I thought I had missed a chapter or at least a few pages. The good part though is it hits the ground running and takes very little time to get hooked. It’s clear from the very early pages that both Gina and Marta have their secrets, but it’s hard to tell whose side to be on, or who we should consider to be the protagonist. This makes the book feel a little choppy, because I was constantly asking myself, “wait am I supposed to love her or hate her?” Both characters are interesting though, and even though it’s hard to know who to trust, I kept reading so I could learn what secrets they were hiding and how their pasts seemingly intersected. About halfway through the book, I started to put the pieces together of what happened, and the story has a slow burn predictable reveal until a total curveball drops at the end. It’s a rollercoaster but I promise no matter how predictable it feels, it ends with a stunning twist!

Thanks to @bookouture and @netgalley for the ARC, and check this book out when it releases on August 28!

Owen has a beautiful girlfriend, Gina is perfect for him in every way. But Owen has secrets.
Gina loves Owen, and looks forward to her life with him. Marriage is on the cards and Gina is happy with that, even though it wasn't part of her plans. The weekend at Owens parents home was part of Ginas plans, as Gina knows about Owens parents, their past, and what they are capable of.
Marta and Grant have secrets and plans of their own. These plans include their son, Owen, and girlfriend, Gina. They are looking forward to the weekend when Owen brings Gina, to visit. This weekend, with all it's secrets and plans will have an explosive ending, and not everyone will make it out alive.
This book kept me on the edge of my seat, I just could not put it down. On almost every page, a new twist to the plot was revealed, and I never saw the ending coming. An addictive read.

I DEVOURED this book. It had me hooked from the first page to the last. There were some instances where I felt there was some annoying repetition regarding how much she loved Owen and wasn't expecting to fall in love with him but aside from that this story was brilliant.

Having revenge planned for 20 years and finally it's time for it to come to fruition. But who's plan will make it through to the end? Not getting along with your in-laws is fairly common at first, but not on any level that Gina's relationship with Owens parents at their first meet. The twist in the epilogue made me feel like I was finishing a Freida McFadden book!

This is my second ARC from Emily Shiner and I have loved both her books! I would recommend this to someone just getting into reading or reading thrillers or someone who is a veteraned thriller lover. Excellent job Emily Shiner 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

Thank you Bookotoure for allowing me to fall in love with Meet The Parents before it's release on August 28, 2024.

A little girl witnesses the murder of her aunt, a bloody and traumatizing event. Decades later she is hot on the murderers trail. The only problem is that she fell in love with his son. Will the murderer tie up loose ends or will the little girl finally avenge her aunt? In this fast paced thriller you will truly be on the edge of your seat! Every chapter offers a new development in the story to keep you wanting more. Personally, I flip flopped back and forth between who I was rooting for in this one. The dialogue can become a little monotonous but that's not a deal breaker for me. The plot twists are artfully revealed and really did have me gasping!

One thing I truly enjoyed with this book was how it all took place in one building. Except for one scene where our secondary characters go to town for a while, the whole thing takes place in the secluded home of the parents. It helped to add to the trapped feeling, especially towards the end. I honestly found myself holding my breath in anticipation of the hammer dropping,

The one thing I will say I have a bone to pick with is the very ending twist. I won't spoil anything here but I will say it feels like something the main character should've caught onto. It wasn't bad enough to make me take off a star, just enough to be a little disappointing, Overall this one was really good and I can't wait until it comes out!

𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐚 𝐥𝐨𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐧'𝐭 𝐚 𝐠𝐮𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐞. 𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐧𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐡.

Gina and Owen have made the trip to meet Owen's parents in their secluded family home. While you may expect a woman to be nervous about meeting her partner's parents, Gina's not. She's done enough surveillance to know that they are the ones.

Gina lived through something terrible in her childhood, witnessing something no child should ever have to see. And she's spent years waiting for revenge.

This book was just ok to me. I found most of the characters, especially Owen's parents to be almost comically created. They were both so over the top, especially Owen's mom Marta. The things she said and the way she treated Gina just weren't realistic.

I did figure out the twist and wasn't even surprised when I was right. I have enjoyed previous books from this author, so even though this one was a miss, I will check out her next one. Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for this early copy. At the time this review was written, this book was slated to publish August 28, 2024.

This book was so good! So many twists that you didn’t see coming. One of the best thrillers I have recently read. I love Emily Shiners writing style. A great face paced book. Highly recommend. Will definitely be reading more books from this author.

Thank you to Bookoture, Netgalley and Emily Shiner for an ARC copy. All opinions are my own.

Gina and Owen are in love and go to meet his parents. Gina, however, has a hidden agenda that has to deal with her aunt’s murder 20 years ago. Quick rollercoaster thriller (could have cut some of it out) had me wondering how it would play out - but, the ending I didn’t expect!

Gina and Owen have been dating for just seven weeks when he secretly decides he wants to propose to her. Before he does, he wants to take her to meet his parents - he’s very close with them, especially his mother, and this will be the first woman he’s brought home to meet them. Gina is more than happy to go…because this just so happens to be a chance to close a terrible chapter in her life.

Marta and Grant Whitlock are definitely imposing characters, with their “little cabin in the woods” that is more like a mansion, and their perfect images. Marta is homemaker supreme, never mind that her son no longer lives with her and is in his 40s. Grant is retired, no longer constantly on hectic business trips, which makes Marta happy because those trips usually ended up with extracurricular activities. Their taste is eclectic yet refined, they live for Owen and have spent their lives making sure he has the best of everything, and they are both absolutely wicked.

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! Definitely a page-turner, this will keep you enthralled the whole way through; the story spans twenty years, but it never became disjointed or convoluted. Overall, this is a great read that most thriller readers will enjoy! Four stars.

(Thank you to Bookouture for inviting me on this book tour. “Meet The Parents” is slated to be released on August 28, 2024.)

This is the second book I’ve read by Emily and WOW! So freakin good! I could not put it down! When something happens to Gina’s aunt. She has to figure out who did it. Is or isn’t fate when she meets Owen. He decides to bring her home to meet his parent’s and things don’t go as planned. Marta is Gina’s mother and she is not a fan of Gina. Marta refuses to let Gina take Owen away from her. Owen’s parents have an odd relationship. Her husband Grant is not a good guy and Gina knows that. I was really rooting for Owen but he’s not as nice as you think he is. He’s a pretty gross/terrible person. So many secrets!! Who will make it out of the house alive? I was honestly on the edge of my seat the entire time and my heart was racing. It just got better each chapter. I honestly wasn’t expecting it to end the way it did. I would definitely recommend this book. I’m looking forward to reading more books by Emily. Thank you NetGalley, Emily and Bookouture for the ARC!

Meet the Parents is not your typical psychological twisty novel. Emily writes suspense superbly, I've never read a book that has left me feeling like I need a heart rate monitor as much as this book has! It's an easy read with every other chapter leaving you with questions and on tenterhooks.

The writing style and premise of the book are comparable to Freida McFadden. I really enjoyed the pace of the book and found it gripping and always wanting more. It was really difficult to put down.

The story is told through the perspective of the two female main characters and there are several time jumps to give you back stories which I really liked.

Emily Shiner is an author I won't forget!

I was kindly given this book as an ARC from Netgalley.

Meeting the parents of your new boyfriend or girlfriend is always a bit tricky. You hope they will love you as much as their son or daughter loves you and you want to fit in. You want them to see you are the perfect partner.

This is something that happens every day, but what if the meeting of the parents is not so innocent and their is a hidden agenda playing? And more importantly, what if there is more than one hidden agenda?

When there is more than one hunter on the loose, who is the hunter and who is the prey? Or is the hunter the prey's prey? Or is the prey the hunter's hunter...?

And in the end is the winner really the winner or did they end up being the loser? 

I thought this was a great story with an excellent ending. I always felt a bit of distrust towards one person and I was pleased my feelings did not betray me. 5 stars

Thank you

I loved this book right from the beginning until the very shocking end.

There was so much mystery surrounding all the characters and the story unfolded slowly with many edge of your seat moments.

Emily Shiner is one of my favourite authors. As soon as I see her name on the cover I know I want to read it. This is one of her best books so far.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC

I really really enjoyed this book, I thought it was so interesting and constantly made me rethink my decisions to trust certain characters or words. This read had the classic ‘who dun it?’ aspect which I’ve always loved and kept things interesting from the get go. I’ll admit, I wasn’t sure I’d be a fan of this right at the beginning, but once I gave it a chance I realised I really liked it.

The plot twist was unexpected, even though I constantly felt as if I couldn’t trust how the narrative would play out but it was welcomed 😭 I remember having to take a moment to just be like 😟

All in all, this was a great read from a new author! I was very pleasantly surprised and think I’ll even check out a few other books! I’ve always loved psychological thrillers and this definitely didn’t disappoint.

⭐️⭐️⭐️ A fast paced psychological thriller. Gina is meeting her boyfriend’s parents for the first time. The point of view on the chapters goes back and forth between Gina and Marta, her boyfriend’s mom. I enjoy this author, she has a great way of pacing characterization and reveals at certain points in the story. It is well paced and descriptive, I loved thinking of being in this giant cabin far in the woods, an hour away from a Walmart.

A few of the themes were pretty cringey, though. I hate how it is set up as female against female. Marta is a “stay at home mom” but her only son is 41, she talks about her son in a very awkward, inappropriate way. Why paint her as the villain instead of fleshing out her husband more? There were a few missing plot holes…. But the book is still pretty fun to read. Great for fans of JT Ellison, Freida McFadden, and Lisa Jewell.

Thank you to #netgalley and #bookcouture for the ARC. Book to be published August 28, 2024.

Owen is a surgeon and has recently met Gina who he is falling heavily for. As the relationship is of great importance to him, he decides to take Gina home to meet his parents, Grant and Marta Whitlock. He is quite anxious about how they will feel as this is the first girl he has wished his parents to meet, and he knows it will be his mother that will be the hardest to get approval from. Grant runs a successful business and Marta plays the role of adoring housewife and takes this position very seriously. Owen is their only child, and he is Marta’s world to the point of obsession.

Marta sets out a plan to get rid of Gina as soon as possible and Grant is in on this as well. But Gina may have her own reasons for being in a relationship with Owen, what will make this harder will be that she does fall in love with him which was not part of her original plan.

This is a very twisted tale, and everyone has their own agenda and secrets. Did these two really meet by chance or are there forces at work that instigated the whole relationship, each oblivious to the scheming and deception that is all around them. The book kept me entertained and I would recommend it to others.

Thank you to Netgalley, the author and publisher for an advanced copy, all opinions are my own.

First of all thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for giving me ARC in exchange for my honest review. I still can’t decide whether I liked the book or not. It was gripping that’s for sure, I was curious about how it’s going to turn out that’s why I read until the end. But for some reason I didn’t like it. It felt like an unending story. Even though chapters were short and easy to read. The story was circling back with the same things. Almost all the chapters were implying that something was planned but it was so repetitive that it annoyed me. I read it the plot was good but unfortunately I didn’t really enjoy it.

WOW amazing book. Loved all the characters in this book and all the twists in it. Afew times I had to remind myself to breathe with the chances Gina takes. I love all of Emily Shiner books but by far this has got to be one of my favourites 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 brilliant book. Thank you for letting me read it.