The Nanny Share by Emily Shiner is a fast paced thriller, filled with tension and drama, where everyone is a suspect and no one is telling the truth. This was a juicy read with great and sneaky cast of characters, with a lot of twists and turns that kept me entertained since the start. There are several lies and deceptions while you try to unravel the secrets, and let me tell you, some of them will surprise you. I really enjoyed this psychological thriller and recommend it to the fans of the genre.

Book Review: The Nanny Share by Emily Shiner – 4 Stars

This was my first time reading anything by Emily Shiner, and I can confidently say it won’t be my last. The Nanny Share pulled me in right away with its fast pace and constant twists. Just when I thought I had something figured out, the story took another turn. I loved how it kept me guessing.

The characters were well written—flawed, suspicious, and exactly what you want in a domestic thriller. There were definitely a few times I found myself side-eyeing everyone, not sure who to trust. And that ending? Didn’t see it coming.

Overall, a solid, twisty read. If you’re into psychological thrillers with lots of secrets and drama, this one’s worth picking up.

I enjoyed this book! Emily Shiner is one of my favorite authors and I was excited to read something new from her. This story kept me interested from the beginning and kept me guessing!

The Nanny Share was a fast paced thriller. It keeps you guessing the entire time.
I didn’t guess who the kidnapper was!

One thing I didn’t like were there were so many POVs to keep track of!

Thank you to netgalley for the sec in exchange for my honest review!

Thank you to Bookcouture and NetGalley for the free eARC!

This was a lot of fun. Super twisty. Chapters were from the point of view from different main characters. It was a little confusing at first. Lots of names flying around, but it eventually settles in and finds a good groove!

Two young girls go missing. Their families are linked and the story uncovers just how linked they really are. Perfect quick read!

Big thanks to Bookouture for a copy on Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
The Nanny Share is a fast paced, tension filled and melodramatic read.
In a gated community, two little girls go missing.
Both families have history and the mothers were best friends.
Everyone is a suspect….. and no one is telling the truth.
Detective Kate is assigned to the investigation.
Julie the nanny who works for both families has her own secrets.
What is going on….. and what really happened?
I found this one quite entertaining and I was intrigued by the plot.
With a sneaky cast of characters, a juicy plot, a good ending with twists and turns, this psychological thriller will keep you entertained.
One that will keep your attention and trigger your reading enjoyment.
Deception, secrets and lies are in abundance to shock and surprise you.

It's hard for a book to stand out in the crowded "nanny" subgenre, and this book wasn't strong enough to break through for me. I was expecting a first person story solely from the nanny's point of view, but instead got a lot of creepy parents. The ending was too soapy to be believed.

Alison and Ryan are married with a young daughter, Nealie. Their best friends, Carrie and Daniel, live just down the street, with their daughter, Emma. The families have recently fallen out with each other, the reasons are sketchy. The two girls are the best of friends so it make sense for them to share the same nanny. Julie absolutely adores her charges, so when they go missing, she is just as devastated as the parents. Everyone, however, is hiding secrets, and until they stop lying, the two little girls will never be found.
This book definitely kept my attention, even though one of the "secrets" was pretty obvious from the beginning. Not a single character in this story is likeable, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. I will admit, the random twist was not at all expected! While the writing was good, I had some issues with the story itself. Especially immediately after the girls are found to be missing. Practically every cop in town is in the neighborhood, and not a single one is staying near the two family's houses??? So many people, randomly in and out secretly and nobody notices or stops them?? You'd think at least the media would be all over the story and there to see. It was just a little too convenient. Same goes for the ending. As someone who loves true crime stories and Dateline, the fact that things ended the way they did, with no proper investigation, didn't sit well with me.
Thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This book was an enjoyable and engaging read!
The characters were well-developed, and the story had a good balance of drama, humor, and heart. I appreciated the way the author explored relationships, parenting challenges, and the complexities of sharing childcare. The writing was engaging, making it easy to get immersed in the story.
As an early childcare professional I appreciated this story.
Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book. I look forward to exploring more from this author!

Edit: I'm changing my rating to 4.75 stars.... I'm still bitter over something that happened in this book. (Still my favourite, but I am annoyed... oh god not another breakdown-)

5 stars. But I hate this book. *needed to take a deep long breath, that's how bad the situation is right now*

Alright, let's start from the beginning so I don't have another breakdown. When I first saw this book on Netgalley and read the description, I knew I HAVE to read it, despite being on a self-imposed "ARC Request" ban. Am I now regretting my decision? Yes.
Would I do it again? Maybe not.
Is it still going to be my favourite read of March 2025? Fuck yes.

What I can conclude from my own thoughts so far is that I have now developed a very passionate love-hate relationship with this book.

The plot, characters, plot twists, the entire fucking web of everything? This book wouldn't LET ME give it less than 5 stars even if I want to! So, I think the problem is that I formed an emotional bond with it...... which I shouldn't have. I don't know why tf I keep doing to myself when I read THRILLERS?! But well..... I guess I love this kinda pain (I hate it, but I also love it OH GOD, NOT ANOTHER BREAKDOWN!)

Anyways, I'm not gonna be able to say much else in the review right now. Okay no, I can do it! (Don't mind me going through 50 stages of whatever tf this is right now.... I'm going through it-)

So, if you like:
🧸Thrillers with "staring at the screen/book" kinda plot twists
🧸Very very messed up families
🧸A few other things which could be spoilers, so I won't say more
Then you'd love this!

OH, AND OFC, Thanks a lot to Netgalley and Bookotoure for approving my request for this ARC!

(Pre-review breakdown):

FUCK.

OH GOD HOW TF DO I EXPLAIN WHAT I'M FEELING RN WITHOUT SPOILING ANYTHING?! OKAY, SO WHOEVER IS READING, JUST TELL ME ONE THING: Is it wrong to rate a book less if you loved everything, but didn't like the ending, even if it was realistic?! BECAUSE I HATE THE FEELING I AM LEFT WITH NOW!

Update (a few minutes later):
Okay, I guess I'm now feeling sane enough to write a proper review. So here we go...

As much as I wanted to, I just couldn't get myself to rate this book anything less than 5 stars. The emotions this thriller made me go through..... OH GOD I SO WANT TO RATE IT 4 STARS BUT I ALSO CAN'T?! BECAUSE IT WAS REALLY GODDAMN GOOD. BUT I HATE SOMETHING THAT HAPPENED, BECAUSE IT WAS THE ONE THING I DID NOT WANT TO HAPPEN AGHHHHHHHHHHHHH OH GOD THIS IS TURNING INTO MORE OF AN EMOTIONAL BREAKDOWN THAN REVIEW Fuck my life.........

Nvm, I'm not sane enough for a proper review yet, I guess.....

I received The Nanny Share through NetGalley, and I truly appreciate the opportunity to discover new authors and share my thoughts.

This book was an enjoyable and engaging read with an intriguing premise. The characters were well-developed, and the story had a good balance of drama, humor, and heart. I appreciated the way the author explored relationships, parenting challenges, and the complexities of sharing childcare. The writing was engaging, making it easy to get immersed in the story.

Thank you again to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book. I look forward to exploring more from this author!

This gripping page-turner centers on a complex protagonist - a nanny with secrets of her own who finds herself at the center of a nightmare when the two little girls she cares for suddenly disappear.
What makes this thriller particularly effective is Shiner's masterful creation of atmosphere.

The exclusive, gated Blackwood neighborhood serves as the perfect backdrop - a place where pristine facades mask crumbling marriages and dark secrets. The contrast between the nanny's modest living situation and the privileged world she works in adds layers of social commentary without ever slowing the plot's momentum.

It was an interesting premise and interesting how the cast all tied together unexpectedly.

This is a thriller that had me suspicious of almost every character involved at some point of this gripping tale. Every time I thought I knew who had taken the children another twist in the tale came up. I liked the story was told from multiple pov, 2 couples who were friends and now don’t communicate, a peaceful neighbourhood where 2 young girls disappeared from, a detective trying to find the girls, and lots and lots of secrets!

Emily is a comfort author for me! She writes such fast paced, unique thrillers. I loved trying to piece together what was happening, sorting through what each perspective was telling me...and what they were not. This was a quick read that had me wanting to toss my kindle across the room at times! Cannot wait to grab a trophy copy for my shelves.

This was full of unlikeable characters. Lots of them were actually similar which I didn't really like. I liked this book but I couldn't say I loved it. The reason being it was a bit over the top at times.

So what happened to Nealy and Emma? Where they taken? Nobody seems to know what happened to the girls, not their parents and certainly not their nanny. But everyone’s a suspect and they all have their secrets.
If you’re looking for a book with more twists than a pretzel then this is it. The Nanny Share delivers that and more. I really enjoyed this book, it keeps you captivated from one chapter to the next. This is my first Emily Shiner book and it’s safe to say it won’t be the last. If you’re not already reading this book then what are you waiting for? Go out and buy it!

One fine morning, two couples who live in posh houses on a posh street find their daughters gone. Apart from living in the same neighborhood, the couple also share the same nanny. As the police get on with their investigation, they unravel hidden connections and dirty secrets of the characters involved.

The story is presented through different narratives throughout the book. We see it from the perspective of the mothers of the missing girls and the nanny herself and it adds mysterious layers to the plot. I can’t say I cared much for any of the characters, except for my heartache for the missing girls, but the author hardly develops the characters of the girls. I am conflicted about this – I would have better connected with the book if the girls’ characters were more developed, but I also respect the author for being sensitive and not using little girls to earn sympathy from the readers.

The plot moves quickly which intensifies with every new secret and twist. The story and the twists keep you hooked. Writing is smooth and easy flowing. The final reveal of the culprit was a letdown – the way it was revealed and the motive left me unconvinced.

This was my first Emily Shiner book. I have seen good reviews of her first book, which I am definitely going to read.

This was a really fun and twisty one. I loved how it was written from the different perspectives. Honestly, figuring out who was to blame and who could be trusted was HARD!! I felt like I was part of the team trying to piece together what happened to these two little girls.

There are definitely a lot of layers and lies to sift through. Can you solve the mystery? I certainly struggled with it!

I received a copy in exchange for an honest review.

Four year olds, Emma and Nealie, live on the same block in the exclusive, gated Blackwood neighborhood. Their mothers used to be best friends, but something happened to ruin their friendship. When the two girls both go missing the same night, the police are called. The one things that ties them together is the nanny. She does a nanny share between the two families, so she is immediately suspected. Where are Emma and Nealie? Will they be returned safely?

The Nanny Share is an interesting mystery/thriller. It is told from several POVs, so you need to listen carefully. Each of the characters gave bits and pieces of the story, and it was like a puzzle putting together all the facts to find out what was going on with these two couples. I found none of the characters very likable, nor reliable. There were a lot of secrets and an undercurrent of something threatening. Every time I learned something new about a character, I was sure they had something to do with the girls' disappearance. I wasn't even sure about the detective investigating the case. I had no idea who the culprit was until it was revealed in the story. So many twists, that I was surprised at the ending. Overall this was a well written story, with lots of twists to keep this reader guessing. I will tell you that the girls are safe, but you will have to read this one to find out who had them and why. I did a read/listen and enjoyed both formats. The narration by Ashley Rose Kaplan was well done and added to my enjoyment of the story. With the various POVs, she did a good job with the various voices.

This book had me hooked from the beginning. Some books take awhile to get into, but this one made me want to keep reading from the start. While I didn't think the nanny would hurt the girls. there was still a question in my mind since she was not completely ethical with scamming all of these families. I also liked learning about the different mothers and how they were not completely innocent/kind as well. I enjoyed the flawed characters, the suspense, and it was a fun book to read. Thank you for the arc!