Blurb:
Freya loves her new home on a quiet suburban street. And her beautiful neighbour Emily is everything she’s ever wanted in a best friend. Finally, she has somebody to share her secrets with over a glass of wine. But as Freya watches her new friend setting the table for dinner one evening, she sees something shocking that makes her think that Emily’s life might not be as perfect as it seems. Days later, Emily and her daughter vanish…
When you meet Emily’s husband, you will think you know what he’s hiding.
You will ask yourself whether Emily and Freya really did meet by chance.
You will think you know what happened to Emily and her little girl the night they went missing.
But when you discover the truth, it will shake you to your core, and you will lie awake at night wondering if you can ever really trust the people in the house next door…
Review:
The New Home is an intense, pulse-quickening psychological thriller that I read in two sittings, so that should give you an idea of how excited I was about the plot and seeing what the ending brought. The author wastes no time plunging the reader into a middle of a scintillating mystery: “What happened to Freya’s next-door neighbors Emily and daughter Thea? Were they murdered? Or did they run away?”
First off, I loved Freya’s character, even though at some point we begin to question whether she’s a reliable narrator – especially once her paranoia escalates as the story unravels. She has plenty of depth and intrigue but with just enough mystery about her and her past to keep the reader guessing and working alongside Freya to separate fiction (illusions? vivid imagination?) from fact. I could relate to how Freya’s thoughts completely took over (I know I’ve been there), so in this way, it was fun being in her head. I quickly found myself wanting to uncover the secrets almost as much as she did. And yes, there are deep, dark, dangerous secrets to be discovered and harsh truths for both Freya and her fiancé to confront.
I loved how this fast-paced story caused me to question everything and everyone, especially once the author ratcheted up the suspense. The author does a fantastic job of painting a vivid picture, fueled with red herrings at every corner. The storyline was well crafted, and I thought the pacing was close to perfect. The suspense is unrelenting almost to the very end.
All in all, this was a wildly entertaining whodunnit with an ending that’s rich with gritty drama and unnerving darkness and did not disappoint.
A huge thank you to Netgalley for providing a review copy of this book. This title will be released on September 7, 2021.
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