12 July 2018

The Couple Next Door

Crime
Psychological Thriller
A 2018 Top Rated Read


By Shari Lapena

Paperback 368 pages
Publisher Corgi (20th April 2017)
ASIN B019GDH58Q
ISBN-13 978-0552173148

‘Meticulously crafted and razor-sharp. THE COUPLE NEXT DOOR lingers long after you turn the final page’ Harlan Coben

📕My Review

Anne and Marco Conti are invited to a dinner party with the Stillwells, who live next door. But there's a problem - their babysitter has cancelled and it's too short notice to find another. To further complicate matters, Cynthia Stillwell has made it clear baby Cora isn't invited. Anne and Marco make the decision to leave Cora sleeping at home in her crib...alone. They agree to take turns checking on her every 30 minutes. Besides, they have a baby monitor at the Stillwell's house. Nothing could go wrong, Could it?

Well, what a twisty psychological crime-thriller this turned out to be! It focuses on a seemingly innocuous couple and their baby, with equally seemingly innocuous next door neighbours. But don't be fooled - outward appearances can be, and are, deceptive.

When baby Cora is snatched from her crib in the middle of the night, Detective Rasbach's instinct tells him something is very wrong. The front door was unlocked and open, yet the perpetrator didn't enter through it. Why? As Rasbach delves into the backgrounds of those involved, secrets begin to emerge. But who took Cora and where is she now?

The Couple Next Door had me gripped. Although there are only a handful characters, it was compulsive reading and I couldn't put it down. It's loaded with unpredictable twists and turns that keep you guessing until the end. It's a fantastic tangled web of lies, infidelity and secrets. I loved it.

Barnsey's Books Rating 

Other reviews: 

📗The Blurb

You never know what's happening on the other side of the wall.

Your neighbour told you that she didn't want your six-month-old daughter at the dinner party. Nothing personal, she just couldn't stand her crying.

Your husband said it would be fine. After all, you only live next door. You'll have the baby monitor and you'll take it in turns to go back every half hour.

Your daughter was sleeping when you checked on her last. But now, as you race up the stairs in your deathly quiet house, your worst fears are realized. She's gone.

You've never had to call the police before. But now they're in your home, and who knows what they'll find there.

What would you be capable of, when pushed past your limit?

📘The Author

Shari Lapena is the internationally bestselling author of The Couple Next Door and A Stranger in the House. She was a lawyer and an English teacher before turning her hand to fiction.

She lives in Toronto.

Shari Lapena's website

2 comments:

Jennie Reads said...

Wow sounds wonderfully intriguing!

Lynne said...

Yes, really good Jennie!