A perfect holiday gift.Shari Lapena’s new thriller, AN UNWANTED GUEST, is available now!“Smart and suspenseful. . . you’ll never see the ending coming.” –PureWowIn this neighborhood, danger lies close to home. A domestic thriller packed full of secrets, and a twisty story that never stops—from the bestselling author of The Couple Next DoorHe looks at her, concerned. “How do you feel?” She wants … Couple Next Door
He looks at her, concerned. “How do you feel?” She wants to say, Terrified. Instead, she says, with a faint smile, “Glad to be home.”
Karen and Tom Krupp are happy—they’ve got a lovely home in upstate New York, they’re practically newlyweds, and they have no kids to interrupt their comfortable life together. But one day, Tom returns home to find Karen has vanished—her car’s gone and it seems she left in a rush. She even left her purse—complete with phone and ID—behind.
There’s a knock on the door—the police are there to take Tom to the hospital where his wife has been admitted. She had a car accident, and lost control as she sped through the worst part of town.
The accident has left Karen with a concussion and a few scrapes. Still, she’s mostly okay—except that she can’t remember what she was doing or where she was when she crashed. The cops think her memory loss is highly convenient, and they suspect she was up to no good.
Karen returns home with Tom, determined to heal and move on with her life. Then she realizes something’s been moved. Something’s not quite right. Someone’s been in her house. And the police won’t stop asking questions.
Because in this house, everyone’s a stranger. Everyone has something they’d rather keep hidden. Something they might even kill to keep quiet.
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This book kept me on the edge of my seat from the first page. I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough. So many great and, sometimes, strange characters. I love it when I keep guessing who’s behind everything and keep getting surprised. Detective Rasbach is such a great character. I wouldn’t want him coming after me. Great story, suspenseful all the way until the last word.
I loved this book! It was full of excitement and intrigue! The author keeps you in suspense throughout the entire book. I loved the twists and turns that kept coming and coming! The characters are wonderful. The plot is so unique and twisted. I am going to be following this author for more! I was so glad I found this treasure!
My first Shari Lapena book, and it won’t be my last! A twisty, suspenseful thriller with an unexpected ending, an intricate plot, and a frantic pace. Lapena has a clear, easy-to-follow writing style that propels you through the pages. While her characters weren’t likeable (Karen was hard to get a reading on due to the amnesia and Tom was a snivelling mess), I don’t think you have to like the characters to enjoy the story. Well-plotted and a fast read. I enjoyed immensely.
This book was okay. It was predictable about half way through, so I wasn’t surprised by the ending. The writing was mediocre and had a lot of repetitiveness. I did finish reading it though, so it was horrible.
3.5 stars. I liked this book better than The Couple Next Door. I found the plot to be more enticing and the writing to be better. With that said, I didn’t love this book by any means. It felt formulaic and predictable to me BUT it was a quick, easy read that I wanted to see through to the end.
Karen and Tom have the ideal life. Marriage is good and both seem happy. One evening, Tom returns home to find Karen has disappeared. The door has been left unlocked, dinner has been started, and Karen’s phone and bag have been left behind. Tom calls 911 and is shocked at how quickly officers arrive at his house. Unfortunately, the officers aren’t responding to Tom’s call at all, but to tell him they believe Karen has been involved in a serious car accident on the wrong side of town. Tom is dismayed and cannot comprehend his wife’s behavior to the point he doubts his wife was the one driving the car. When a man is discovered murdered near the accident scene, secrets begin to quickly unravel.
This book was a page turner for me. I was truly curious as to how the ending would play out. I felt it was a bit predictable and I wasn’t really surprised at who the perpetrator was, but I enjoyed the unveiling of each new secret and the character’s reactions to them.
All in all, I enjoyed this book much more than her first. If you are looking for a quick read and aren’t overly concerned with character depth (or general likability of the characters for that matter), then this book fits the bill. It’s an interesting read that doesn’t require a huge commitment.
I finished reading “A Stranger in the House” in one day. It was just impossible to put it down, as I wanted to find out so badly what happens next. I can only recommend this book.
Totally recommend. Again, the queen of domestic thrillers still reigns in this book.
I loved this book! Even when I thought I knew where the twists were going, I did not want to put it down. The end dropped my jaw.
This book fascinated me! I thought the ending would be a little more predictable… no spoilers here but it’s gripping from very early on and it’s an interesting escape from the humdrum of daily life! The characters are quirky to say the least
This is the first Shari Lapena book I’ve read. It was ok, but I wasn’t overly impressed. The plot and the characters were good and the first part of the book was great. The ending is what really disappointed me. It seemed rushed and jumped time a little to finish a little more quickly than I would have liked. I wanted to hear more of how the situations were resolved rather than just know they were. Even only giving this book 3 stars I will definitely give another of her books a try.
Forgettable
A gripping read which I really enjoyed. Shari knows how to draw a reader in and keep you turning the pages for more!
This book is definitely worth your time! It didn’t earn 5 stars because there were just some loose ends that really didn’t get the explanation that they deserved. I was left with more questions than I would’ve thought. But overall, still a great book.
I enjoyed the book: A jealous neighbor, a quiet husband, sabotage, hidden secrets, you just can’t guess what’s happening.
I loved this book
Good book but got predicable near the end! Enjoyable though!
I cannot see how this made it past a top-level editor and got sent out as “the next bestseller.” It took me a while to get past the lazy writing, riddled with adverbs in every other sentence. Then I settled into the story which moved quickly but the characters were predictable and flat. I kept reading because I wanted to believe there would be some great twist in the story. It did not come. It assumed no one had seen Sleeping With The Enemy, which now looks like an Oscar nominee in character building comparison, and never built a plausible backstory I cared about. This was the thinnest story I’ve read in years and leaves me with little hope that traditional publishing will survive.
So a good thriller. Never saw the end coming!
Loved this book!! All of her books are great and hard to put down!
REVIEW
Karen is such a likable character, along with her husband Tom and best friend Brigid, that is of course only at the beginning. They all have secrets and pasts that come out of the woodwork and the lovable characters you thought you knew, change once you learn the truth and facts about their past and lies of the present. Makes me think they may have some chance in being involved in at least some of the fowl play that pops up.
You view the police as the enemy going after a poor woman that has suffered a traumatic accident and now has no memory. You feel bad and you want to defend her. The best friend, Brigid across the street is nosy, annoying and intrusive. She has no life so watches Karen and Tom’s life play out from across the street. Makes you wonder if that’s all she does. And the good husband, supportive, caring and loving; standing by his wife through it all. Until you ask yourself about some of the questionable decisions he has made in the past and even now, leaves you to think, is he as really great as you thought he was.
All of them come under scrutiny after they do and say very suspicious things. This book will have you in your toes guessing!