AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER!USA Today’s top 100 books to read while stuck at home social distancing “No-one does suburban paranoia like Shari Lapena–this slowly unfurling nightmare will have you biting your nails until the end.” –Ruth Ware, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Woman in Cabin 10The new domestic suspense novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The … domestic suspense novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The Couple Next Door, A Stranger in the House, and An Unwanted Guest, Shari Lapena
Maybe you don’t know your neighbors as well as you thought you did . . .
“This is a very difficult letter to write. I hope you will not hate us too much. . . My son broke into your home recently while you were out.”
In a quiet, leafy suburb in upstate New York, a teenager has been sneaking into houses–and into the owners’ computers as well–learning their secrets, and maybe sharing some of them, too.
Who is he, and what might he have uncovered? After two anonymous letters are received, whispers start to circulate, and suspicion mounts. And when a woman down the street is found murdered, the tension reaches the breaking point. Who killed her? Who knows more than they’re telling? And how far will all these very nice people go to protect their own secrets?
In this neighborhood, it’s not just the husbands and wives who play games. Here, everyone in the family has something to hide . . .
You never really know what people are capable of.
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“Someone We Know” starts with a frightening scene and a first person narrative that grabs readers’ attention. “I stand above her, breathing heavily, the hammer in my hand dripping blood onto the floor.” Later, Robert Pierce enters the Aylesford police station to report that his wife is missing.
Aylesford, a city in New York’s Hudson Valley, is a place of many charms, but this idyllic little city is a hot mess of crime, secrecy, adultery, and murder. It is filled with unruly teenagers and uncontrollable adults. The citizens wear masks of innocence, and yet all have something to hide.
Reading about these upstanding citizens is like seeing a wreck on the freeway, you just have to slow down and look at the carnage; you know you should look away, but you just cannot help yourself. Page after page reads like a soap opera, and it is crazy addictive. The things people do are outrageous, and yet they all pretend that everything is fine. Someone is dead; everyone proclaims innocence and points fingers at everyone else.
Readers have a front row seat to the murder in the first chapter, but the possible suspects rotate like a merry-go-round. I looked back at that first passage to see if my “suspect” matched those events, and then something else happened, and I had to read the murder again, and then again. The nightmare was not over, it had simply changed shape. Finally, just as I thought things had fallen into place, surprise, there was one final little complication I had not expected.
“Someone We Know” is addictive. It is all about not getting caught, about getting away with everything and anything. I received a review copy of “Someone We Know” from Shari Lapena, Penguin Publishing Group, and Pamela Dorman Books. People do crazy things, and they are all in this book. It grabbed me from the start and kept me turning the pages, shaking my head.
I recommend anything written by Shari Lapena!!
I love Shari Lapena’s writing. There’s nothing clunky about it, her economy of language is amazing and I just glide through her words.
This is a great story; full of secrets, jealousy, crappy neighbors and one spoiled teenager.
Read it.
You see that person across the way, peeking through their blinds. Oh, you didn’t notice? Don’t worry, they noticed you and all your sins that you should have kept behind closed curtains.
My husband always wants to keep our curtains closed. Maybe I should be wondering what he’s getting up to when I’m not at home. Maybe I should get a pair of binoculars and start watching my neighbors. Then again, I may not like what I see.
Shari Lapena’s book, Someone We Know, had me thinking those thoughts while I was reading it. Best part, I was in a hotel in downtown Chicago so I could peer across the road into other windows and have a perfect view. Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, I didn’t see much besides a few people walking around their room.
I can see why my Books Don’t Review Themselves podcast partner, Jess, enjoys Shari Lapena so much. She really has mastered the art of slowly letting secrets slip. Just when you think you know what is going on or who the killer is, Lapena lets another bit of information be revealed. It amused me how this kept happening to the police, and how sarcastic they became as the story progressed.
And the fact that Lapena could keep everyone’s secret flowing well speaks to an organized author or a really good editing team. Probably both. I didn’t catch any mistakes besides the ones that the suspects themselves made when telling their partial truths.
Another part of the book that was done perfectly was how many side stories Lapena had throughout the book. It wasn’t just one main mystery of trying to find the killer, but who was cheating with whom, who was not where they said they were, and who was sticking up for others and for what reason. And some of those reasons were to protect themselves more so than the other person.
I don’t want to even give a little clue as to who the killer is because the small thing that I wanted to say would give it away. But it was because of this small thing, that in my mind was a bigger thing, that I gave Someone We Know, four stars instead of five. After you read the book that might make sense. If not, leave a comment and I’ll let you know my sticking point in the book.
This story had vestiges of Desperate Housewives to me. And of course, I continued to enjoy Ms. Lapena’s ability to capture the thoroughness of individual personalities and right them into her characters, and then put the heat on them. Love it!
What would you do if you found out that someone had broken into your house? They didn’t take anything but hacked into your computer. Two neighbors in an upstate New York neighborhood get anonymous letters telling them this. Meanwhile, a woman down the street goes missing and is then found dead. Suddenly, everyone is not sure they fell like they really know their neighbors. A fast paced thrilling read!
keeps you guessing until the end.
Another great book! I loved this book fr beginning to end. I do however wish I knew what Robert was hiding in Amanda’s phone though.
A perfect read. Great plot, pacing, and characters. Kept the heat up the whole time. Her best yet.
This is one of the best thrillers I’ve read recently. Trust me when I say, you’ll never look at your neighbors the same way again. Gave me some serious shivers.
The starts out with a woman being murdered, but not sure who the killer is. Ok, I like suspense. Unfortunatley the book seems to then veer off course and it becomes more about a boy breaking into peoples houses. I mean it still went on about trying to figure out who the murderer was and giving all sort of suspects and possibilities, but for me the boy and his mother seemed to take over.
I couldn’t really get into this. The mom writes a letter to apologize for her son breaking into people houses. I get why she feels bad, but her character annoyed the crap out of me. She kept doing things that made the situation worse…was that part of the story or was she just annoying?
This book is a must read! It was difficult to put down. So many secrets! Do you think you know your neighbor? Your friends? What about your best friend? Do you really know them? Would you cover for them? What about your spouse and children? Do you think they are honest with you? Would you lie for them? This book will have you looking at everyone around you and wondering if they are hiding things from you. I have read a couple other Shari Lapena books and really, this woman can spin a tale! Just when you think you know what happens, she pulls a rabbit out of her hat. The last quarter of this book had me turning pages and dizzy from all the twists! As amazing as it was though, I felt a little cheated at the end. I need to know more! I guess I will have to settle for another awesome book from this author.
This is the 3rd book I have read by Ms. Lapena, and it gets 5 stars as well. I was instantly drawn in to this story. How well do we really know our neighbors? Sure, we know them to say hello or offer to help them with some small task. But for the most part, we all have secrets we wouldn’t want getting out. The author does an incredible job of exposing what happens when those little secrets start coming out into the open. I loved the story – and the way it ended, I would love even a short follow-up story. Though I don’t feel this is a cliffhanger…the story felt wrapped up, but I would love more. I’m anxiously waiting for my copy of her next release to arrive!
I checked this book out of the library and am voluntarily sharing my honest review.
Great cliffhangers at the end of every chapter. Every character is super shady. As a reader, I couldn’t trust any of them. Intense, well written, heart pounding novel. Shari Lapena never disappoints.
On par with all of Ms. Lapenas books. I’ve read every one of them and each one is better than the last. As usual, plot is original, with unexpected twists and kept me up until early hours of morning so I could finish it
This whodunit, with it’s scandalous neighbors and wayward teen, ushers us through a puzzling murder investigation.
Everyone has a secret in this neighborhood full of suspects that want Amanda Pierce dead. We all know it’s usually the husband, but there is no shortage of possible culprits here. The entire time I was reading this book, the song “Who’s Cheatin’ Who” was stuck in my head!
I really enjoy Lapena’s writing, but I didn’t care for this one as much as I thought I would. This mystery was told in alternating viewpoints, by more characters than I was currently able to focus on.
Thank you to Edelweiss, Pamela Dorman Books and Shari Lapena for this digital ARC, in exchange for my honest review.
My Rating: 3.5’s (rounding down)
Published: July 30th 2019 by Pamela Dorman Books
Pages: 304
@sharilapena @PamelaDormanBks #SomeoneWeKnow
Another scandalous thriller by my favorite author! I was about to say how upset I was by finishing the 4th and last book… but it looks like there is another!
*Nonsoecific spoiler*It’s pretty good. I usually love her books, but this one wasn’t my fave. It’s not bad – keeps you guessing for a bit, but I think that was what kept it from being better for me. There are too many obvious choices leaving so much reasonable doubt that you kinda figure it out by accident.
Thank you to my #Partner @vikingbooks for sending me this copy of “Someone We Know” by Shari Lapena. I absolutely love thrillers!
In a quiet suburb in upstate New York, a teen has been sneaking into houses & into their computers as well. Learning their secrets and perhaps sharing them too.
Who is it? What might they have uncovered? After two anonymous letter are received, whispers begin to circulate and suspicion builds. Then a woman down the street is found murdered and everyone is wondering who did it and who knows more than what they are telling?
How far will these nice people go to protect their own secrets? In this neighborhood…it’s not just the husbands and wives who play games; everyone in the family has something to hide.
Great book