Review - The Family Across the Street

Title:   The Family Across the Street

Author:  Nicole Trope

Publisher:  Bookouture

Genre:   Psychological Thriller

Format:  Kindle ARC

No. of Pages:   260

Date of Publication:  August 6, 2021  

My Rating:   5 Stars

DESCRIPTION:

Sometimes, the most perfect families are hiding the most terrible secrets. How well do you know the people next door…?

Everybody wants to live on Hogarth Street, the pretty, tree-lined avenue with its white houses. The new family, The Wests, are a perfect fit. Katherine and John seem so in love and their gorgeous five-year-old twins race screeching around their beautiful emerald-green lawn.

But soon people start to notice: why don’t they join backyard barbecues? Why do they brush away offers to babysit? Why, when you knock at the door, do they shut you out, rather than inviting you in?

Every family has secrets, and on the hottest day of the year, the truth is about to come out. As a tragedy unfolds behind closed doors, the dawn chorus is split by the wail of sirens. And one by one the families who tried so hard to welcome the Wests begin to realise: Hogarth Street will never be the same again.

A completely gripping, twist-packed psychological thriller, perfect for fans of Liane Moriarty, Sally Hepworth and Lisa Jewell. 

Link to purchase the book

MY THOUGHTS:

In this shocking story of a family held in acute fear by a gun - by someone that should love them, Katherine and her five-year-old twins Sophie and George are beyond terrified. How does love turn into hate? Will the three of them survive? 

Meanwhile, a delivery man named Logan knows something is not right. However, he is an ex-con covered with violent tattoos and resists the urge to push for what he knows he should do because he is in fear of how he will be looked upon. Then there is the Gladys, who is pretty much the neighborhood watch. She notices everything going on in her neighborhood, even though she is fairly well overwhelmed caring for her invalid husband Lou. She just knows something is wrong, but she is pretty certain the police won't take her seriously. She is desperate to do something, but what can she do? All the while, Katherine and her children are terrified. The man holding the gun is literally a hair trigger away from bringing absolute devastation. 

What a riveting book from the estimible Nicole Trope! To say this book is a page turner is the least that I can say. On the one hand we wonder what Logan and Gladys could possibly do. More imporantly, we are left to worry about the safety of the family. Meanwhile, Logan has his own drama concerning his partner Debbie and also his sister Maddie. His story is heartbreaking and flows quite well within the pages of this domestic thriller. There are some shocking, heartbreaking and terrifying moments. Fear and bravery are at war in this amazing story. The ending was completely unexpected. Kudos to Nicole Trope. I have only read a few of her books but as soon as reasonably possible I plan on devouring her backlist. 

Many thanks to Bookouture and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Nicole Trope went to university to study Law but realised the error of her ways when she did very badly on her first law essay because, as her professor pointed out, ‘It’s not meant to be a story.’

She studied teaching instead and used her holidays to work on her writing career and complete a Masters’ degree. In between raising three children, working for her husband and renovating houses, she has published six novels. She lives in Sydney, Australia.

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