listened to this book on audio while traveling across state lines. I think it might have been a disservice to the book to try to listen while my attention was divided. While the narrator was good, I was having trouble keeping up with the perspective and time changes. It made it difficult for me to connect to the characters as I would just get into one of their mindsets and it would change.

Pros:

The character well developed with different personalities and motivations for their actions. They have connections that are realistic with problems between them all that they work on or just work at ignoring.

I appreciate that unlike some books you get a full picture of motivations and who has done what. You walk away from this book with the questions answered and a sense of what the future holds.

Cons:

I am not a huge fan of multiple POV or time jumping so that added to not being able to fully focus on the story made it a difficult listen. I think this would be much better read first or only in print/on screen or when you aren’t doing anything else.

It is a little depressing to me that most of the focus was almost fully on the bad actions of people and the only character who came off as “good” was more of a side character.

Thank you to NetGalley, HTP Harper Collins, Park Row Books, and Harlequin Audio for the ALC, e-arc and print arc!

I enjoyed this locked-room thriller. I loved the atmospheric setting . There were so many POV and multiple timelines/storylines that I had to take notes as I read/listened to keep them all straight. (While the audio narration was great, I think this story would have really benefitted from multiple narrators for each POV). Nonetheless, I still enjoyed it and would recommend it. I flew through this audio/book - I was so curious how both storylines intersected. Everything felt wrapped up nicely in the end.

Congrats, Lisa Unger on number 20!!

If you enjoy locked-room mysteries and stories about flawed families with lots of secrets - this is the book for you!

From my blog: Always With a Book

I have long been a fan of Lisa Unger, ever since reading Fragile a few years back. I love that her books are dark and twisty and that you think you know what it going on, but you could not be more wrong.

I loved this creepy locked-room mystery. Right from the start, I was pulled in and while I didn’t necessary love the characters, I found myself intrigued by their behaviors. Having the story told from multiple points of view adds to the suspense. The introduction of the DNA tests definitely gave me pause and had me wondering how that would work its way into the overall plot, and of course the secluded cabin in the woods with a threatening storm coming lent itself to an atmospheric, tense read.

There are a lot of moving parts to this story and I loved how it all eventually comes together. I loved that the way this was written, with all the characters having their own secrets and complicated relationships with each other, naturally leads you to be suspicious of them. Each time I thought I had figured things out, there would be a new twist that would shake everything up.

I’m hesitant to say much more about the book for fear of spoilers, so I will say this…I loved this book. It might be my new favorite of Lisa Ungers books. It’s definitely an entertaining, dark, binge-worthy read and I highly recommend it.


Audio thoughts: This book translates so well onto audio. The narrator, Vivienne Leheny, does a great job bringing this story to life. Her pacing and intonation are spot on and she infuses just the right amount of tension into her voice as needed. She really nailed this audio and I will definitely be looking to see what else she narrates!

Ugh this book was a roller coaster ride for me. On the one hand, the plot, the location and some of the twists were great. Seriously brought the chill, creepy factor. On the other hand the characters were blah. There were too many of them, they all shared their point of view which at times was confusing and honestly they were all just terrible people. I think if this were shared from the perspective of one or two people I would have enjoyed it more. It could have been amazing, but was just ehh for me.

Thanks netgalley for my advanced reader copy.

This was a fantastic domestic thriller full of family lies and twists. I loved the way the story slowly revealed itself but didn’t feel like a slow read. I thought the narrator was excellent and the audio was easy to follow even though the book was told in multiple Points of View.

This book had the most point of views I had ever seen in a book. Normally, I love multiple Point of views but this was excessive. Two to three are usually my maximum and four is pushing it but this book had seven at my last count of them. That was excessive and it took me out of the story so fast. I wish it could have been different because I thought the plot was really going somewhere but I just could not get past this key component in this book.

Secluded Cabin Sleeps is the newest novel from Lisa Unger.

"Three couples rent a remote, luxury cabin in the woods for a weekend getaway. Something is off though. The private chef tells them of the murder that happened there years ago...and the young girl that haunts the lake. The owner is a little creepy and there's a big storm headed their way.

But unknown to the group - there's someone lurking in the woods that's unwilling to let secrets lie buried any longer."

There are several storylines so this takes a while to get going. There are the usual secrets of a thriller - the previous bad family decisions - a storm knocking the power out - and betrayal. It initially feels like it's going to be an "adults behaving badly" story but Unger adds more. She is one of a growing number of writers who are including the consequences of sharing DNA on geneology sites.

Unger hides the bad guy and the betrayal well. There are clues but you're never sure.

There is a Brad at the end who gets a paragraph. He's a tech mogul, money launderer who gets decapitated. Again, no love for Brads.

Great job on the audiobook by Vivienne Leheny. Lots of voices and characters.

Fans of domestic thrillers will enjoy this new story from Unger.

Have you sent your DNA to a site? Found any lost relatives?

The storyline is thrilling and mysterious. You have no idea what the heck is going on because there are so many possibilities. Definitely keeps you guessing until the very end.

Secluded Cabin Sleeps Six by Lisa Unger is an atmospheric thriller set in a cabin in the woods. Three couples are off for a fun weekend getaway. Little do they know that their lives are about to be upended in a very unpleasant way. Secrets will be revealed and loyalties will be tested. I listened to the audiobook and really enjoyed the narrator. She did a great job varying the tone of her voice to represent various characters in the story. This is the perfect book for a dark and stormy night. Read and enjoy!

While I enjoyed this messy chaos of a book the reason for 3 stars is so many people involved. It does go back and forth for POV. It can get a tad confusing at times of who was being discussed. The ending was not what I was expecting lol.

Thanks Netgalley for the audiobook

“What people show the world is rarely the whole truth, especially these days when everything must be curated and cropped, filtered and brightened. Real life is messy and complicated. Ugly.”

Three couples rent a luxury cabin in the woods for a weekend getaway to die for. Hannah’s loving and generous tech-mogul brother Mako found the listing online. It’s his birthday gift to Hannah and includes their spouses and another couple. But the dreamy weekend is about to turn into a nightmare. A deadly storm is brewing. The rental host seems just a little too present. The personal chef reveals that the house has a spine-tingling history. And the friends have their own complicated past, with secrets that run blood deep. How well does Hannah know her brother, her own husband? Can she trust her best friend? And who is the new boyfriend, crashing their party? Who is the stranger among them?

I loved this book in the beginning, like couldn’t put it down. I was so drawn to this creepy isolated cabin and these family members and their myriad of secrets. But by about the halfway point it became a little disjointed. There are two storylines running but it’s not until you are almost done with the story that you learn how they are intertwined, and it’s almost as if it doesn’t even matter at that point. I had some issues with just how many things were happening, making the storyline a bit choppy.

I very much enjoyed the audio. The narrator did a great job of making each voice distinct as there are a lot of characters. That really helps me keep everyone straight while listening.

Thank you to Netgalley, Harper Audio, Legend Press, and the author for the ARC and ALC in exchange for an honest review.

this book tried to do too much. for the majority it felt like I was reading two books. the multiple POVs were confusing and the way the women were painted and attacked was just wrong. especially when for the most part the men were the not great people

📖My Thoughts📖

The more I read Lisa Unger’s books, the more I love her writing. She really knows how to write a thriller! I love the twists in this book as well as the interesting and unique storyline. Suspense was also another killer element brought into the mix! There were quite a few characters involved in this book, and while it does take a little bit to keep them all straight, it all comes together nicely. I love the multiple points of view approach for this, giving the reader that much more insight into each character. I was so excited when I was granted the opportunity to review this audiobook and it most definitely did not disappoint! Definitely check this one out if you’re looking for a new thriller! It gives the meaning of family a whole new perspective.
Thank you Netgalley, Lisa Unger, Harper Audio and Harlequin Audio for the opportunity to read and review this book. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

⚠️This book contains trigger warnings, including but not limited to rape, miscarriages and suicide.

This was a very interesting story. I applaud the author for writing such a marvelous mystery that has no loose ends. I will definitely recommend this book to other mystery/thriller readers.

Really enjoyed the audiobook of this thriller! Six people are vacationing in a cabin together, and things get crazy. We have the POV of three of the people from the cabin, as well as three other people who are connected to the story. It wasn't as confusing as it sounds, and it all came together well. There were two small things about the end that I didn't like, so I'll give it 4.5 stars. But overall really good!!

Things I didn't like about the ending:
-Trina being a ghost and seeing other ghosts
-Liza staying with Mako

I was really looking forward to Secluded Cabin Sleeps Six based on the description. But for me there was too much going on and I found all the characters unlikeable. The story felt jumbled and apart from the setting having some potential creepiness, the horror came from how terribly the characters treated one another. I know that style of scary story is popular with a lot of readers, but it's not something that appeals to me.

Classic locked room mystery. Wasn't great. Too many secrets and the plot gets muddled. Not a lot of character depth.

Three couples, one secluded cabin, power outage, and murder! This book kept my interest from beginning to end. The author leads to reader to question what makes a family and how important is genetics.

Unger does it again! Meet the family that apparently has it all--but with "it all" comes a lot of secrets. At the beginning of the tale, we learn the family all receive DNA kits (think 23 and Me) as a gift, but no one will fess up. The brother, Mako, is the wealthy figure in the family and it's his idea to rent a stellar "cabin" in Georgia for himself and his wife, his sister Hannah, her husband, her friend (who he used to date and her new boyfriend), As a reader we get perspectives from all of the characters' stories do not line up. But that is what makes Unger's work so inviting.

Once the group arrives at this breathtaking airbnb, things do not go as planned---almost immediately. Hold into your hats, your in for a bumpy night.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and the audio version kept me on my toes. I would recommend to any fan of Unger's previous work, or fan of thrillers in general, This will be a bestseller--no doubt.

In general I enjoyed the story. It was a good concept. I just felt it was very confusing and it took too long to get to the heart of the novel. There was so much build up. So much character development that it took half the book before the action really got started. Once they really got into the story, it was better paced and interesting.